關鍵字彙：
ascribe/ attribute/ bane/ contingent/ corollary/ engender/ ensue/ episode/ epoch/ farce/ fortuitous/ heyday/ hinge on, hinge upon/ imminent/ impact/ impending/ impute/ incur/ inevitable/ interlude/ intervene/ juncture/ milestone/ nexus/ nick/ pertinent/ phenomenon/ potent/ relevant/ resulting/ status quo/ subsequent/ trigger
1. 人生或歷史過程中的「重要事件」、「里程碑」或「轉捩點」叫milestone，具有新進展或產生新變革的「時代」叫epoch，某正面價值或力量所達到的「最高峰」或「全盛時期」叫heyday：
•The treatment of diabetes reached a significant milestone in the 1970s.
•The invention of the computer was a milestone in the twentieth century.
•She felt that meeting Charles was a real milestone in her life.
•The invention of the computer marked a new epoch in history.
•The Prime Minister said that the country was creating a new epoch of remarkable prosperity and lasting peace.
•In the heyday of housebuilding there were enough homes for everybody.
•English has attained the status of a universal tongue to a degree never approached even by Latin in the heyday of the Roman Empire.
2. 「緊要時刻」、「關頭」可用juncture（正式）或nick（不正式）：
•The manager arrived at a juncture where he had to make a decision.
•At this juncture in our nation's affairs, we need firm leadership.
•The police arrived at the scene in the nick of time.
3. 獨立於主要事件之外的「特別事件」－也就是「插曲」－叫episode，一連串類似情境中間的「緩衝時間」叫interlude：
•The year she spent in Paris was an important episode in her career.
•This was one of the funniest episodes in my life.
•Holidays are such short interludes in a life of work!
•There is an interlude of happiness in the tragic story.
4. 可笑或毫無意義的情境－「鬧劇」－叫farce：
•The talks were a farce since the minister had already made the decision.
•So much of life is merely a farce.
5. 不尋常的、具科學研究價值的自然或社會「現象」叫phenomenon：
•Snow in Egypt is an almost unknown phenomenon.
•Earthquakes until now are a sudden and unpredictable phenomenon; scientists have no way of knowing exactly when or where the next one will hit.
•Thundering is a common phenomenon of nature in most areas of the world.
•Unmarried mothers should not be regarded simply as a social phenomenon.
•In ancient times the disabled were often considered as a strange and abnormal phenomenon of society.
6. 事情或情況的「現狀」叫status quo：
•Preserving the status quo may sometimes be an impediment to progress.
•The status quo of your married life needs to be maintained.
7. 「偶然的」可用contingent或fortuitous：
•You must set aside some money for contingent expenses.
•There is no connection between these two events; their timing is extremely fortuitous.
•He had a fortuitous meeting with a friend in need.
8. 事情「即將發生的」可用imminent或impending。兩個字（尤其是impending）都很常用來指不好的事情。另外，「不可避免的」可用inevitable：
•There's a storm imminent.
•Every sign shows that a war is imminent.
•Their departure is imminent.
•According to the weather report, a typhoon is impending.
•Because of his arrogance and stubbornness, everyone knew that his failure was inevitable.
9. 原本計畫好的事情因隨後其它事情的「突然發生」而受阻或延遲，用 intervene：
•Rain intervened and we postponed the match.
•I'll go to see you next Wednesday unless anything intervenes.
10. 事情之間的「關連」可用nexus，「相關的」、「有關的」可用pertinent 或relevant：
•Could you see the nexus that binds these two widely separate events?
•The lawyer wanted to know all the pertinent details.
•The witness' testimony proved relevant.
11. 觀念、發明、制度等所產生的「影響」或「衝擊」叫impact，「具重大影響的 」可用potent：
•Our regional measures have had a significant impact on unemployment.
•Advances in medicine and medical technology have had a marked impact on the process of dying.
•The impact of modern science upon society is tremendous.
•The forced resignation of Nixon has a potent effect on American politics.
12. 導致一個人成就嚴重受限或甚至毀了前程的「禍根」叫bane。它經常以the bane of one's life/ existence的形式出現。另外，因自身行為而「遭致」不好的結果用incur，如果引發的後果雖短暫卻牽涉較多且較嚴重（例如引起鬥毆等），用trigger：
•Gambling was the bane of his life.
•I incurred his dislike from that day on.
•He foolishly incurred debts beyond his ability to pay.
•The boy's whining triggered his father's quick anger.
•His stupid remarks triggered a fight.
13. 把某結果「歸因於…」可用ascribe to或attribute to，假如是不好的結果（也就是「歸咎於…」），則應用impute to：
•The shopkeeper ascribes the flourishing business to his work partners' amiability towards customers.
•Bill attributed his success to bard work.
•We imputed his failure to carelessness.
•The police impute the rise in crime to the greater freedom enjoyed by young people.
14. 「自然或必然的結果」叫corollary；由於發生A，所以B「接著發生」，用ensue；「接著發生的」用subsequent或resulting：
•In rural areas, the corollary of increased car ownership has been a rapid decline in the provision of public transport.
•The crimes ensue from lack of good education.
•Silence ensued when the leader arose to speak.
•They said the building would be finished during the ensuing (= the following) year.
•Subsequent events disproved the expert's predictions.
•He spoke to her rudely, and the resulting quarrel was violent.
15. 不好的事情或情況等「產生」不好的結果，用engender（正式）：
•Flies carry dirt, and dirt engenders disease.
•Crime is sometimes engendered by poverty.
16. 「依…而定」可用hinge on或hinge upon：
•Everything hinges on/ upon what we do next.
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