《Sailing the Oceans》学案2（人教版选修9）.docVIP

Unit 2 Sailing the oceans 重点词语学习 mercy noun (pl. -ies) 1. [U] a kind or forgiving attitude towards sb that you have the power to harm or right to punish humanity: to ask / beg / plead for mercy They showed no mercy to their hostages. God have mercy on us. The troops are on a mercy mission (= a journey to help people) in the war zone. 2. [C, usually sing.] (informal) an event or a situation to be grateful for, usually because it stops sth unpleasant: It’s a mercy she wasn’t seriously hurt. His death was a mercy (= because he was in great pain. at the mercy of sb/sth not able to stop sb/sth harming you because they have power or control over you: I’m not going to put myself at the mercy of the bank. We were at the mercy of the weather. leave sb/sth to the mercy / mercies of sb/sth to leave sb/sth in a situation that may cause them to suffer or to be treated badly: privatized companies left to the mercy of market forces (humorous) I’ll leave you to the tender mercies of these ladies! throw yourself on sb’s mercy (formal) to put yourself in a situation where you must rely on sb to be kind to you and not harm or punish you longside prep. 1. next to or at the side of sth: A police car pulled up alongside us. a lifeboat moored alongside the yacht Much of the land alongside the river is below sea level. 2. together with or at the same time as sth/sb: Traditional beliefs still flourish alongside a modern urban lifestyle. exploration noun [C, U] 1. the act of travelling through a place in order to find out about it or look for sth in it: the exploration of space oil exploration (= searching for oil in the ground)2. an examination of sth in order to find out about it: the book’s explorations of the human mind accelerate verb 1. to happen or to make sth happen faster or earlier than expected: [v] Inflation continues to accelerate. [vn] Exposure to the sun can accelerate the ageing process.2. [v] (of a vehicle or person) to start to go faster: The runners