2019-07-22 accountable

1. 认识这个词（基础篇）

词：accountable

英英释义：responsible for the effects of your actions and willing to explain or be criticized for them

例句：Decision-makers must be accountable for their actions.

2. 体会这个词 （进阶篇）

“accountable”是形容词，通过它的英英释义可以了解到它除了有“负有责任的“意思外，还有“应做解释的”的意思。当我们想表示“负责”“问责”的时候就可以用到 accountable，是个口语和写作中都可以用到的好词。

accountable 最常见的表达形式是 be accountable for/to，也常和 hold 搭配使用用作 be held accountable for。我们通过几个例句掌握它的用法。   

决策人必须为自己的行为负责，就可以说成：

Decision-makers must be accountable for their actions.

我们常说的“讨个说法”其实就是要求当事人对某个行为负责，作出解释，这时候就可以用 accoutable。

The school should be held accountable for its handling of the situation.

我们常说“国家兴亡，匹夫有责”，也可以用英文说成：

Everyone should be held accountable for his country’s rise and fall.

最后我们再看几个《经济学人》中用到 accountable 的例子：

1）The men responsible for the bloodshed will not relinquish power, nor will they be held accountable.（体会一下这里 responsible 和 accountable 的用法）

2）An investigation by the transportation department in 2012 found that the FAA had not done enough to “hold Boeing accountable”.

3）Some counties do nothing with the data; some use it to hold educators accountable.

3. 从认识到会用（作业）

1）翻译下面的句子： 

从政者最终需要向选民负责。

（参考翻译： Politicians are ultimately accountable to the voters.）

2）结合自己的生活、学习、工作、兴趣等，想象在什么语境下会用到这个表达。先简要描述这个场景，再造句。   

例子：The "Do as I say, not as I do" parents responsible for the failure of their kids' education will not relinquish control, nor will they be held accountable. 

场景：有些不能起到榜样作用的家长对孩子的教育很失败，但也不愿意放弃掌控，也不愿承认自己有责任。