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Turkish economy

 

What exactly do the ‘diplomatic rifts’ refer to?

rift (noun)

  1. 地理用語：（地面或岩石上的）裂縫，裂口

e.g. The stream had cut a deep rift in the rock.

溪流在岩石上沖刷出一條很深的溝。

​

  1. （人際關係的）裂痕；分歧，不和

e.g. The marriage caused a rift between the sisters and they didn't speak to each other for ten years.

這樁婚姻令姊妹之間的關係出現裂痕，彼此十年都沒有說話。

 

diplomatic rift = 外交裂痕

 

But why? What happened between Turkey and the US?

 

The Presidents of the United States and Turkey have recently been exchanging barbs—and economic sanctions—over an evangelical missionary imprisoned in Turkey.

就著一位囚禁於土耳其的美國傳教士，兩國總統近日針鋒相對，互相實施經濟制裁。

 

barb (noun)

  1. （魚鈎或箭頭的）倒鈎，倒刺
  2. 帶刺的話

e.g. I tried to ignore their barbs about my new jacket.

 

barbed (adjective)

e.g. barbed wire 帶刺的鐵絲網

e.g.（說話）帶刺的，譏諷的

She made some rather barbed comments about my lifestyle.

 

sanction (noun) à mostly plural

1. 制裁

e.g. Many nations have imposed sanctions on the country because of its attacks on its own people.

e.g. Trade/economic sanctions will only be lifted (= stopped) when the aggressor nation withdraws its troops.

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2. （爲維護法律或規定而採取的）強硬措施；（對違反法律或規定者進行的）懲罰，處罰

e.g. Without realistic sanctions, some teachers have difficulty keeping order in the classroom.

​

3. （尤指正式或法律認可的）批准，許可

e.g. They tried to get official sanction for the plans.

 

sanction (verb)

* 批准，認可，准許

e.g. The government was reluctant to sanction intervention in the crisis.

 

What are the immediate results?

 

A homemaker with two school-aged children shook her head, dismayed at the rising inflation, a result of the country’s ailing economy and the plummeting Turkish lira.

 

dismayed 感到沮喪，灰心，失望 (adjective)

 

dismay沮喪，灰心，失望 (noun)

e.g. Aid workers were said to have been filled with dismay by the appalling conditions that the refugees were living in.

據說援助人員看到難民所處的惡劣生活環境時都感到非常難過。

 

e.g. The fans watched in/with dismay as their team lost 42–11.

球迷們鬱悶地看著自己的球隊以42比11的分數輸掉比賽。

 

e.g. She discovered, to her dismay, that her exam was a whole month earlier than she'd expected.

她鬱悶地發現考試比她預料的早了整整一個月。

 

ailing (adjective) /ˈeɪ.lɪŋ/

1. 境況不佳的，處境困難的；不景氣的

e.g. the country's ailing economy 該國不景氣的經濟

 

2. 生病的，身體不佳的

e.g. He's visiting his ailing father.  他去探望患病的父親。

 

LISTENING COMPREHENSION

Q: 土耳其早前有什麼政策令市場不穩？

 

take fright at受到驚嚇

e.g. Our dog took fright at the noise of the fireworks and ran indoors.

 

    Vs. give sb a fright (of his/ her life) 嚇死人

          e.g. You gave me the fright of my life, jumping out of the shadows like that!

                    你那樣從暗處跳出來，嚇死人了！

 

A Song For You - “Inflation Blues” B.B. King

 

  • get the blues / have the blues

= feel sad 感到憂傷 (informal)

 

  • highbrow（書籍、戲劇等）嚴肅高雅的，高深複雜的；
  •  (adjective) /ˈhaɪ.braʊ/ usually disapproving

 

Vs. lowbrow（娛樂消遣）膚淺的，庸俗的 (adjective)

e.g. I like a lowbrow action movie once in a while.

 

Vs. middlebrow （音樂、文學、藝術或電影）平庸的，品位一般的

 

  • average Joe = 類似廣東話「陳大文」，解作「普通人」

 

  • buck = 1 US dollar

 

 

   
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