Italy’s Leaning Tower of Pisa is popular amongtourists who like to take fun photos. By standing at a certain __1__ and using a strategiccamera angle, tourists can create a visualillusionof kicking over the leaning tower in their pictures. Yet, many of them don’t know that behind the __2__ photos are construction challenges.
As part of Pisa Cathedral, the tower began construction in 1173. When work was done on the third of its eight stories, the tower unexpectedlystarted tiltingin a southerlydirection. This tiltwas due to the fact that the tower was built on __3__ ground that was a weak mixture of sand, clay, and shells. Then, a war between Pisa and another Italian city, Genoa, __4__. This caused construction to beput offfor almost a century. Later attempts to fix the leandidn’t produce the desiredresults and __5__ the situation. Consequently, workers putlesseffort intostraighteningthe structure. Construction was finally completed in the middle of the 1300s.
The young man was leaning against the wall, looking at the sky.
這年輕人斜靠著牆，仰望著天空。
Matthew’s brother is tall and lean.
馬修的弟弟又高又瘦。
You should eat more vegetables and lean meat if you want to slim down.
如果你想瘦下來就應該多吃蔬菜及瘦肉。
The decision to downsize will make the company leaner and more competitive.
人事縮編的決定將使公司更精簡，更具競爭力。
多益藍色
英檢中級
高中 Level 4
●
marvel
[ˋmɑrv!]
vi. . 驚訝
=
wonder
The tourists marveled at the magnificent old
buildings in Rome.
觀光客對羅馬宏偉又歷史悠久的建築物大表驚嘆。
The space shuttle is a marvel of modern technology.
太空梭是現代科技的一項奇蹟。
The space shuttle is a wonder of modern technology.
太空梭是現代科技的一項奇蹟。
高中 Level 6
●
strategic
[strəˋtidʒɪk]
a. 戰略
South and Central Asia are regions of great strategic importance.
南亞和中亞是戰略上極為重要的區域。
高中 Level 5
●
visual
[ˋvɪʒuəl]
a. 視覺的
n. 圖像
Japanese food is not only delicious, but it has visual appeal as well.
日本食物不但好吃，視覺上也同樣誘人。
多益藍色
英檢中級
高中 Level 4
●
unexpectedly
[͵ʌnɪkˋspɛktɪdlɪ]
adv. 出乎意料地，無預警地
Nick left the country unexpectedly and all of his friends lost contact with him.
尼克無預警地出國，他所有朋友都聯絡不到他。
多益藍色
●
desired
[dɪˋzaɪrd]
a. 想要的；預期的（本文為過去分詞作形容詞用）
Jack’s words brought about the desired effect.
傑克的話達到了預期效果。
英檢初級
●
structure
[ˋstrʌktʃɚ]
n. 結構；建築物
=
framework
The structure of the poem is very complicated.
這首詩的結構很複雜。
The monument is a famous structure in town.
這座紀念碑是鎮上有名的建築。
多益藍色
英檢中級
高中 Level 3
●
slope
[slop]
n. 斜坡；山坡
It is difficult to ride a small motorcycle up a steep slope.
沿著陡坡騎摩托車是很困難的一件事。
高中 Level 3
●
reduction
[rɪˋdʌkʃən]
n. 減少；折扣
=
decrease
=
discount
The rapid reduction in rainforest has caused global warming to get worse.
雨林迅速減少使全球暖化更嚴重。
The supermarket advertised many price reductions.
該超市做了許多減價活動的廣告。
高中 Level 4
●
unpredictable
[͵ʌnprɪˋdɪktəb!]
a. 不可預料的，難以預料的
The woman’s behavior is unpredictable, often leaving everyone feeling confused.
那名女子的行為難以預料，常讓大家都摸不著頭緒。
英檢中高
Extra Words
●
flawed
[flɔd]
a. 有瑕疵的
英檢中高
●
illusion
[ɪˋljuʒən]
n. 錯誤的觀念；錯覺，幻覺
Fred was under the illusion that he could finish his work on time.
佛萊德誤以為他會準時完工。
We had no illusions about winning any design awards in the first place.
我們打從一開始就很清楚我們無法獲得任何設計獎。
The mirrors in the small apartment give the illusion that it is spacious.
這間小公寓裡的鏡子製造了一種空間很寬敞的錯覺。
多益金色
英檢中高
高中 Level 5
●
cathedral
[kəˋθidrəl]
n. 大教堂
=
church
St. Patrick’s Cathedral stands tall on New York City’s Fifth Avenue.
聖派翠克大教堂聳立在紐約市第五大道上。
高中 Level 5
●
tilt
[tɪlt]
vt. & vi. （使）傾斜
The girl tilted the little makeup mirror on the table so
she could see herself more clearly.
這女孩傾斜桌上小化妝鏡的角度，這樣她就能更清楚地看到
自己。
Government spending has tilted toward social
welfare.
政府支出已朝向以社會福利為主。
The dining table had a slight tilt to it because one leg
was shorter than the other three.
餐桌稍微傾斜了一點，因為一隻桌腳比另外三隻桌腳短。
英檢中高
高中 Level 6
●
southerly
[ˋsʌðɚlɪ]
a. 向南的
●
straighten
[ˋstretn]
vt. & vi. （使）變直
vt. 整頓，整理
I fractured my left shoulder bone in a car accident 10 years ago. Even today, I still can’t fully straighten my arm.
10 年前的一起車禍中，我左肩骨折。甚至到今天，我還無法把手臂打直。
Tanya wasn’t happy with her curly hair, but it wasn’t easy to straighten.
潭雅不滿意自己的捲髮，但要把它弄直不容易。
I must straighten out the situation before I can tell you what to do.
我得先釐清這情況才能告訴你要怎麼做。
高中 Level 5
●
southward
[ˋsaʊθwɚd]
adv. 向南地
Practical Phrases
●
be popular among / with...
在⋯⋯之間很受歡迎
The fashion brand is popular among young adults for its trendy designs.
那個時尚品牌在年輕人之間很有人氣，因為設計很潮。
●
put off + N/V-ing
暫緩……
●
put effort into
付出心力於⋯⋯
The local government is putting effort into landscaping the entire city.
地方政府正致力於美化整座城市的景觀。
●
plenty of...
很多的⋯⋯
We still have plenty of time to catch the train.
我們還有很多的時間趕上火車。
