The Senate committee spent weeks on the vetting process before confirming the new Secretary of Defense.
Vet (兽医) 给马做体检，引申为对人来一场严格的“体检”以确认没病没灾。
Negotiators faced a total breakdown in talks as neither side would compromise on the border issues.
Break (打破) + Down (向下) = 机器坏了倒下，或者人累垮了倒下，也可以指把大块头打碎成小块（详细分析）。
Preliminary results from the clinical trial suggest the new vaccine is highly effective, but more data is needed.
Pre (在...之前) + lim (边界/门槛) + inary (形容词后缀) = 在正式进入大门之前，站在门槛上的，即“初步的”。
The protest turned unlawful when demonstrators blocked major highways and ignored police dispersal orders.
Un (不) + Law (法律) + ful (充满...的) = 充满不合法的东西，即“非法的”。注意比 illegal 更正式，常用于书面法律语境。
Rescue teams recovered three corpses from the debris following the building collapse.
Corpses：发音像“可死尸”，记住这是指“可”以被看到的“死”亡“尸”体。
Climate change is accelerating the migration of coastal communities to higher ground.
Mi-gra-tion：Mi(我) + gra(抓) + tion(音同“天”)。我抓住机会，为了生存，迁徙到天边。
The virus is potentially more contagious than previous strains, according to new data.
Potentially：Po(破) + ten(十) + tial(音似“踢”)。破十块砖，这种力量“潜在”地很大，但“可能”还没爆发。
The university granted a fee waiver to all students from low-income families.
Waiver（豁免）= Wave（挥手）+ er（人）：挥手说“不用了”，就可以豁免责任！
A brief shoot-out erupted between the suspects and responding officers, leaving two injured.
Shoot (射击) + Out (出来/爆发)：子弹“射”出来，就是枪战。
The senator called for a return to civil discourse after months of polarized political rhetoric.
Civil 听起来像 City (城市)，城市里大家讲“公民”权利，行为要“文雅”。
Historians are re-evaluating the long-term impact of European colonisation on indigenous populations in the Pacific.
Colony (殖民地) + -ation (过程)：把一块地变成殖民地的那个“过程”。
The diplomat faced a thorny issue regarding the border dispute between the two neighboring nations.
Thorn (刺) + -y (多...)：像长满刺一样，让人不敢碰，形容问题“棘手”。
The senator's off-hand remark about tax reform was widely misinterpreted as a call for immediate austerity measures.
Mis (错) + interpret (解读) = 把意思读反了，比如把“我不去”听成“我去”。
The city faces a budget crunch as tax revenues have dropped while public service costs remain high.
Crunch 像咬碎干硬食物的声音，形容资源被挤压得嘎吱作响，陷入绝境。
Protests erupted amid growing concerns over the new legislation passed last week.
A-mid：在中间。想象 A 个苹果被包围在（amid）一片森林中。