21世纪大学英语读写教程第二册Unit4

Unit4 Turning Failure into success

1.vote

(sb.) to have (a particular title); elect

2. 投票选举(或制定、决定、赞成、支持、通过)

vi. (for, against, on) express one's choice officially at a meeting or in an election

n. 选举；投票；选票

Examples:

She was voted Best Director at the Shanghai Film Festival.

A woman was shouting “Vote for Kennedy! Vote Kennedy!”

We called a meeting in order to take a vote on the issue.

2.Promotion

n.1) advancement in rank or position

2) attempt to make a product or an event popular or successful, esp. by advertising

Examples:

The promotion of Anne to vice president was expected.

The promotion of the new product cost thousands of dollars.

3.Nervous breakdown

an unnatural condition of deep worrying, anxiety, weeping or tiredness

To have a nervous breakdown is to become mentally ill, usually as a result of working too hard or of difficult emotional problems, and be temporarily unable to deal with ordinary things such as working or looking after your family.

Examples:

He was forced to give up his job after suffering a nervous breakdown.

After her divorce, Laura had a nervous breakdown and was off work for three months.

4.Panic

n. a feeling or state of sudden uncontrollable and quickly spreading fear

Examples:

He got into a panic about examinations.

The thought of flying alone filled me with panic.

There is a strong likelihood of panic if a fire starts in the building.

5.Rejection

n. the act of rejecting or being rejected

Examples:

John was angered by his classmates' rejection of his proposal.

I've had so many rejections that I've stopped offering to help her.

6.Reaction

n. response or change caused by the action of another

Examples:

My reaction to Bob's insult was to leave the room.

Reactions to the proposal so far have been favorable.

A chemical reaction is two or more substances reacting with and changing each other.

Example:

The explosion was caused by a chemical reaction.

7.place emphasis on

Give sth. special force or attention to show that it is particularly important

Examples:

In Japanese society, a lot of emphasis is laid on academic success.

This dictionary places a special emphasis on grammar.

8.In the long run

--after enough time; in the end

Examples:

It pays to buy goods of high quality in the long run.

Computers can, in the long run, be made more secure than any bank.

9.Beneficial

a. producing favorable effects or useful results

Examples:

Sunshine and rain are beneficial to the crops in the field.

This new drug is beneficial for sufferers from AIDS.

10.Deal with

1). a job dealing with people -- a job that involves handling human relations

2). deal with sth. -- handle or attend to sth. (usu. sth. that needs attention or concern)

Examples:

Haven't you dealt with that letter yet?

The Finance Officer deals with all the finances of the university.

11.Be prone to

1. (to) habitually likely to do sth. (usu. undesirable )

Examples:

He is prone to lose temper when others disagree with him.

Angela is rather prone to exaggeration.

2. To be prone to also means to be likely to become ill or to get a particular illness.

Examples:

You're more prone to illnesses when you're tired.

My sister is prone to flu.

12.Orientation

n. a usu. general and lasting direction of thought, interest or view

-- People generally tend to look at things as having only two values, or two sides: anything that is not good must be bad, that is not true be false

-- this two-valued logic is called “the two-valued orientation” by Hayakawa.

17. a world of = a lot of

There's a world of difference between the old Chinese society and the new one.

That experience gave him a world of good.

18. complex

a. 1. difficult to understand, explain, or deal with; not clear or simple

2. (词或句子)复合的, 复杂的

n. a system consisting of a large number of closely related parts 综合体；复合体；群落Examples:

The student thought the algebraic formula was complex.

a complex problem/ issue/ matter