新概念第三册
Lesson 49 The ideal servant
单词精讲
rambling adj. 杂乱无章的
【释义】形容说话、写作、行走路线等缺乏明确的方向、组织或连贯性,显得散漫、凌乱。例如:His rambling speech made it hard for the audience to follow his point.(他那杂乱无章的演讲让听众很难跟上他的观点。)
【词源】可能源自“ramble”(v.漫步、漫谈,源自古英语“ramblian”),加上“ - ing”形容词后缀,表示具有漫步、漫谈那种散漫性质的,即杂乱无章的。
【短语】rambling story(杂乱无章的故事);rambling garden(布局凌乱的花园)。
【例句】The old man gave a rambling account of his travels.(老人杂乱无章地讲述了他的旅行经历。)
sentimentally(adv.感情上,多情地)
【释义】表示从情感的角度出发,充满感情地、多情地做某事或看待某事。例如:He looks at his old photos sentimentally.(他充满感情地看着他的旧照片。)
【词源】由“sentimental”(adj.感情的、多愁善感的,源自拉丁语“sentimentum”,表示感觉、情感)+“ - ly”副词后缀组成,表示感情上地。
【短语】think sentimentally(感情用事地思考);talk sentimentally(多情地交谈)。
【例句】She remembered her childhood home sentimentally.(她满怀深情地回忆起她童年的家。)
immaculate(adj.清洁的,无污点的)
【释义】极其干净、整洁,没有任何污渍、瑕疵或缺陷。例如:The hotel room was immaculate.(酒店房间一尘不染。)
【词源】源自拉丁语“immaculatus”,由“in - ”(否定前缀,不)+“maculatus”(有斑点的、弄脏的,源自“macula”,表示斑点、污渍)组成,即无污点的。
【短语】immaculate white(洁白无瑕);immaculate condition(完好无损的状况)。
【例句】Her dress was immaculate even after a long journey.(即使经过长途旅行,她的裙子仍然干净无污。)
lavishly(adv. 慷慨地,大方地)
【释义】形容以大量的、丰富的、过度慷慨的方式做某事,如给予、花费等。例如:He decorated his house lavishly.(他大肆装修他的房子。)
【词源】由“lavish”(adj.慷慨的、浪费的,可能源自法语“lavasse”,表示洪水,引申为大量的、浪费的)+“ - ly”副词后缀组成,表示慷慨地。
【短语】spend lavishly(挥霍无度);lavishly praise(大肆赞扬)。
【例句】The host entertained the guests lavishly.(主人慷慨地款待客人。)
parquet(n.镶木地板)
【释义】一种由小块木材(通常是几何形状)拼接而成的地板,具有装饰性。例如:The parquet in the hall was very elegant.(大厅里的镶木地板非常优雅。)
【词源】源自法语“parquet”,最初表示小隔间,后来用于指这种小块拼接的地板。
【短语】parquet floor(镶木地板);wooden parquet(木质镶木地板)。
【例句】They installed a new parquet in the living room.(他们在客厅安装了新的镶木地板。)
gleam(v.发亮,闪光)
【释义】发出柔和、微弱的光亮,通常是短暂地闪烁。例如:The stars gleamed in the night sky.(星星在夜空中闪烁。)
【词源】可能是拟声词,模仿微弱光亮闪烁时的声音。
【短语】gleam with(因…而闪烁,闪现);a gleam of hope(一线希望,微弱的希望之光)。
【例句】Her eyes gleamed with excitement.(她的眼睛因兴奋而发亮。)
preside(v.指挥,主持)
【释义】担任领导、主管或主持人的角色,对某个会议、活动或组织进行管理、引导或控制。例如:He will preside over the meeting tomorrow.(他明天将主持会议。)
【词源】源自拉丁语“praesidere”,由“prae - ”(在…之前)+“sedere”(坐)组成,表示坐在前面,引申为主持、指挥。
【短语】preside at(主持[会议等]);preside over(负责;主持;掌管)。
【例句】The judge presided over the trial.(法官主持审判。)
invisible(adj.看不见的,无形的)
【释义】不能被看见,无法用肉眼察觉到的,也可用于形容抽象的事物(如影响力等)是无形的。例如:Some bacteria are invisible to the naked eye.(有些细菌是肉眼看不见的。)
【词源】由“in - ”(否定前缀,不)+“visible”(可见的,源自拉丁语“visibilis”)组成,表示不可见的。
【短语】invisible hand(无形之手,经济学术语);invisible ink(隐形墨水)。
【例句】The power of love can be invisible but very strong.(爱的力量可能是无形的,但非常强大。)
scrub(v.擦拭,刷洗)
【释义】用力地擦、刷某个物体的表面,以去除污垢、污渍等。例如:She scrubbed the floor clean.(她把地板刷洗干净了。)
【词源】可能源自古英语“scrobban”,表示抓、刮,引申为擦拭、刷洗。
【短语】scrub away(擦掉;刷去);scrub off(洗净;擦掉)。
【例句】You need to scrub the pan thoroughly.(你需要彻底刷洗这个平底锅。)
enlightened(adj. 开明的)
【释义】形容人或社会具有先进的思想、开放的态度、对新事物有深刻理解和接受能力。例如:An enlightened leader will encourage innovation.(一位开明的领导者会鼓励创新。)
【词源】由“enlighten”(v.启发、开导,由“en - ”(使…)+“lighten”(照亮,源自“light”,光)组成,表示使照亮、启发)+“ - ed”形容词后缀,表示被启发后的状态,即开明的。
【短语】enlightened view(开明的观点);enlightened society(开明的社会)。
【例句】The enlightened parents supported their child's choice of career.(开明的父母支持他们孩子的职业选择。)
fickleness(n.变化无常)
【释义】指人或事物的特性不稳定,容易改变主意、态度或状态,缺乏持久性。例如:His fickleness made it hard for others to trust him.(他的变化无常让别人很难信任他。)
【词源】由“fickle”(adj.易变的、无常的,可能源自古英语“ficol”,表示欺骗性的、不可靠的)+“ - ness”名词后缀组成,表示易变、无常的特性,即变化无常。
【短语】the fickleness of fashion(时尚的变化无常);the fickleness of human nature(人性的变化无常)。
【例句】The fickleness of the weather in spring is well - known.(春天天气的变化无常是众所周知的。)
unrelenting(adj.不屈不挠的,不松懈的)
【释义】形容人在面对困难、压力等时坚定、顽强,不放松努力;也可形容情况(如恶劣天气等)持续不断,没有缓和。例如:His unrelenting efforts finally paid off.(他不屈不挠的努力最终得到了回报。)
【词源】由“un - ”(否定前缀,不)+“relent”(v.变温和、减弱,源自拉丁语“relentare”)+“ - ing”形容词后缀组成,表示不减弱、不松懈的。
【短语】unrelenting pursuit(不懈的追求);unrelenting rain(下个不停的雨)。
【例句】The unrelenting heat made it difficult to work outside.(持续不断的高温使得在户外工作变得困难。)
disillusion(v.使幻想破灭的)
【释义】使某人对某事(如理想、信仰、人等)不再抱有幻想,打破原有的美好想象或错觉。例如:The harsh reality disillusioned him about his future.(残酷的现实使他对自己的未来幻想破灭。)
【词源】由“dis - ”(否定前缀,使相反)+“illusion”(n.幻想、错觉,源自拉丁语“illusio”)组成,表示使幻想相反,即打破幻想。
【短语】disillusion with(对…不再抱有幻想);be disillusioned by(被…使幻想破灭)。
【例句】She was disillusioned by her idol's bad behavior.(她因她偶像的不良行为而幻想破灭。)
qualification(n.资格,能力)
【释义】指某人具备的从事某项工作、进入某个机构、参加某项活动等的条件、资历或能力;也可表示对某一陈述的限定、限制条件。例如:He has the necessary qualifications for this job.(他具备这份工作所需的资格。)
【词源】源自拉丁语“qualificatio”,由“qualis”(什么样的)+“ficare”(使成为)组成,表示使成为某种样子的东西,即资格、限定。
【短语】educational qualification(学历资格);professional qualification(专业资格);without qualification(无条件地;毫无保留地)。
【例句】Her lack of qualifications prevented her from getting the promotion.(她缺乏相关资格使她无法得到晋升。)
mirth(n.欢笑,高兴)
【释义】指欢乐、愉快的情绪,常表现为欢笑、嬉闹等。例如:The party was full of mirth and laughter.(聚会上充满了欢笑。)
【词源】源自古英语“myrgth”,表示欢乐、愉快。
【短语】burst into mirth(突然大笑起来);a sense of mirth(一种欢乐感)。
【例句】His joke brought much mirth to the audience.(他的笑话给观众带来了很多欢乐。)
stack(v. 整齐地堆放)
【释义】将物体(如书籍、箱子等)整齐地堆放在一起,一层一层地叠放。例如:Please stack these books on the shelf.(请把这些书整齐地堆放在书架上。)
【词源】可能源自古英语“staccan”,表示堆积。
【短语】stack up(堆积;累计);stack together(堆在一起)。
【例句】They stacked the chairs in the corner.(他们把椅子整齐地堆放在角落里。)
cellar(n. 地窖)
【释义】位于建筑物地下的房间,通常用于储存食物、酒等物品。例如:They keep their wine in the cellar.(他们把酒存放在地窖里。)
【词源】源自拉丁语“cellarium”,表示小房间、仓库,尤其指地下的储存空间。
【短语】wine cellar(酒窖);root cellar(储存根菜类蔬菜的地窖)。
【例句】The old house had a dark cellar.(这所老房子有一个昏暗的地窖。)
二、课文精讲
1.It is a good thing my aunt Harriet died years ago.我的姑妈哈丽特好多年前就去世了,这倒是件好事。
my aunt Harriet died years ago为真正的主语,it为形式主语。
2.If she were alive today she would not be able to air her views on her favourite topic of conversation: domestic servants.如果她活到今天,她将不能就她热衷的话题“佣人”发表意见了。
if引导虚拟语气的句子。
would not be able to的意思是“不可能(做)。”
3.Aunt Harriet lived in that leisurely age when servants were employed to do housework.哈丽特生活在一个悠闲的年代,家务事都由雇来的佣人代劳。
live in…age的意思是“生活在…时代”。
4.She was sentimentally attached to this house, for even though it was far too big for her needs, she persisted in living there long after her husband's death.她对这幢房子在感情上难舍难分。房子实在太大了,但在丈夫去世多年后,她仍然执意长年住在那儿。
be sentimentally attached to的意思是“对…感情深厚,难以割舍”。
5.No matter how many guests were present, the great house was always immaculate.不管去多少宾客,大房子里总是收拾得干干净净。
no matter how的意思是“不管怎样。”
6.Aunt Harriet presided over an invisible army of servants that continuously scrubbed, cleaned, and polished.哈丽特姑妈统率着一支看不见的佣人大军,他们不停地擦拭、清扫、刷洗。
an army of servants为暗喻修辞格。
7.She always referred to them as 'the shifting population', for they came and went with such frequency that I never even got a chance to learn their names.她称这些佣人叫“流动人口”,因为他们来匆匆,所以我甚至都没有机会知道他们的姓名。
refer to的意思是“把…称为”。
8.Though my aunt pursued what was, in those days, an enlightened policy, in that she never allowed her domestic staff to work more than eight hours a day, she was extremely difficult to please.姑妈待佣人在当时算是开明的,从来不让佣人每天工作超过8小时,但他们很难使她称心如意。
more than引导比较状语。
9.While she always criticized the fickleness of human nature, she carried on an unrelenting search for the ideal servant to the end of her days, even after she had been sadly disillusioned by Bessie.她一方面总是批评人的本性朝三暮四,另一方面她又持之以恒地寻找一个理想的佣人。即使在贝西大大地伤她的心之后,她还在找,一直到她死去。
her days的意思是“她的有生之年”。
10.During that time she so gained my aunt's confidence that she was put in charge of the domestic staff.在此期间,她赢得了姑母的赏识,甚至当上了大管家。
gain one's confidence的意思是“赢得某人的赏识。”
11.Aunt Harriet could not find words to praise Bessie's industriousness and efficiency.哈丽特不知该用什么言辞来赞扬贝西的勤奋与高效。
can not find words to praise的意思是“无以言表”。
12.In addition to all her other qualifications, Bessie was an expert cook.贝西除了有各种本领以外,还是一个烹饪大师。
in addition to相当于apart from,表面上看是“除了…”,实际上是“包括…在内”的意思。
13.She acted the role of the perfect servant for three years before Aunt Harriet discovered her little weakness.她担任“理想仆人”角色3年之后,哈丽特终于发现她有“小小的弱点”。
perfect servant的意思是“理想的仆人”,是暗喻修辞格。
little weekness是含蓄修辞格。
14.No only was the meal well below the usual standard, but Bessie seemed unable to walk steadily.结果,不仅饭菜远不如平时做得好,而且贝西走起路来似乎东倒西歪。
not only放在句首,句子需要部分倒装。
15.She bumped into the furniture and kept mumbling about the guests.她撞到了家具上,嘴里还不断咕咕哝哝议论客人。
bump into不可理解为“撞进”而是“撞到”。
mumble about的意思是“含糊地说”。
16.When she came in with the last course-a huge pudding-she tripped on the carpet and the pudding went flying through the air, narrowly missed my aunt, and crashed on the dining table with considerable force.当她端着最后一道菜—一大盘布丁—走进屋来时,在地毯上绊了一跤。布丁飞到半空,从姑母身边擦过,然后狠狠地砸在餐桌上。
flying through the air是夸张修辞格。
17.Though this caused great mirth among the guests, Aunt Harriet was horrified.这件事引起了客人们的欢笑,但哈丽特却着实吓了一跳。
horrified的意思是“惊骇的”,一定是吓得不轻,注意这个词的含义的深度。
18.She reluctantly came to the conclusion that Bessie was drunk.她不得不认定贝西是喝醉了。
reluctantly come to的意思是“不得不认定”,其语气比have to要委婉得多。
19.The poor girl was dismissed instantly.贝西当即被解雇了。
be dismissed的意思是“被解雇”。