【编者按】贯穿大学英语的四级词汇在阅读中的应用及解析，在这里精品为大家做了总结。
These are common remarks one may hear at various sporting events. At the time they are
made, they may seem innocent enough. But let’s not kid ourselves. They have been
known to influence behavior in such a way as to lead to real bloodshed. Volumes have
been written about the way words affect us.It has been shown that words having certain
connotations may cause us to react in ways quite foreign to what we consider to be our
usual humanistic behavior. I see the term “opponent” as one of those words. Perhaps
the time has come to delete it from sports terms.
The dictionary meaning of the term “opponent” is “adversary”;“enemy” ; “one
who opposes your interests”. Thus, when a player meets an opponent, he or she may
tend to treat that opponent as an enemy. At such times, winning may dominate one’s
intellect, and every action, no matter how gross, may be considered justifiable. I
recall an incident in a handball game when a referee refused a player’s request for a
time out for a glove change because he did not considered then wet enough. The player
proceeded to rub his gloves across his wet T?shirt and then exclaimed. “Are they wet
enough now?”
In the heat of battle, players have been observed to throw themselves across the
court without considering the consequences that such a move might have on anyone in
their way. I have also witnessed a player reacting to his opponent’s international
and illegal blocking by deliberately hitting him with the ball as hard as he could
during the course of play. Off the court, they are good friends. Does that make any
sense? It certainly gives proof of a court attitude which departs from normal
behavior.
The dictionary meaning of the term “associate” is “colleague” ; “friend” ;
“companion”. Reflect a moment ! You may soon see and possibly feel the difference in
your reaction to the term “associate” rather than “opponent.”
【2005年6月】
“撕碎他们!”“杀了那些笨蛋!”“干掉裁判!”
这些话语在各种体育赛场上均能听到。 说这些话的人，往往觉得自己很无辜。但我们不是三
岁小孩，我们深知如此过激行为常会导致流血冲突。关于言辞如何影响我们的书本卷帙浩繁。业已
证实，言语的某些特定含义往往会致使我们以迥异于日常行为的方式做出反应。“对手”一词便是
一例，或许将该词从体育术语中删去的时刻已经到来。