新概念英语2

Lesson 56:Faster than sound!  比声音还快!

来源:小强英语学习网发布日期:2017-06-06阅读数:1820

    First listen and then answer the question.
    听录音,然后回答以下问题。
    How fast did the winning car go?
    
  Once a year, a race is held for old cars.
 A lot of cars entered for this race last year 
 and there was a great deal of excitement 
 just before it began. 
 
 One of the most handsome cars was 
 a Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost. 
 The most unusual car was a Benz 
 which had only three wheels. Built in 1885, 
 it was the oldest car taking part. 
 
 After a great many loud explosions, 
 the race began. Many of the cars broke down on the course 
 and some drivers spent more time under their cars 
 than in them! 
 A few cars, however, completed the race.
 
 The winning car reached a speed of
 forty miles an hour
 -- much faster than any of its rivals.
 It sped downhill at the end of the race 
 and its driver had a lot of trouble trying to stop it.
 The race gave everyone a great deal of pleasure. 
 It was very different from modern car races
 but no less exciting.
    
New words and expressions 生词和短语
sound  n. 声音
excitement  n. 激动,兴奋
handsome  adj. 漂亮的;美观的
Rolls-Royce  罗尔斯--罗伊斯
Benz  n. 奔驰
wheel  n. 轮子
explosion  n. 爆炸,轰响
course  n. 跑道;行程
rival  n. 对手
speed  v. 疾驶
downhill  adv. 下坡

参考译文    旧式汽车的比赛每年举行一次。去年有很多汽车参加了这项比赛。比赛开始之前,人们异常激动。最漂亮的汽车之一是罗尔斯--罗伊斯生产的银灵汽车,而最不寻常的一辆则要属只有3只轮子的奔驰牌汽车了。该车造于1885年,是参赛车中最老的一辆。在好一阵喧闹的爆炸声之后,比赛开始了。很多汽车在途中就抛了锚,而有些驾驶员花在汽车底下的时间比坐在汽车里面的时间还长。然而还是有几辆汽车跑完了全程。获胜的那辆车达到了时速40英里--远远超过任何对手。它在接近终点时,冲下了山坡,驾驶员费了好大劲才把车停下来。这次比赛使每个人都挺开心。它虽然与现代汽车比赛大不相同,但激动人心的程度并不亚于现代化汽车大赛。