Think about it · 想一想

Why might a storm cause flooding hundreds of miles away from where it first reached land?

01 · Text difficulty by level / 各级别文本难度

同一篇文章提供五档写作目标；本文继续保留 PDF 中“从短句到长句、从常用词到正式词汇”的渐进逻辑。

01

Nominalization 名词化

its weakening before landfall offered only limited relief

News writing packs an action into a noun: “weakening” stands for “it weakened”. When reading, turn the noun back into a verb. 先把名词还原成动作，句子就好懂了。

02

Forecast and hedging language 预测与不确定语气

is projected to stream northward

“be projected / expected to + verb” and modals such as “could” mark a forecast, not a fact. 注意区分“已经发生”和“预计会发生”。

03

Formal, low-frequency verbs 低频书面动词

The system severed electricity to several communities

“severed” = cut off; “retained” = kept; “disintegrate” = break down. The lower levels use the simpler verbs. 同义替换是原文难度的主要来源之一。

04

Colons, appositives and with-phrases 冒号、同位语与 with 结构

with the National Hurricane Center cautioning that parts of the state could accumulate between six inches and a foot

“with + noun + -ing” adds a side fact without a new main verb; the colon introduces an explanation. 一个句子叠加多层信息，需要逐层拆开。

02 · Long-sentence breakdown / 长难句解析

SENTENCE 1
Only days earlier, Polo had ranked among the most powerful hurricanes ever recorded in the Pacific, so its weakening before landfall offered only limited relief: even diminished, the storm retained enough strength to deliver hazardous rainfall, with the National Hurricane Center cautioning that parts of the state could accumulate between six inches and a foot.
仅仅几天前，“波罗”还位列太平洋有记录以来最强的飓风之一，因此它在登陆前减弱只带来有限的缓解：即便强度下降，这场风暴仍有足够的力量带来危险的降雨，美国国家飓风中心警告说，该州部分地区的降雨量可能达到6英寸至1英尺。
  • 主干 Main clause: its weakening … offered only limited relief（so 连接前一分句，表结果）。
  • 冒号后是解释：even diminished = even though it was diminished（even + 过去分词，让步省略）。
  • enough strength to deliver … = 足够强以带来…（enough + 名词 + to do）。
  • with the Center cautioning that … = with + 名词 + -ing 的独立结构，补充说明“同时…”。
  • between six inches and a foot：between A and B 表示范围。
SENTENCE 2
As the system moves inland, forecasters expect it to disintegrate into a far weaker circulation, yet the moisture it carries is projected to stream northward into the American Southwest, where flood watches covered eleven states, including most of Arizona and New Mexico.
随着系统向内陆移动，预报员预计它会瓦解成强度弱得多的环流，然而它携带的水汽预计将向北涌入美国西南部，那里的洪水预警覆盖了11个州，包括亚利桑那州和新墨西哥州的大部分地区。
  • As 引导时间/伴随状语从句；主句 forecasters expect it to disintegrate（expect + 宾语 + to do）。
  • yet = but（正式连词，连接两个并列分句）。
  • the moisture (that) it carries：省略 that 的定语从句。
  • is projected to stream：被动 + 不定式，“预计将…”。
  • where 引导非限制性定语从句，修饰 the American Southwest；including … 分词短语补充列举。
SENTENCE 3
Desert terrain compounds the risk: hard, parched ground absorbs rainfall poorly, so sudden downpours can turn dry washes into raging torrents within minutes.
沙漠地形加剧了风险：坚硬干涸的地面吸水能力差，因此突如其来的暴雨会在几分钟内把干涸的河床变成汹涌的激流。
  • 冒号后解释原因：hard, parched ground（并列形容词，用逗号隔开）+ absorbs rainfall poorly（副词 poorly 修饰动词）。
  • so 引出结果；turn A into B = 把 A 变成 B。
  • raging torrents 是比喻，形容水流的猛烈；within minutes = 在几分钟之内。

03 · Vocabulary & sentence usage / 词汇与句型用法

make landfall / strike / hit

Make landfall (登陆) is the standard weather phrase. Strike, hit, batter and lash describe the impact; struck is the past tense of strike.

e.g. Typhoons often make landfall along China’s southeast coast.

Category 2 storm

Capital C + number: Category 1–5. A “major hurricane” is Category 3 or higher. 注意 category 后直接加数字，不加 of。

e.g. The storm weakened from a Category 4 hurricane to a Category 1.

expect / forecast + object + to-infinitive

“forecasters expect it to disintegrate” = forecasters expect that it will disintegrate. The to-infinitive form is shorter and more formal.

e.g. Engineers expect the bridge to reopen next month.

even + adjective / participle

“even diminished, …” = even though it was diminished. A compact concession pattern common in news. 让步状语的省略形式。

e.g. Even tired, she finished the race.

turn A into B

Means change A completely into B; often used with vivid metaphors (raging torrents).

e.g. A single night of rain turned the field into a lake.

04 · Vocabulary / 词汇卡片

正文中的 A2 以上重点词用半透明色块标出；PC 端悬停、移动端长按即可查看中文释义。

hurricane[ˈhʌrɪkən]
n. · 飓风
a huge storm with very strong winds that forms over warm ocean water
peninsula[pəˈnɪnsjələ]
n. · 半岛
a long piece of land almost surrounded by water
electricity[ɪˌlekˈtrɪsəti]
n. · 电；电力
the power that makes lights and machines work
forecasters[ˈfɔːkɑːstəz]
n. · 预报员
people whose job is to say what the weather will be
record[ˈrekɔːd]
n. · 记录；纪录
the highest or lowest level ever measured; “on record” = ever written down
flood[flʌd]
n./v. · 洪水；淹没
water that covers land that is usually dry
category[ˈkætəɡəri]
n. · 类别；（飓风）级别
a level on the hurricane scale, from 1 to 5
coastal[ˈkəʊstl]
adj. · 海岸的；沿海的
near or along the edge of the sea
defenses[dɪˈfensɪz]
n. · 防御设施
walls or barriers that protect a place
system[ˈsɪstəm]
n. · （天气）系统
(weather) clouds, wind and rain that move together
moisture[ˈmɔɪstʃə]
n. · 水汽；湿气
tiny drops of water in the air or on a surface
inland[ˈɪnlənd]
adv. · 向内陆
toward the middle of a country, away from the coast
warned[wɔːnd]
v. · 警告；提醒
told people about a possible danger
strike[straɪk]
v. · 袭击；冲击
to hit a place with force (past tense: struck)
weaken[ˈwiːkən]
v. · 减弱
to become less strong
flood watches[flʌd ˈwɒtʃɪz]
n. · 洪水预警（watch）
alerts that flooding may happen soon
flash floods[flæʃ flʌdz]
n. · 山洪；暴洪
sudden floods caused by very heavy rain
soak up[ˈsəʊk ʌp]
v. · 吸收（水分）
to take in a liquid, like a sponge
landfall[ˈlændfɔːl]
n. · （风暴）登陆
the moment a storm reaches land from the sea
sustained[səˈsteɪnd]
adj. · 持续的
continuing at the same level for a long time
storm surge[stɔːm sɜːdʒ]
n. · 风暴潮
a rise in sea level caused by a storm that floods the coast
severed[ˈsevəd]
v. · 切断
cut something completely
diminished[dɪˈmɪnɪʃt]
adj. · 减弱的
made smaller or weaker
retained[rɪˈteɪnd]
v. · 保留
kept something
hazardous[ˈhæzədəs]
adj. · 危险的
dangerous
cautioning[ˈkɔːʃənɪŋ]
v. · 告诫；警示
warning someone to be careful
accumulate[əˈkjuːmjəleɪt]
v. · 累积
to gather or build up in amount
confined[kənˈfaɪnd]
adj. · 局限于
limited to one area
disintegrate[dɪsˈɪntɪɡreɪt]
v. · 瓦解；解体
to break into small pieces
circulation[ˌsɜːkjəˈleɪʃn]
n. · （气流）环流
(weather) the rotating movement of air in a storm
projected[prəˈdʒektɪd]
v. · 预测；预计
predicted from the data available now
terrain[təˈreɪn]
n. · 地形
an area of land and its natural features
compounds[ˈkɒmpaʊndz]
v. · 加剧
makes a problem worse
parched[pɑːtʃt]
adj. · 干透的
extremely dry
downpours[ˈdaʊnpɔːz]
n. · 倾盆大雨
very heavy rain
torrents[ˈtɒrənts]
n. · 激流
fast, strong streams of water
washes[ˈwɒʃɪz]
n. · （沙漠）干河床
dry riverbeds in a desert that fill with water in storms
overwhelmed[ˌəʊvəˈwelmd]
v. · 压垮；淹没
was too strong or too much for something to handle

05 · Background knowledge / 背景知识

The Saffir–Simpson scale 萨菲尔-辛普森飓风等级

Hurricanes are rated by sustained wind speed: Category 1 is 74–95 mph, Category 2 is 96–110, Category 3 is 111–129, Category 4 is 130–156 and Category 5 is 157 mph or more. At about 110 mph, Polo was at the very top of Category 2 when it reached land. Category 3 and above are called major hurricanes.

飓风按持续风速分级：1级 74–95 英里/时，2级 96–110，3级 111–129，4级 130–156，5级 157 英里/时及以上。“波罗”登陆时约为 110 英里/时，正处于2级的上限。3级及以上称为“强飓风（major hurricane）”。

Hurricane, typhoon, cyclone 飓风、台风与气旋

They are the same kind of storm, named by region: “hurricane” in the Atlantic and the northeastern Pacific, “typhoon” in the northwestern Pacific, and “cyclone” in the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific. Polo formed in the eastern Pacific, where the hurricane season officially runs from May 15 to November 30.

它们是同一类热带气旋，只是因海域而得名：大西洋和东北太平洋叫 hurricane（飓风），西北太平洋叫 typhoon（台风），印度洋和南太平洋叫 cyclone（气旋）。“波罗”生成于东太平洋，那里的飓风季为每年5月15日至11月30日。

Why storms weaken over land, but the rain stays 为什么上岸后减弱，雨却不停

Hurricanes draw energy from warm ocean water. Over land that fuel disappears and friction slows the winds, so the storm weakens. The tropical moisture it carried can remain, however, and in the Southwest it may fall as heavy rain on dry, hard ground that cannot absorb it quickly. That is how flash floods form in washes and canyons.

飓风的能量来自温暖的海水。上岸后失去“燃料”，摩擦又使风速下降，于是减弱。但它携带的热带水汽还在，落到干硬、吸水慢的地面上，就容易在干河床和峡谷里形成山洪。

Watch vs. warning 预警（watch）与警报（warning）

In United States weather alerts, a flood watch means conditions make flooding possible, so be prepared. A flood warning means flooding is happening or about to happen, so act now. The article says watches were in effect, not warnings.

在美国的天气预警体系中，watch（预警）表示具备发生洪水的条件，要做好准备；warning（警报）表示洪水正在发生或即将发生，要立即行动。文章中说的是 watches，而不是 warnings。

06 · Sources / 来源

↗ CBS News↗ Fox Weather

原文级文本及分析材料沿用本版数据文件的表述；如需核对完整报道，请打开上方来源链接。