Unit 25

trenchant / penchant

trenchant adj. 尖酸刻薄的 (caustic) / ˈtrɛn(t)ʃənt /

• Tran's English teacher made such trenchant comments about his poor spelling that he flushed with anger and embarrassment.

penchant n. 倾向 (a strong liking for something or a strong tendency to behave in a certain way) / ˈpen(t)SH(ə)nt /

• Martin had such a penchant for sweets that he could always be relied upon to have a hard candy or chocolate bar somewhere about his person.

command / commend / comment / commence / commerce

command v. 控制 (to have authority and control over (a group of people, such as soldiers)) / kəˈmænd /

• The Colonel commanded a vast garrison of troops.

commend v. 赞美 (to praise (someone or something) in a serious and often public way) / kəˈmɛnd /

• After our class achieved the highest marks in the school, our teacher was publicly commended by the principal.

comment n. 评论 (a spoken or written statement that expresses an opinion about someone or something) / ˈkäment /

• The magazine was forced to apologize after it was proven that it had published libelous comments about the Hollywood actor.

commence v. 开始 (to begin) / kəˈmens /

• The Master of Ceremonies requested that the audience become silent as soon as the show commenced.

commerce n. 贸易，商业 (activities that relate to the buying and selling of goods and services) / ˈkämərs /

• My neighbor is an importer who travels to China several times a year to engage in commerce.