单数名词future指未来，与past相对，但它用作复数futures意思就变了，与未来有关，指的却是期货，看下面的英文释义：
When people trade in futures, they buy stocks and shares, commodities such as coffee or oil, or foreign currency at a price that is agreed at the time of purchase for items which are delivered some time in the future. 期货
人们做期货交易时购买股票、股权，以及咖啡、石油或者在某一时期按照一定价格购买的外币，在未来某一时间交付货物。
我们来看一段关于黄金期货的新闻描述：
Gold futures rose above $4,000 per ounce for the first time on Tuesday as many investors seek a “safe haven” for to parktheir money as the U.S. government shutdown continues.
Gold futures in New York briefly jumped above the $4,000 mark just after 9 a.m. ET, a record high. The going price for New York spot gold had previously closed at $3,960.60 per troy ounce — the standard for measuring precious metals — Monday.
Gold sales can rise sharply when anxious investors seek secure investments for their money. Before Tuesday, the asset — and other metals, like silver — had seen wider gains over the last year, particularly with President Donald Trump ’s barrage of tariffs plunging much of the world into economic uncertainty.
美国政府持续关闭，众多投资人寻找安全避风港存放资金之际，黄金期货价格首次超过了每盎司4000美元。
东部标准时间上午9点以后，纽约黄金期货短暂涨价超过4000美元标准点，创造了一个价格新高。周一，纽约现货黄金上涨的价格曾收盘于每金衡盎司3960.60美元（金衡盎司：衡量贵金属标准）。
焦急的投资者为资金寻找稳固的投资时黄金的销售量急速上升。周二之前，资产及银之类的其他金属在过去一年中获得较大收益，尤其是特朗普总统出台了一系列的征税政策，突然让世界很多地区陷入经济的不确定性之中。
我们来看这段金融主题文章的用词，park这里用作动词，与“停车”的意思有点关联，意思是“存放”，即deposit and leave in a convenient place until required（将物品存放和放置在方便之处直至使用。）。
mark这个词最常用的是“标记”的意思，常用的词语搭配有marker pen（记号笔），在文中指一个指标或标准点（A particular mark is a particular number, point, or stage which has been reached or might be reached, especially a significant one.）。
spot gold与gold futures相对，指现货黄金，理解这个词关键就在于spot这个词，我们知道它是个“点”，可以指地点、场所、斑点、污点，用作用词还可以用作“发现”，spot gold中spot作为修饰语，显然是形容词，意思是现货交易的、立即支付的（Connected with a system of trading where goods are delivered and paid for immediately after sale）。
troy ounce中的troy不是特洛伊（Troy：特洛伊，一座小亚细亚古城），而是用于称量贵重金属和宝石的“金衡制”（a system for measuring precious metals and precious stones），它的名称起源于法国中世纪时期的特鲁瓦市(Troyes)。
Secure investment指的是稳定的投资，secure用作形容词，释义为：If you describe something such as a job as secure, it is certain not to change or end.用作动词时指的是经过努力而获得（If you secure something that you want or need, you obtain it, often after a lot of effort. 争取到）。
今天的英语阅读就讲到这里了，希望你有所收获。Thank you for reading. See you.
作者｜奈爸
一个坚持写作与翻译的长期主义者
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