BBC news 2011-03-30 加文本

词汇讲解：

1. figure n. 人物
例句：He was one of the great figures in history. 
 他是历史上的伟大人物之一。

2. option n. 可选择的东西[C]
例句：The options are limited, but I'll go over them. 
 可供选择的办法是有限的，我来看一遍。

3. repeatedly adv. 再三地，重复地
例句：He repeatedly pushed forward his own claim. 
 他不断地提出自己的要求。

4. assistance n. 帮助，援助
例句：He refused the proffered assistance. 
 他拒绝接受向他提供的帮助。

5. indeed adv. (加强语气)真正地,确实,实在
例句：A friend in need is a friend indeed.
患难之交才是真正的朋友。

6. ferocious adj. 凶猛的，残暴的
例句：The badger and the snake had a ferocious battle in the woods. 
 獾和蛇在树林里进行了一场恶斗。 

7. upshot n. 结果
例句：What was the upshot of it all ? 
 结果究竟怎样了? 

8. mediate v. 调停，调解，斡旋
例句：He understood that we could not mediate effectively until it was clear that our actions had not been extorted by Soviet pressure. 
 他知道，除非清楚地表明我们的行动没有受到苏联压力的讹诈，否则我们是不能有效地进行斡旋的。

9. abandon v. 丢弃，遗弃
例句：She felt herself constrained to abandon the idea. 
 她觉得自己不得不放弃这个主意。
 
10. discrimination n. 歧视
例句：She sued the company for racial discrimination. 
 她以种族歧视为由对公司起诉。

11. lawsuit n. 诉讼
例句：That lawsuit lasted a long time but we finally won out. 
 起诉拖了很久，不过，我们终于获得最后胜利。

12. allege v. 断言，宣称
例句：He would again and again allege that he was wholly unfitted to new duties. 
 他一再指出，他完全不适合担任新的职务。

13. overlook v. 忽视，忽略
例句：My calculation was wrong because I overlooked one tiny point.
由于我忽略了一个细微之处,我的计算错了。

14. levy v. 征收，征税
例句：Congress is empowered to levy taxes. 
 国会被授权征税。

15. underway adj. 正在进行中的
例句：Economic recovery is supposedly getting underway. 
 经济据称正在恢复中。

16. tension n. 紧张，紧张状态
例句：In the end, the internal tensions did not go to the breaking point. 
 最后，内部的紧张局势并没有达到破裂点。