1. The narrowest part of the English Channel between England and France is called ______.
2. ______were the forerunners of the UK’s Conservative Party, which still bears the nickname today.
3. At the turn of the 20th century, ______, a group of reform-minded journalists in the US, made investigations and exposed various dark sides of the seemingly prosperous society.
4. The policy of containment of Communism led the US into the war in ______ which turned out to be the longest war it fought.
5. In the US, ______ interprets the laws made by Congress.
6. ______ is celebrated on the third Monday in January in the US.
7. The two Houses of Parliament in Australia have equal powers except that the Senate cannot originate
8. In 1999, ______ became the first female prime minister in New Zealand as the result of an election.
9. In New Zealand, ______ is the formal head of state.
10. In 1948, ______ left the British Commonwealth and became the Republic of Ireland.
A. the Muckrakers
B. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
C. the Straits of Dover
D. “money bills”
E. Columbus Day
F. the executive branch
G. the judicial branch
H. the British monarch
I. The Tories
J. Vietnam
K. Helen Clark
L. the Irish Free State
1. The English Channel between England and France is quite narrow and the narrowest part is called the Straits of Dover, which is only 33 km across.（英法之间的英吉利海峡很窄，最窄的部分叫做多佛海峡，只有33公里宽。）
2. The Tories were the forerunners of the Conservative Party, which still bears the nickname to day.（保守党是保守党的先驱，保守党至今仍有这个绰号。）
3. At the turn of the 20th century, these problems drew more and more attention of the people. The Muckrakers, a group of reform-minded journalists, made investigations and exposed various dark sides of the seemingly prosperous society.（20世纪之交，这些问题越来越引起人们的关注。揭发者是一群有改革思想的记者，他们进行了调查，揭露了这个看似繁荣的社会的各种黑暗面。）
4. The policy of containment of Communism led the United States into the war in Vietnam which turned out to be the longest war it fought (1950-1975).（遏制共产主义的政策使美国卷入了越南战争，这场战争是美国打得最长的战争（1950-1975年）。）
5. The judicial branch, or judiciary, interprets the laws made by Congress.（司法部门或司法机构解释国会制定的法律。）
6. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is celebrated on the third Monday in January.（马丁•路德•金纪念日是在一月的第三个星期一。）
7. The two Houses have equal powers except that the Senate cannot originate “money bills,” which may be initiated only in the House of Representatives.（两院拥有同等的权力，但参议院不能提出“金钱法案”，只有在众议院才能提出。）
8. In 1999, Helen Clark became the first woman to become prime minister in New Zealand as the result of an election.（1999年，海伦•克拉克在一次选举中成为新西兰首位女首相。）
9. The British monarch is the formal head of state.（英国君主是正式的国家元首。）
10.In 1948, the Irish Free State left the British Commonwealth and became the Republic of Ireland.（1948年，爱尔兰自由邦脱离英联邦，成为爱尔兰共和国。）
