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>'They' is word of the year

韦氏词典公布年度词汇

Merriam-Webster has named "they" its word of the year. 韦氏词典近日将"they"(他们/她们）评为2019年度词汇。

The US dictionary also recently added a new definition of "they", reflecting its use as a singular personal **oun for non-binary people. 该词典最近还为"they"添加了新定义，反映出它作为单数人称代词用于非二元性别的用法。

A number of high-profile non-binary figures were in the news this year and searches for "they" on Merriam-Webster's website were 313% higher this year than they were in 2018. 一些引人注目的非二元性别人物出现在今年的新闻中,今年韦氏词典网站上"they"一词的搜索量比2018年**了313%。

"It reflects a surprising fact: even a basic term - a personal **oun - can rise to the top of our data," the dictionary said in a statement. "English famously lacks a gender-neutral singular **oun to correspond neatly with singular **ouns like 'everyone' or 'someone', and as a consequence 'they' has been used for this purpose for over 600 years."韦氏词典在声明中说："这反映了一个令人惊讶的事实：即使是一个最基本的词汇——人称代词——也能凭借数据取胜。众所周知，英语中缺少一个中性的单数人称代词，无法与'everyone'或'someone'等单数人称代词很好地对应，因此，'they'用于这个指代功能已有600多年的历史。"

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>Mayor bans death on weekends

法国小镇颁布'死亡禁令'

The mayor of a rural French community has taken the rather extreme and outlandish decision to ban residents from "dying in their homes on Saturdays, Sundays and on public holidays" due to a lack of doctors in the area. 法国一个乡村社区的负责人近日宣布一项相当极端又奇怪的决定，禁止当地居民"在星期六、星期日和公共假日在家中死亡"，原因竟然是——该地区缺少医生。

La Gresle is community of roughly 850 people on the outskirts of Lyon which, like many rural communities across France, suffers an acute dearth of doctors, nurses and other medical practitioners. 位于里昂郊区的拉格勒尔社区约有850名居民，和法国的许多乡村社区一样，这里也极度缺少医生、护士和其他医疗从业者。

The problem came to a head early this December after no doctor could be found to record official medical details following the death of an elderly nursing home resident.这一问题在今年12月初达到顶点。一位老人在养老院去世后，附近找不到任何医生来记录官方医疗细节。

La Gresle Mayor Isabelle Dugelet said that the "absurd order" was in response to "the absurdity of the (healthcare) system." 拉格勒尔社区负责人伊莎贝尔·杜格莱特表示，"荒谬的规则"是对"荒谬的(医疗)体系"的回应。

The mayor acknowledged that the "death ban" is indeed a publicity stunt to try and draw attention to the community's dire healthcare situation in the region.他承认，"死亡禁令"实际上是一种宣传噱头，目的是试图引起人们对社区糟糕医疗状况的关注。

Federal Reserve Board building on Constitution Avenue is pictured in Washington, US, March 19, 2019. [Photo/Agencies]

>US Fed holds rates steady

美联储按下利率'暂停键'

The US Federal Reserve on Wednesday left interest rates unchanged after cutting rates at each of the last three meetings, as officials assessed the effect of rate cuts on the US economy. 11日，美联储宣布维持联邦基金利率不变，**们是在评估了此前连续降息对美国经济的影响后作出这一决定的。此前三次议息会议上美联储均宣布降息。

The Federal Open Market Committee, the Fed's policy-making committee, decided to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at 1.5% to 1.75% after concluding a two-day policy meeting, in line with market expectations. 两天的议息会议结束后，美联储内负责制定政策的联邦公开市场**会决定，将联邦基金利率目标区间维持在1.5%-1.75%不变，符合市场预期。

"Information received since the Federal Open Market Committee met in October indicates that the labor market remains strong and that economic activity has been rising at a moderate rate," the Fed said in a statement, adding that household spending has been rising at a strong pace while business fixed investment and exports remain weak. 美联储在一份声明中称："联邦公开市场**会在10月会议后**的信息显示，就业市场依然强劲，经济活动以温和的速度增长。家庭支出强劲增长，但企业固定投资和出口依然疲弱。"

The median estimate for the federal funds rate is at 1.6% at the end of 2020, suggesting no rate cuts or hikes in 2020, according to Fed officials' interest rate forecasts released on Wednesday.根据11日发布的美联储**对利率的预测值，2020年末联邦基金利率预测中值为1.6%，暗示在2020年美联储既不会降息也不会加息。

A poster for TOEFL test is displayed at the China Education Expo in Beijing. [Photo provided to China Daily]

>TOEFL, CSE standards linked

英语能力**对接托福

China's Standards of English Language Ability, or CSE, the country's first standards for English proficiency, have been linked to the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), which will further promote the international integration of China's foreign language asses**ent system, according to education authorities. 教育管理部门表示，中国首个英语能力测评**——英语能力等级量表与托福考试成绩对接将进一步推动我国外语评价体系的国际融合。

The National Education Examinations Authority under the Ministry of Education and the Educational Testing Service, who administrates TOEFL tests, jointly released the results of a two-year research effort on aligning the standards and the tests at a news conference on Wednesday. 中国**考试中心与美国教育考试服务中心11日联合发布托福考试成绩与中国英语能力等级量表对接结果。对接研究工作历时两年顺利完成。

By linking TOEFL test scores to the CSE, for example, a minimum overall score of 37 in TOEFL is equal to CSE Level 4, with the minimum scores of 4 in listening, 7 in reading, 13 in speaking and 13 in writing.中国英语能力等级量表与托福考试成绩对接后，托福总分最低分37分(听力4分、阅读7分、口语和写作各13分)相当于中国英语能力等级量表中的四级。

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来源：chinadaily.com.cn