1.dead hand: an undesirable persisting influence

e.g. Nowadays it is clear that the ministry has been a dead hand holding back innovation and entrepreneurship.

现在很显然这个部门对创新和企业家精神起了阻止作用。

The dead hand of bureaucracy is exerting its enormous influence on our work.

官僚主义对我们的工作产生了极大的不良影响

dab hand: someone who is very good at a particular activity 行家，好手，高手

old hand: someone who is very experienced and skilled in a particular area of activity老手，富有经验的人

hour hand:（钟表的）时针

give somebody a hand: 帮助某人

lend a hand: 帮忙，拉一把

 

2.An essential first step in being creative is to question your own way of looking at things ,

essential: completely necessary, extremely important in a particular situation or for a particula

activity

e.g.The museum is closed while essential repairs are being carried out

The charity will be taking food and essential supplies to six refugee camps

 

3. Creativity is essential to the success and fulfilment of young people, to the vitality of our

communities and to the long-term health of the economy. (Para. 1)

Paraphrase: Creativity is very important for young people to realize their goals and dreams, for

society to keep vigorous and dynamic, and for the economy to develop stably.

Analysis: The parallel structure "to the success and fulfilment of young people, to the vitality

of our communities and to the long-term health of the economy” shows the crucial role of

creativity in the development of young people, society and the economy.

 

4. Creative work in any field often passes through typical phases. (Para. 2)

typical: having the usual qualities or features of a particular type of person, thing or group

e.g. This is a typical example of Roman pottery.

 

5. It's a dynamic process that often involves making new connections, crossing disciplines and

using metaphors and analogies. (Para. 2)

Paraphrase: Creativity is a changing and progressive process which requires building up new

relationships between different fields, incorporating knowledge and technology fror

different disciplines, and thinking inventively by way of metaphor and analogy.

dynamic: always changing and making progress

E.g.South Asia continues to be the most dynamic economic region in the world.

We want you to be part of our young and dynamic team.bcopdizulez

discipline: an area of knowledge studied in a universityyah oi old ti lliw gnol wo

The new recruits were drawn from a range of academic disciplines.

Management is a discipline which has its own characteristics and applies to any type of

analogy: a comparison of one thing with another thing that has similar features

e.g. The teacher drew an analogy between the human heart and a pump.

There's no analogy between his position and yours.

6... whether what you're working on is any good... (Para. 3)

work on: to try hard to improve or achieve sth.; to be engaged in

You need to work on your pronunciation a bit more

I'm still working on my term paper.

 

7. There are various myths about creativity. (Para. 4)

myth: sth. that many people believe but that does not exist or is false

e.g. The movie is based on a myth that has no substance and yet is widely believed

His story about being very wealthy was a complete myth

 

8. ... a third is that it's all to do with uninhibited "self-expression”. (Paгa. 4)

Paraphrase: ... the third misunderstanding about creativity is that it means complete freedom tc

 think and do whatever you wish to.

 

9. On the contrary, everyone has creative capacities. (Para. 4) ghnl eti ot beur esitiaum

on the contrary: used to introduce a statement that says the opposite of the last one

e.g. I didn't feel bored. On the contrary, I enjoyed every minute of it.

On the contrary, everyone who has heard about them has been nothing short of enthusiastic

and encouraging.

capacity: the ability to understand or to do sth.uoy lo imptiqolovob srb ai gvilecn.

e.g. She has an enormous capacity for hard work.

Limited resources are restricting our capacity for developing new products.

 

10. But his conclusions about how to promote creativity are very wide of the mark. (Para. 5

promote: to help sth. to happen or develop

The band has gone on tour to promote their new album.

The area is being promoted as a tourist destination

wide of the mark: not accurate

e.g.Their predictions turned out to be wide of the mark

Speculation that a deal has already been done is wide of the mark

 

11.In English, he says, "creativity depends on mastering certain skills and acquiring a body o

knowledge ..."(Para. 5)

acquire: to gain sth., especially by your own efforts, ability or behavior

e.g.How long will it take to acquire the necessary skills?

I have recently acquired a taste for wine

a body of: a large amount or collection of

e.g. There is a powerful body of opinion against the ruling.

Taken together, there is quite a body of evidence which casts doubt on the theory.

 

12. ... "you need first of all to learn your scales. You need to secure a foundation on which your

creativity can flourish.” (Para. 6)

scale: a series of musical notes moving upwards or downwards, with fixed intervals between

each note, especially a series of eight starting on a particular notei T of tn

e.g. He spent a lot of time running over scales on the piano.

Let us summarize the ground rules for scale playing.

flourish: to develop quickly and be successful

e.g. The arts began to flourish at that time.enoiqiotre

While some banks will flourish under the new rules, the weaker ones probably will not.

 

13. But like a lot of common sense it's wrong or, at best, a half-truth. (Para. 6)

at best: used for saying what is the best opinion you can have of sb./sth.; at most

gnidh e.g.  He told the interviewer he had only a few months to live at best.motolmk

ete)  Their response to the proposal was, at best, cool.

 

14.... I've spoken with many people about their particular talents... (Para. 7)

talent: a natural ability to do sth. well

e.g. She showed considerable talent for getting what she wanted.

I have always been envious of his talent and abilities in many respects.

 

15. He admits to being disruptive at school and was actually thrown out of eight of them. (Para. 7)Paraphrase: Hans Zimmer acknowledged that he was a naughty student and a troublemaker

when he was in school, and as a result, he was expelled by eight schools.

admit to: to agree that sth. is true

e.g. Another recent study found that as many as 86 percent of 1lth and 12th graders admit to

using their cellphones while driving.

I have to admit to being really nervous.

throw out: to force to leave a place or organization

e.g. The naughty student was finally thrown out of school.

You'll be thrown out if you don't pay the rent.