上一次的答案:
1. c 2. b 3. d 4. c 5. d 6. b 7. c 8. a
今天将学习EU和DYS两个词根。
EU. 源自希腊语,意为“well"; 在英语中也可以指"good"或"true." A veterinarian who performs euthanasia is providing a very sick or hopelessly injured animal a "good" or easy death.
eugenic.(优生学) Relating to or fitted for the production of good offspring(后代) through controlled breeding.
例句:Eugenic techniques have been part of sheep breeding for many years.
The word eugenic, like the name Eugene, includes the Greek root meaning "born". Breeders of farm animals have long used eugenic methods to produce horses that run faster, for example, or pigs that provide more meat. Through eugenics, Holstein cows have become one of the world's highest producers of milk. But eugenics also has a dark side. The idea of human eugenics was taken up enthusiastically by the Nazis in the 20th century, with terrible consequences.
euphemism.(委婉说法) An agreeable or inoffensive word or expression that is substituted for one that may offend or disgust.
例句:The Victorians, uncomfortable with the physical side of human existence, had euphemisms for most bodily functions.
The use of euphemisms is an ancient part of the English language, and perhaps of all languages, and all of us use them. Golly and gosh started out as euphemisms for God, and darn is a familiar euphemism for damn. Shoot, shucks, and sugar are all euphemistic substitutes for a well-known vulgar word. Pass away for die, misspeak for lie, downsize for fire, senior citizen for old person-that list goes on and on.
euphoria. A strong feeling of well-being or happiness.
例句:Swept up in the euphoria of a Super Bowl victory, the whole city seemed to hav poured out into the street.
Euphoria is the feeling of an intense (and usually temporary) "high." Doctors use the word for the kind of abnormal or inappropriate high spirits that might be caused by a drug or by mental illness, but euphoria is usually natural and appropriate. When we win enough money in the lottery to buy several small Pacific islands, or even just when the home team wins the championship, we have good reason to feel euphoric.
eulogy. (1) formal speech or writing especially in honor of a dead person. (2) High praise.
例句:The book was a fond eulogy to the 1950s, when Americans had joined social organizations of all kinds.
With its -logy ending, eulogy means literally something like "good speech." We are told to speak only good of the dead, but a eulogist actually makes a speech in the dead person's honor--or often instead for someone living, who might actually be there in the audience. The most famous eulogies include Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and Pericles' funeral oration for the Athenian warriors; but these are only two of the many great eulogies, which continue to be delivered not only at funerals and memorial services but at retirement parties, anniversary parties, and birthday parties.
DYS. 源自希腊语,意为"bad"或"difficult." So dysphagia is difficult swallowing, and dyspnea is difficult or labored breathing. Dysphasia is an inability to use and understand language because of injury to or disease of the brain. Dys- is sometimes close in meaning to dis-, but try not to confuse the two.
dystopia.(反面乌托邦) An imaginary place where people lead dehumanized and often fearful lives.
例句:For a 10-year-old British boy, boarding school could be a grim dystopia, with no comforts, harsh punishments, and constant bullying.
Dystopia was created from Utopia, the name of an ideal country imagined by Sir Thomas More in 1516. For more, the suffix -topia meant "place", and u- (from the Greek root ou) meant "no," but also perhaps "good". In other words, More's Utopia was too good to be true. It's probably no accident that dystopia was first used around 1950, soon after George Orwell published his famous novel Nineteen Eighty-Four and 16 years after Aldous Huxley published Brave New World. These two are still the most famous of the 20th century's many depressingly dystopian novels. And what about all those bleak futuristic films: Blade Runner, Brazil, The Matrix, and the rest? What does it mean when no one will paint a picture of a happy future?
dyslexia.(阅读困难) A disturbance or interference with the ability to read or to use language.
例句:She managed to deal with her dyslexia through careful tutoring all throughout elementary school.
Dyslexia is a neurological disorder that usually affects people of average or superior intelligence. Dyslexic individuals have an impaired ability to recognize and process words and letters. Dyslexia usually shows itself in the tendency to read and write words and letters in reversed order; sometimes similar reversals occur in the person's speech. Dyslexia has been shown to be treatable through patient instruction in proper reading techniques.
dyspeptic. (1) Relating to or suffering from indigestion. (2) Having an irritable temperament; ill-humored.
例句:For decades the dyspeptic columnist served as the newspaper's--and the city's--resident grouch.
Dyspeptic comes from the Greek word for "bad digestion(消化)." Interestingly, the Greek verb pessein can mean either "to cook" or "to digest"; bad cooking has been responsible for a lot of dyspepsia. Dyspepsia can be caused by many diseases, but dyspeptic individuals are often the victims of their own habits and appetites. Worry, overeating, inadequate chewing, and excessive smoking and drinking can all bring on dyspepsia. Today we generally use dyspeptic to mean "irritable" -- that is, in the kind of mood that could be produced by bad digestion.
dysplasia.(发育不良) Abnormal development of cells or organs, or an abnormal structure resulting from such growth.
例句:The infant was born with minor hip dysplasia, which was fixed by a routine operation.
Of the dozens of medical terms that begin with the dys- prefix, dysplasia (with the suffix -plasia, meaning "development") is one of the more common, though not many nondoctors know it. Structural dysplasias are usually something you're born with; they often involve the hip or the kidneys. But cell dysplasia is often associated with cancer. And a dysplastic mole--a mole that changes shape in an odd way--is always something to be concerned about.
Quiz:
Match the word on the left to the correct definition on the right:
1. dysplasia a. nightmarish society
2. euphemism b. crabby
3. dyslexia c. abnormal growth
4. eugenic d. speech of praise
5. dystopia e. polite term
6. euphoria f. reading disorder
7. dyspeptic g. promoting superior offspring
8. eulogy h. great happiness