1. At the peak of 在···的巅峰状态

例句：At the peak of its empire, when the Union Jack flew over a quarter of the planet, England collected art and artifacts as fast as it collected colonies.

在大英帝国的巅峰，在英国国旗飘扬于地球四分之一土地上时，英国收集艺术和工艺品的速度就和它收集殖民地一样快。

2. kick off 开始，开球

例句：It's kicked off with the Rosetta Stone, which provided the breakthrough in deciphering ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs.
它从罗赛塔石碑开始，罗赛塔石碑提供解开古埃及象形文字之谜的突破性发展。

3. Thanks to 幸亏，由于

例句：Thanks to this stone, they broke the code, opening the door to understanding a great civilization.
托这块石碑的福，他们破解那密码，开启了解一个伟大文明的大门。

4. be conquered by 被···征服

例句：In its waning years, Egypt was conquered by Assyria—present-day Iraq.
在埃及的衰落年间，埃及被亚述征服－－现今伊拉克。

5. get the upper hand 占上风

例句：First, the centaurs get the upper hand. Then, the humans rally and drive them off. In Golden Age Greece, civilization finally triumphed over barbarism.
最初，人马占上风。接着，人类重整并将人马击退。在黄金时期的希腊，文明终于战胜野蛮。