TPO 閱讀是一個非常好的語料庫，里面的內容大都是科普類的很難直接搬到我們的作文中，但是論證所需的詞、短語、句式、乃至結構都完全可以搬到我們的寫作中來。很多童鞋在寫作時才會感嘆”書到用時方恨少“，舉一個最簡單的例子：表達”重要“除了important大家還能想出哪些亮眼表達？下面就讓TPO例句告訴你，important的表達其實完全可以更生動。

TPO 例句

Trade was the mainstay of the urban economy in the Middle East, as caravans negotiated the surrounding desert, restricted only by access to water and by mountain ranges. [TPO 16-1-1]

自從中東地區的商旅們成功跨越周圍的戈壁，只有水路和山巒還是障礙時，貿易就成為了中東地區城市經濟的主要支柱。

重點詞匯

the mainstay of something

A mainstay holds everything together, whether it’s your grandmother who acts as the anchor of your whole crazy family, a pillar that physically keeps a building from falling down, or the job that enables you to pay your rent every month. The noun mainstay is originally a nautical term meaning the rope that stabilizes two masts on a sailboat, and since the 1780s it’s been used to mean “chief support.”

a) an important part of something that makes it possible for it to work properly or continue to exist

Agriculture is still the mainstay of the country’s economy.

Cocoa is the country’s economic mainstay.

Even during conflict, I argue that family and friends are the mainstays of this world.

Salon(Nov 25, 2016)

b) someone who does most of the important work for a group or organization:

She was the mainstay of the team.

He has been a mainstay at baseball and basketball games.

New York Times(Nov 14, 2016)

Trump countered on election day, piling up huge majorities among the non-college-educated, blue-collar whites who have long been the mainstay of his support.

Los Angeles Times(Nov 09, 2016)