EN： The verb 'vote' can take prepositional phrases to specify the timing and the topic. Here, 'vote on Thursday' indicates the time, and 'vote on [something]' specifies the issue or proposal being decided.
中文： 動詞「vote」（投票／表決）後面可接介系詞片語來補充時間與投票主題。在此句中，第一個「on Thursday」表示時間（在週四），第二個「on an emergency loan...」則指所表決的具體事項（針對一筆緊急貸款）。
The committee will vote on Friday on the new budget proposal.
委員會將在週五就新的預算提案進行表決。
EN： Prepositional phrases with 'of' can be used sequentially for different relationships: 'Creditors of Thames Water' indicates possession/association (who holds the debt), while 'loan of 2.4 billion pounds' expresses specification or amount.
中文： 介系詞「of」引導的片語可用於表達不同關係：「Creditors of Thames Water」表示所屬或關聯（泰晤士水務的債權人）；「loan of 2.4 billion pounds」則用於表示數量、金額的具體內容（金額達24億英鎊的貸款）。
Residents of the city protested against a tax increase of ten percent.
該市的居民抗議調高百分之十的稅率。
EN： Thames Water is the UK's largest water utility company, serving London and surrounding areas. Due to massive historical debts, aging infrastructure, and sewage pollution scandals, its financial instability has become a major national political and economic issue, often raising debates about the privatization of public utilities.
中文： 泰晤士水務（Thames Water）是英國最大的自來水與污水處理公用事業公司，服務倫敦及周邊地區。由於龐大的歷史債務、老舊管線與污水外洩爭議，該公司的財務危機已成為英國全國關注的政治與經濟焦點，並引發大眾對公用事業私有化政策的激烈討論。
EN： The phrasal verb 'run out of' means to deplete or completely use up a supply of something (e.g., money, time, patience). It is followed by a noun or noun phrase.
中文： 片語動詞「run out of」意為「用完、耗盡」某種供應（例如金錢、時間或耐心），後面接名詞或名詞片語。
We need to stop at the gas station because the car is running out of fuel.
我們得去加油站停一下，因為車子的燃料快用完了。
EN： The preposition 'by' indicates a deadline or a point in time before or at which an action will happen. Here, 'by early 2027' means not later than the beginning of 2027.
中文： 介系詞「by」用來表示截止期限，意為「在……之前」或「不晚於……」。在此處，「by early 2027」表示不晚於 2027 年初。
Please submit your final report by next Monday.
請在下週一之前提交您的最終報告。
EN： In corporate finance and business journalism, saying a firm might 'run out of cash' is a common way to describe impending insolvency or a liquidity crisis without using overly dense legal jargon.
中文： 在商業新聞與公司財務報導中，用「run out of cash（耗盡現金）」來描述即將面臨的破產或流動性危機，比直接使用晦澀的法律或財務專業術語更普遍且通俗易懂。
EN： The verb 'give' is a ditransitive verb that can take two objects: an indirect object (recipient, e.g., 'Thames Water') followed by a direct object (thing given, e.g., 'three billion pounds'). Pattern: give + indirect object + direct object.
中文： 動詞「give」是雙賓動詞，可以接兩個受詞：先接間接受詞（接收者，如「Thames Water」），後接直接受詞（所給予的事物，如「three billion pounds」）。句型結構為：give + 間接受詞 + 直接受詞。
The bank gave the startup a substantial loan.
該銀行向這家新創公司提供了一筆巨額貸款。
EN： The preposition 'at' is used to express rates, prices, speeds, or degrees (e.g., 'at an interest rate of...').
中文： 介系詞「at」常用來表示比率、價格、速度或程度（例如：「以……的利率」）。
They borrowed funds at an interest rate of 5 percent.
他們以百分之五的利率借取了資金。
EN： Thames Water is the UK's largest water utility company, serving millions of customers in London and the Thames Valley. An interest rate of 9.75 percent for a regulated utility loan is unusually high, reflecting the severe financial distress and high credit risk facing the company.
中文： 泰晤士水務是英國最大的水務公用事業公司，為倫敦和泰晤士河谷數百萬用戶提供服務。對於公用事業而言，高達 9.75% 的借貸利率異常昂貴，這反映出該公司當時面臨極為嚴峻的財務困境與高度的信用風險。
EN： First Conditional (Real Conditional): Used to express a realistic future condition and its likely result. The condition clause uses 'If' + present simple (passive here: 'is approved'), while the main clause typically uses modal verbs like 'will', 'should', or 'can' + base verb to show the predicted outcome.
中文： 第一條件句（真實條件句）：用於描述未來極有可能發生的條件及其預期結果。條件子句使用「If」加上現在簡單式（此處為被動語態「is approved」），主要子句通常搭配「should」、「will」或「can」等情態助詞加上原形動詞來表示推測或結果。
If the proposal is accepted, we will start the project next month.
如果該提案獲得接納，我們將在下個月啟動這項專案。
EN： Modal 'should' + 'be able to': 'Should' expresses high probability or expectation ('is expected to'), while 'be able to' indicates capability. Together, 'should be able to' means 'is reasonably expected to have the ability or capacity to do something'.
中文： 情態助詞「should」加上「be able to」：「should」在此表合理推測或期待（按理應該……），「be able to」表具備能力或條件。兩者結合表示「照理應當能夠……」或「預計將具備能力去做某事」。
With this new software, the team should be able to finish the report faster.
有了這款新軟體，團隊照理應該能夠更快完成這份報告。
EN： British English commonly uses the word 'autumn', whereas American English typically prefers 'fall'. In corporate and financial reporting, seasons (e.g., 'autumn 2027') or financial quarters are often used instead of exact dates to indicate target deadlines or funding runway periods.
中文： 英式英語通常使用「autumn」，而美式英語更常用「fall」來指稱秋天。在英國企業與財經新聞中，常以季節（如「autumn 2027」）或會計季度來指稱資金可維持運作的時間（runway）或預定時程，而非精確的某月某日。
EN： Past participle phrases (e.g., 'called We Own It') can act as reduced relative clauses, modifying the preceding noun without using a relative pronoun and auxiliary verb (short for 'which is called...').
中文： 過去分詞短語（如 'called We Own It'）可作為簡化關係子句，修飾前面的名詞，相當於省略了關係代名詞與 be 動詞（即 'which is called...' 的簡化）。
A novel written by the young author won the annual prize.
由那位年輕作家寫的小說贏得了年度大獎。
EN： The modal verb 'could' is used here to express a tentative possibility in the future, meaning it is possible that the loan will add extra costs.
中文： 情態助動詞 'could' 在此用於表達對未來的假設性或可能情況（表示這筆貸款「有可能」會增加額外費用）。
The unexpected tax changes could affect small businesses next year.
意料之外的稅制變動可能會在明年影響小型企業。
EN： We Own It is a prominent UK-based campaign organization that advocates against the privatization of public services, such as water, railways, and energy, pushing to return them to public ownership.
中文： 「我們擁有它」（We Own It）是英國知名的倡議團體，致力於反對水務、鐵路和能源等公用事業的私有化，積極推動讓這些公用服務重回公有體系。
EN： Non-defining relative clause: 'who are known as...' is set off by commas to add extra, non-essential information about the subject 'the creditors'. It does not restrict which creditors are being talked about.
中文： 非限定關係子句：由關係代名詞 'who' 引導並以逗號隔開（, who are known as... ,），用來補充說明主詞 'the creditors'（債權人）的額外資訊，省略後不影響句子的主要意義。
The manager, who joined the company last year, announced the new policy.
去年加入公司的經理宣布了新政策。
EN： Reporting verb + noun clause: The verb 'insist' is followed by a 'that'-clause functioning as its direct object, expressing the statement or claim being firmly made.
中文： 轉述動詞引導名詞子句：動詞 'insist'（堅持表示、堅稱）後接以 'that' 引導的名詞子句作為受詞，用來說明所堅持的主張或立場。
The scientists have insisted that the experiment is completely safe.
科學家們堅持表示該實驗完全安全。
EN： In UK public utility debates, especially regarding Thames Water, there is widespread public anger over high executive bonuses and poor infrastructure management. When creditors form consortiums (such as 'London and Valley Water') and claim that 'customers will not pay', it reflects sensitive political pressure regarding water bill increases.
中文： 在英國公共公用事業（特別是泰晤士水務）的爭議中，民眾對高額高層獎金以及基礎設施老化維護不力相當不滿。當債權人組成財團（如「倫敦與山谷水務」）並堅稱「用戶不會為此買單」時，反映出調漲水費在英國社會極具政治敏感性與爭議性。
重要單字附有 IPA 發音、定義、例句和互動式測驗。
在本文中： 債權人（借錢給他人或機構的人或實體）
在本文中： 緊急的、應急的
在本文中： 貸款、借款
在本文中： 貸方、出借人（提供借貸資金的機構或個人）
在本文中： 批准、認可
在本文中： 運作、營運
在本文中： 運動、倡議活動
在本文中： 家庭、戶
在本文中： 堅持認為、堅稱
片語包含類型標示、雙語定義、用法說明和例句。
to finish, exhaust, or use up the supply of something
耗盡、用完
the percentage of an amount of money that is charged by a bank or other financial institution for lending it
利率
to provide the money needed for something, or to suffer bad consequences of an action
為……支付費用；承受代價