VOA标准英语--‘Rocket Man’ Vs. ‘Dotard’ in War of Words

 

A war of words is rising between U.S. President Donald Trump¹ and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The two leaders have been exchanging unusually personal insults as international pressure on North Korea grows.

The latest examples came on Friday, when Kim called Trump a “mentally deranged² U.S. dotard.” Dotard is not used very much in American English. So it quickly became a top search word on Google Trends, and a much-discussed term on social media.

America’s Merriam Webster dictionary describes dotard as “a person in his or her dotage³.” Britain’s Oxford⁴ defines the word as “an old person, especially one who has become weak or senile.”

Kim’s insult came in response to statements made by Trump earlier this week during his speech to the United Nations General Assembly. In the speech, Trump called the North Korean leader - who often attends missile tests – “rocket man.” He also said Kim’s actions show that he appears to be on a “suicide mission.”

Trump also used his strongest words yet for Kim’s government, warning that if the U.S. ever felt threatened, it would “have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea.”

The United States and many other nations have criticized North Korea for continuing to develop nuclear weapons and carrying out repeated missile tests. The U.N. has placed sanctions on North Korea in an effort to get it to give up its nuclear weapons program.

In a statement carried by North Korean state media, Kim also said Trump would “pay dearly” for his recent threat to destroy the country. A photo and video was released of Kim reading the statement. He called Trump “a rogue⁵ and a gangster⁶” who likes “playing with fire.”

Kim said Trump’s comments had “insulted me and my country in front of the eyes of the world.” He added the U.S. president had “made the most ferocious⁷ declaration" of war in history.

In response, Kim said his country would “consider with seriousness” carrying out the “highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history.”

North Korea’s foreign minister was asked in New York during a visit for the U.N. General Assembly what this countermeasure could be. The minister, Ri Yong Ho, told South Korean TV the country might test a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean.

“I think it could be the most powerful detonation⁸ of an H-bomb in the Pacific,” the minister was quoted as saying. He then added, “We have no idea about what actions could be taken as it will be ordered by leader Kim Jong Un.”

Trump took to Twitter to respond to Kim’s latest statements. “Kim Jong Un of North Korea, who is obviously a madman who doesn't mind starving or killing⁹ his people, will be tested like never before!” he tweeted on Friday.

Trump's tweet came a day after he signed an executive order permitting the U.S. to sanction individual companies and institutions that do business with North Korea. He said the action was needed to stop those who “financially support this criminal, rogue regime.”

Some experts believe the strong words between Trump and Kim may be purposeful attempts to seek a better position during future negotiations¹⁰, if they are held.

Bong Young-shik is with Yonsei University’s Institute for North Korean Studies in Seoul. He says the war of words could mean that both sides are now trying to get the other to back down to make way for possible diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

deranged – adj. not able to think or act in a normal or logical way, especially when suffering from mental illness

dotage – n. the period of old age

senile – adj. confused and unable to remember things due to old age

sanction – n. action taken to make a country obey a rule or law

rogue – adj. used to describe something or someone that is different from others, usually in a dangerous or harmful way

gangster – n. member of a group of violent criminals

ferocious – adj. extremely angry, violent or forceful

hard-line – adj. strict and forceful way of behaving when dealing¹¹ with other people

detonation – n. explosion

madman – n. man who has severe metal illness

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 deranged   

adj.疯狂的

参考例句：

• Traffic was stopped by a deranged man shouting at the sky.一名狂叫的疯子阻塞了交通。
• A deranged man shot and killed 14 people.一个精神失常的男子开枪打死了14人。

3 dotage   

n.年老体衰；年老昏聩

参考例句：

• Even in his dotage,the Professor still sits on the committee.即便上了年纪，教授仍然是委员会的一员。
• Sarah moved back in with her father so that she could look after him in his dotage.萨拉搬回来与父亲同住，好在他年老时照顾他。

4 Oxford   

n.牛津（英国城市）

参考例句：

• At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford.他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
• This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London.这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。

5 rogue   

n.流氓；v.游手好闲

参考例句：

• The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
• They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。

6 gangster   

n.匪徒，歹徒，暴徒

参考例句：

• The gangster's friends bought off the police witness.那匪徒的朋友买通了警察方面的证人。
• He is obviously a gangster,but he pretends to be a saint.分明是强盗，却要装圣贤。

7 ferocious   

adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的

参考例句：

• The ferocious winds seemed about to tear the ship to pieces.狂风仿佛要把船撕成碎片似的。
• The ferocious panther is chasing a rabbit.那只凶猛的豹子正追赶一只兔子。

8 detonation   

n.爆炸；巨响

参考例句：

• A fearful detonation burst forth on the barricade.街垒传来一阵骇人的爆炸声。
• Within a few hundreds of microseconds,detonation is complete.在几百微秒之内，爆炸便完成了。

9 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

10 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

11 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。