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Ultimate penalty
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萨达姆被捕之后的命运成为国际社会关注的焦点，联合国秘书长安南以及欧盟都表示反对将萨达姆判处死刑。不过，美国总统布什12月16日表示，考虑到萨达姆的各种罪行，应当将这名伊拉克前统治者判处“极刑”。Ultimate penalty翻译成中文就是“极刑”，来看一段外电中的报道：Saddam Hussein deserves the "ultimate penalty" for his crimes, President Bush said Tuesday, putting the United States sharply at odds with Europe and the United Nations which adamantly oppose the death penalty.
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Ultimatum |
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在美军B-52远程轰炸机和其它战机联合轰炸的援助下，阿富汗反塔军队已向在托拉波拉地区守卫的阿尔-凯达组织成员下达了最后通牒。 Trapped fighters loyal to Osama bin Laden faced a surrender-or-die ultimatum on Thursday from US-backed Afghan tribal foes besieging them in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan. "Ultimatum"，"最后通牒"，又称"哀的美敦书"， 这个词源于ultimate（最终的），"向……发出最后通牒"正式的说法是 "to deliver/issue an ultimatum"。
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Under cover of |
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以色列军队5月31日凌晨袭击了约旦河西岸城市纳布卢斯，其中包括巴拉塔难民营，这所难民营是巴勒斯坦法塔赫组织旗下的"烈士军旅"组织的据点。外电报道说：Dozens of Israeli armored personnel carriers and several tanks raided parts of the West Bank city of Nablus including the Balata refugee camp early on Friday, under cover of heavy fire, Palestinian witnesses said. "Under cover of"的意思就是"在……的掩护下"。例如：We travelled under cover of darkness.（我们在夜幕的掩护下行进。）
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Under fire
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美国军方6月19日透露，当日，一枚火箭助推榴弹击中了巴格达南部一辆美军用救护车，造成一名美军士兵死亡，另有两人受伤。据悉，遭到袭击的救护车正护送一名受伤的美国士兵。这辆救护车是在巴格达西南一条公路上遭到袭击的。The ambulance was transporting a wounded American soldier to a medical facility when it came under fire on a highway about 20 miles south of Baghdad. 这里有个come under fire，意思就是“遭到袭击”。我们还可以说We were under fire from all sides（我们遭到了来自四面八方的枪击。）
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Under the weather
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现年50岁的英国首相布莱尔19日上午感到不适，随后被带到汉默史密斯医院接受心脏检查，医生在查明他出现心律不齐症状后，采用心律转变法使他心律恢复了正常。外电有这样的报道：Tony Blair was resting at home last night in Downing Street having undergone treatment at the Hammersmith Hospital in West London, where he was admitted earlier in the day after feeling under the weather. under the weather是一个固定短语，意思是slight ill即“身体不舒服；有点小病”，再例如：I am feeling a bit under the weather. I think I’ve caught a cold.（我感到有点不舒服，我想我得了感冒了。）
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Underline |
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在军事直升机的空中支持下，以色列坦克和装甲车8月7日凌晨攻入加沙地带两处难民营，并向一些民宅射击。据悉，该处经常有哈马斯成员活动。外电有报道说：The incursion underlined the serious obstacles to peace that remain after Israeli-Palestinian talks resumed this week and Washington announced high-level meetings with Palestinians in a new attempt to end Middle East violence. 意思是说"以军的这次行动让中东和平进程更加困难重重。"outline的意思就是"突出；强调；加强"。
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Unearth |
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据外电综合报道，5月17日，巴基斯坦城市卡拉奇的警方找到了一处坟墓，里面埋葬的可能就是被绑匪杀害的《华尔街日报》的记者丹尼尔·珀尔。外电中说：Police unearthed the body which had been buried in an open field in a poor neighborhood on the Western edge of Karachi, said a senior police official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. 我们都知道earth有"土地；泥土"的意思，作动词是"掩埋"的意思，那么这里"unearth"的意思就是"挖掘"。 我们平时说的挖掘出土文物用的就是这个词。
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Unilaterally |
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就在美国对伊拉克战争如箭在弦之际，美国又抛出不会单边行动的烟幕弹，以缓和舆论压力。12月3日，美国副国防部长保罗·沃尔福威茨声称，即使伊拉克未能诚实公布它的大规模杀伤性武器情况，美国也不会对伊拉克采取单边行动。The United States will not act unilaterally if Iraq fails to honestly declare its weapons of mass destruction, US Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz said. 文中unilaterally作副词,指单边的。与之相关的几个常用词有单边主义unilateralism，单边政策unilateral policy。
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Up in arms |
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经过长达十小时的长途飞行，来自南太平洋索罗门群岛的28头宽吻海豚于22日顺利运抵墨西哥的度假胜地砍昆，当地的海洋公园希望通过购进这一批海豚来吸引旅游者，这一事件引起了世界范围内有关动物买卖的大讨论。外电的报道是这样的：The dolphins, destined to entertain tourists at an aquatic theme park, were captured for sale in the anarchic Solomon Islands. Environmental activists were up in arms at the dolphins' seizure and sale. “up in arms”的意思是竭力反对（very angry and ready to argue or fight），这里是指环保主义者们对捕捉和买卖海豚的行为提出了强烈抗议。“up in arms” 在下面这句句子里也是同样的意思：The women are up in arms over their low rate of pay. （妇女们强烈抗议她们的工资水平太低。）
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Upbeat |
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正在阿富汗进行视察工作的欧盟高级大使在同阿富汗官员举行了会谈之后，对该国目前的安全局势感到很满意。外电报道说：EU Envoy Upbeat on Afghan Security，这里 "upbeat"的意思是"愉快的；充满希望的"。相反，downbeat是upbeat的反义词，意思就是"消沉的；悲观的"。
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