儒琴英语词汇选自欧美报刊文章以及英语原文小说。坚持学习英语今日词汇，有助于阅读和理解当今欧美主流媒体的新闻时事报道和英语文学作品。
儒琴英语词汇（English Words and Phrases of the Day）
whipping boy
noun [ C usually singular ]/ˈwɪp.ɪŋ ˌbɔɪ/
someone or something that is blamed or punished for problems that are caused by someone or something else
替罪羊，代人受过者 (Cambridge)
The U.N., with a handful of exceptions, presupposes that all countries should get an equal voice. This means that on the Human Rights Council, for example, Australia’s vote counts the same as Qatar’s, and Japan’s the same as Venezuela’s. In practice, this means the Human Rights Council has become a body where the world’s worst human rights abusers shield each other from criticism. For an added kick of anti-Semitism, the body makes Israel its whipping boy. (Washington Examiner)
a viper’s nest
A group of iniquitous people, congregating together.
一群非常不公平、道德上是错误的人聚在一起
The U.N. had its advantages once upon a time, but now it’s nothing more than a viper’s nest. Relegate it to the ash heap of history, and establish a better system in its place. (Washington Examiner)
siren call
noun [ C usually S ](also siren song)
a powerful force that attracts you to something
（某事物）强大的吸引力
Commission remains vulnerable to Big Tobacco’s siren song, report says.
Big Tobacco is up to its old tricks ahead of a major regulatory overhaul, a watchdog says. The European Commission is unprepared for an impending lobbying blitz by the tobacco industry, according to a report released Thursday by watchdog Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO). (Politico)
pull the plug (on something)
to stop an activity, especially by no longer providing the money needed to allow it to continue；force something to end; to remove the means for something to continue operating.
停止一项活动；迫使某事结束
Trump Pulls Plug on Alabama Rally. President Trump’s campaign has scrapped plans to hold a rally in Alabama next weekend amid concerns about coronavirus infections rising, CNN reports.
snap back (phrasal verb); snapback (noun)
to quickly return to a previous condition
快速返回到以前的状态
Germany agreed. “I would also align myself with what my Chinese colleague just said about the snapback mechanism,” German Ambassador Christoph Heusgen said in concurrence. (Washington Examiner)
Such statements foreshadow a major confrontation at the Security Council in October, when an international arms embargo is set to expire pursuant to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo threatened to snap back all of the international sanctions waived when the Iran deal was lifted if China or Russia veto a new Security Council resolution extending the arms embargo. (Washington Examiner)
floor speech
When a Member of Congress is given time to formally express an opinion or make a statement on an issue before the House, they are said to have the ‘floor’ of the House, and their views are referred to as a ‘Floor Speech’. … The speeches and other proceedings of the House are published daily in the Congressional Record.
议员在国会就某一问题正式发表意见或声明；在国会发表正式演说
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a floor speech on Monday that Americans must have “no stigma — none — about wearing masks when we leave our homes and come near other people.” （Axios）
prognosticator
noun /präɡˈnästəˌkādər/
a person who foretells or prophesies a future event
预言者预言或预言未来事件的人
“The reason is the 2016 election, which humbled the president’s smuggest critics and broke the reputation of many election prognosticators. The argument against electoral despair is the same argument Trump makes about rebuilding the post-pandemic economy: He did it once, and he can do it again.” (Dave Weigel)
