Unit 12 A Case of “Severe Bias”Words and Expressions综合教程四.doc

UNIT 12 A CASE OF “SEVERE BIAS”Words and Expressionsilliterate: a.(1) not able to read or writee.g. You must be illiterate if youve never heard of Marx. He is musically illiterate.addicted: a. (1) unable to stop taking or using sth. as a habite.g. become addicted to drugs, alcohol, tobacco, etc.(2) strongly interested in sth. as a hobby or pastime e.g. He is addicted to TV soap operas.dysfunctional: a. abnormally functioninge.g. Children from a dysfunctional family is more likely to be shy.Antonym: functionale.g. After repairs, the railroad is functional again. Im hardly functional if I dont get eight hours sleep!insidious: a. spreading or acting gradually and unnoticed but with harmful effectse.g. He had insidiously wormed his way into her affections. The leaflets were a more insidious form of propaganda. Synonym: sinister, menacing e.g. a sinister motive/action There was something cold and sinister about him. a menacing face/tone At night, the dark streets become menacing.warfare: n.(1) the activity of fighting a war, especially using particular weapons or methods e.g. There were many countries engaged in warfare.(2) the activity of competing in an aggressive way with another group, company, etc.e.g. The debate soon degenerated into open warfare.Comparison: warfare & warwarfare: the activity of fighting in a war, used esp. when talking about particular methods of fightinge.g. diplomatic/economic warfarewar: fighting between two or more countries or opposing groups within a country, involving large numbers of soldiers and weaponse.g. If a war breaks out, many other countries will be affected.on welfare: the state of receiving money paid by the government to support ones lifee.g. More and more people are living on welfare as a result of the financial crisis. deduce: v. arrive at (facts, a theory, etc.) by reasoning; infer sth. e.g. Detectives deduced from the clues who had committed the crime. We deduce from his behavior that he is trying to gain attention.Derivation: deductione.g. Its an obvious deduction that she is guilty. The dividend will be paid without the deduction of tax.myopic: a.(1) medical unable to see things clearly that are far awaye.g. He thinks that Dolly is myopic and should see a good doctor.(2) unwilling or unable to think about the future e.g. He is politically myopic. The government still has a myopic attitude to public spending. Synonym: short-sighted e.g. He was too short-sighted to focus on the object. Until this short-sighted policy is reversed we shall never make any progress.pathetic: a.(1) causing one to feel pity or sadness e.g. The pathetic sight of starving children made her burst into cry.(2) extremely inadequate; contemptiblee.g. His answers were pathetically erpreter: n.(1) a person whose job is to translate what sb. is saying into another languagee.g. Speaking through an interpreter, the President said that the talks were going well.(2) a person who performs a piece of music or a role in a play in a way that clearly shows its meaninge.g. She was considered one of the finest interpreters of Debussys music.Comparison: interpreter & translatorinterpreter: a person who interprets, esp. one who translates speech orallye.g. He spoke very little English, so I talked to him through an interpreter. translator: a person who translates writing or speech into a different language.e.g. His love of language inclined him towards a career as a translator.(be) guilty of: having done sth. illegal; (being) responsible for sth. bad that has happened e.g. The jury found the defendant not guilty of the offence. Weve all been guilty of selfishness at some time in our lives. in a good light:(1) with a proper lighting conditione.g. Read in a good light lest it should hurt your eyes.(2) from a positive perspectivee.g. Optimists tend to see things in a good light.underclass: n. the lowest social class, consisting of people who are very poor and who are not likely to be able to improve their situatione.g. As an urban underclass, he has very limited access to health care. The long-term unemployed are becoming a new underclass.Synonym: lower classe.g. I am from one of the lower classes and Im proud of it.beset: v. surround (sb./sth.) on all sides; trouble constantly; threaten e.g. The voyage was beset with dangers. The team was beset by injury all season. validity: n.(1) the state of being legally or officially acceptablee.g. The period of validity of the agreement has expired.(2) the state of being logical and truee.g. We had doubts about the validity of their argument.Synonym: soundness, legitimacye.g. He now enjoys soundness of mind and body. I doubt the soundness of the theory. the legitimacy of the government It is difficult to judge the legitimacy of the child. scenario: n.(1) a situation that could possibly happene.g. Imagine a scenario where only 20% of people have a job.(2) written outline of a film, play, etc. with details of the scenes and plote.g. It looked ominously like we were about to repeat the earlier scenario.be relegated to: be given a lower or less important position, rank, etc. than beforee.g. I have been relegated to the role of a mere assistant. Synonym: be downgraded to, be reduced to e.g. Shes been downgraded from principal to deputy. The embassy will be downgraded to a trade office. They were reduced to begging or starving. Every building in this area was reduced to rubble. twilight zone:a gray area, a border in-between two or more things that is unclearly defined, a border that is hard to define or even impossible to definee.g. Wrestling is in a twilight zone between sport and entertainment.aberrant: a. not following the normal or correct way e.g. aberrant behavior/ideas an rocket on an aberrant courseAntonym: anomalous, deviante.g. He is in an anomalous position as the only part-time worker in the firm. These beliefs are labeled deviant by the majority.pervasive: a. existing in all parts of a place or thinge.g. A sense of social change is pervasive in her novels.infest: v. live in (a place) persistently and in large numbers e.g. Our garden is infested with weeds.Collocation: infest sth. (with/by sth.)e.g. The Strait of Malacca was infested with pirates. The streets are inf