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CHAPTER XII “ASHES”
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 The following Monday morning brought an ugly scene with Gilbert, who learned not only the tragic1 and sensational2 news from the daily paper, but his wife’s part in it. For somehow the reporters had found out that she was present at the performance, and “the beautiful Mrs. Currey” was credited in one sensational rag with having “dashed forward heroically to try and save her sister-in-law, The Girlie Girl, from the impact of the curtain.” Claudia had not reckoned for this notoriety, and if Gilbert had shown any human sympathy with poor Fay she would have forgiven his ebullition of temper as excusable under the circumstances.
 
“You deliberately3 took advantage of my being in the country to frequent low music-halls with this woman,” he flung at her, his eyes bloodshot with anger.
 
Claudia controlled her rising anger. “I went on the spur of the moment, Gilbert. Jack4 came in to fetch me on Saturday afternoon.”
 
“I suppose you’ve been planning it for some time,” he sneered5. “It was a nice thing to have to explain to my[220] father and mother. My mother! who has never been in a music-hall in her life.”
 
“Perhaps it would do her good if she had.... You talk as if I knew what was going to happen.”
 
“Scandal on scandal!”
 
“Scandal! Is that all you can call it?” cried Claudia, a picture of Fay, so pitifully flattened6 out under the curtain, rising before her eyes. “Do you realize that she is paralysed for life—that everything is finished for her?”
 
“It’s a pity she wasn’t killed outright,” returned Gilbert callously7, “instead of remaining a disgrace to the family. But my mother warned me long ago,” he added injudiciously, almost beside himself with rage, for now these paroxysms grew on him and contorted any sense of fairness or kindness that had ever been in his composition.
 
“Of what did your mother warn you?” said Claudia, her nostrils8 dilating9, her eyes flashing. “Of marrying me? I insist on an answer.”
 
“This isn’t the first scandal in your family, is it? I’m not throwing your mother’s sins up against you, you are not responsible for her; but why on earth have you got the same flair10 for the sensational? You’ve deliberately courted this by going to see this—this woman.”
 
“Don’t call her ‘this woman,’ as though she were a leper,” said Claudia passionately11. “She’s earned her living by hard work ever since she was fourteen years old. How many women can boast of that? What if she hasn’t led a conventional life? A good many women whom you shake by the hand are a good deal less virtuous12, and certainly far less honest. Because she hasn’t dodged13 behind a wedding-ring or covered up her tracks you look upon her with contempt. And even if she were the most unscrupulous, mercenary creature alive, you might be sorry now. Twenty-two, and life over for her!” To[221] Claudia, with her Grecian appreciation14 of youth and life, this seemed a tragedy of tragedies. Once, as a child, when a gambolling15 puppy from the stables had got under the wheels of the brougham and been killed she had wept for days, and as she had looked down at the little fat white body that would never frisk any more, she had learned a lesson never to be forgotten. The puppy had taught her early to see the inestimable boon16 of youth and life. To be alive, to have all one’s faculties17 and powers of enjoyment18, that is the great gift of the gods, she had told herself then. There had always been something of the pagan in her, and she had ever refused to believe that death is the gate of Life.
 
“So you are sprouting19 the modern jargon20, are you?” said Gilbert angrily. “Listen, Claudia. You married me, and you must respect my name. I thought you were different from the women in your set, or I should not have married you. Apparently21 you are not different, but I am different from the husbands of those women. You’d better remember that. I allow you to go your own way, I give you perfect liberty, but on condition that you do not drag my name into club smoking-rooms and smart restaurants. There has never been a breath of talk about my mother, and there shall not be about my wife. If you want that kind of notoriety—you will not remain my wife.”
 
Claudia stood motionless, listening to this outburst, very erect22, her head thrown up, her neck making a beautiful but disdainful line with her chin. A sarcastic23, enigmatic smile played round her sensitive mouth, and her eyes were cold and keenly critical. She had suddenly seen the coarseness of his lips, the deadly, soul-destroying coldness of his self-satisfied, sombre eyes. He was merely a male, a high-handed, aggressive male, with the highly specialized25 brain of a lawyer. Heart? When had he ever shown any heart? She had never once touched his[222] heart, only his senses. His feeling for his mother and father was only a sort of clannish26 family pride. Why, even Jack’s love for Fay, lacking as it was in all the big qualities that make love worth while, was a much finer thing than Gilbert’s feeling for her. For a moment a revulsion of shame, a feeling of humiliation27 swept over her at the thought of what she had given him.
 
“If you were not afraid of being laughed at, of being made to look small, you wouldn’t care a jot28 what I did, would you?” she said with deadly precision. “You have a profound contempt for women, haven’t you? You married me for my looks, because I aroused your passion, because it is the general habit of man to instal a woman in his home. I am installed here and I have the privilege of calling myself Mrs. Currey; otherwise, had I been a woman of lower station and more easy virtue29, you would have fired me out long ago, wouldn’t you? I am to live on the ashes of your passion—I, a woman with no children! You are asking too much, my husband. As for that poor, maimed child, I shall go to her as often as she wants me.”
 
She was surprised, when he had gone, at the calmness with which she could turn to her ordinary occupations. She felt anger, contempt, the sting of her own humiliation, but he had no longer the power to wound her heart. She remembered the time—was it ages ago or only a year or so?—when, after an altercation30 or lack of response on his part, she had fled to her room and sobbed31 or brooded until she had made herself ill. Then her being had been shaken to its foundations, and she had felt the results on her nervous system for days.
 
But this morning, once the fierce blaze of her anger had burned out, she shrugged32 her shoulders and sat down to her escritoire. She must make her life without Gilbert. To allow a man she neither loved nor respected to destroy her balance would be a sign of weakness.
 
[223]
 
She was organizing, with Colin Paton, a concert in aid of a home for Penniless Gentlewomen, a charity which had always aroused her sympathy, and there was a good deal to be done. She was herself feeing Mrs. Milton to sing, and she had promised to come in that morning and give her some advice on the other artistes to be engaged.
 
It was not long before the maid showed her into her boudoir, but a much smarter-looking woman than she had been at Mrs. Rivington’s party. Claudia had contrived33 to make her accept one or two modish34 dresses without hurting her feelings or her dignity, and she had also secured her several lucrative35 engagements. It is needless to say that Margaret Milton’s generous heart held almost an adoration36 for Claudia.
 
“I hope I’m not late,” she said, as she came into the room, “but I had to do a little grave-digging before I could get away. Ugh! I thought the whole neighbourhood would be poisoned, the monkeys!”
 
Claudia laughingly inquired whose grave she had been digging.
 
“You must know that a favourite cat died about a month ago, and was gathered to—the other cats in limbo37. I allowed the children to bury it in the back garden—quite deep—and erect a tombstone. This morning, just as I was coming out, I became aware of an awful effluvia in the house. I wondered if the drains had suddenly gone wrong, and rushed round distraught. I found it was worse at the back of the house. Then I looked out of the window and saw——”
 
“No!”
 
“Yes. They had disinterred the cat to see how ‘she was getting on.’”
 
After they had both laughed over the children’s enterprise, they got to work. Claudia asked her opinion about an accompanist.
 
“Lucy Hamilton used to accompany most sympathetically,[224] but—no—I don’t suppose she would have decent clothes to come up in, and I daresay she may not have kept up her music.”
 
“Lucy Hamilton,” repeated Claudia, “not a sister of——?”
 
“Yes, Frank’s old-maid sister. Poor Lucy! She had such talent, and she was sacrificed to him right along.”
 
Claudia pondered a minute. “Does she still live somewhere in the country?”
 
“Salisbury. Yes, she gives music-lessons at a shilling an hour! It must be torture to her. Her old mother and she live in a tiny home together.”
 
“But, Mrs. Milton,” said Claudia, bewildered, “are they as poor as all that? How can they be when——?” She stopped, and then she decided38 to put the question that had been on her lips. “Will she not accept help from her son Frank?”
 
“Oh, yes! he does help her—a little.” Then she continued thoughtfully: “It does seem wrong, doesn’t it, that people won’t pay for pictures nowadays. I suppose we shall soon have no artists.”
 
Claudia stared. “But he gets big prices now for his pictures. A couple of years ago, I know, he was nearly starving, but he gets his own prices now.”
 
It was Mrs. Milton’s turn to look startled. For the moment she had forgotten that Claudia and he were friends. She tried to gloss39 over what might have been an indiscretion.
 
“I’m glad to hear it; perhaps—no doubt he will be able to help them more soon.... I think Miss Ronald would accompany splendidly, and I’ve got her address at home.”
 
“Mrs. Milton,” went on Claudia, a curious expression in her eyes, “have you heard from this Lucy Hamilton recently? And has—Mrs. Hamilton been a good mother to him—them both?”
 
[225]
 
“I heard from Lucy only yesterday. I wanted her to come up for a change—you can’t think how she revels40 in a few concerts, it’s a joy to take her, and I can always get tickets—but her own words were: ‘I’m much too shabby to come to town; such a lot of pupils owe me money, and mother’s illness in the winter was expensive.’” She did not add that the writer had gone on to say that her brother did not like her to come to town unless she was decently dressed, and that though he was getting on and acquiring reputation, he could not at the moment help them more than he was doing.
 
“As for Mrs. Hamilton being a good mother,” went on Mrs. Milton, “she’s been one of the best. Her husband was a small solicitor41 and left them very badly off. It was she who screwed the money out of the housekeeping that Frank should go to Paris and study painting. Lucy, who was just as clever at music, had to teach herself. I do hope, now he is getting on, that Frank will make their lives easier.”
 
“You don’t like him?” said Claudia abruptly42. There was a subtle something in Mrs. Milton’s tone that convinced her.
 
Mrs. Milton hesitated.
 
“You can speak quite honestly. Why not? You knew him for some years, did you not?”
 
“Yes, we lived next door to them in the High Street for years.... I think artists are always rather egotistical and selfish, don’t you? His mother adored him, and perhaps that doesn’t do a man any good. I want my boys to have happy memories of their youth and me, but I do try not to spoil them. I try and remember that they will be husbands to some nice girls later on. He always let her do all the giving ... one shouldn’t give too much, however much one loves. One should insist on some exchange, if only for the sake of the loved one.”
 
“And yet,” said Claudia, scrawling43 weird44 figures on[226] the blotting-pad, “they say that the ideal love means self-sacrifice, that true happiness is to be found in giving.”
 
“But it isn’t an ideal world in which we live, is it?” said Mrs. Milton gently. “Isn’t that sometimes a form of selfishness? I know by experience with the children that it’s often the tempting45 path, ‘the easiest way,’ but if one really loves the little minds and hearts, one must sometimes bear the tears and the sulks that follow when you are firm. You’ll know that one day, when you have children of your own.”
 
“And with men and women?”
 
“Many women, I think, have made themselves and their men unhappy by giving too much and too freely. It’s become a habit with women. We can’t stand their frowns and their tempers. But I’m sure it’s a mistake. My husband is the dearest of men, but at the beginning of our life together I nearly became a doormat—just of my own accord.... Shall we fix on Miss Ronald?”
 
They worked steadily46 for half an hour, when there was a loud commotion47 on the stairs. It startled Margaret Milton, but Claudia knew the cause. Pat had lately acquired a huge puppy sheepdog, with the result that her arrival was always somewhat like that of a circus in full swing.
 
Pat and the dog, who had been christened Socrates because he was such a fool, came tumbling in together.
 
“He’s chewed up half a mat downstairs while I was using your telephone, Claudia. How do you do, Mrs. Milton. Allow me, Mrs. Milton—Socrates. Socky, go and lie down and take a short snooze. He’s the terror of Mayfair. He upset two children and a mail-cart this morning, and he’s been in the Round Pond and splashed me from head to foot. How’s poor little Fay getting on?”
 
“No change,” said Claudia, with a sigh. “I’m going down there after lunch.”
 
Pat drew in her breath. “Heavens! if anything like[227] that should happen to me, I’d go mad! I should yell the house down. She must know something. It’s a fortnight now. She must suspect something.”
 
“Sometimes I wonder,” said Claudia. “Sometimes I think I see panic in her eyes, then the next moment she’s asking me a conundrum48 she’s found in some penny journal and roaring with laughter at my wild guesses. She talks about getting up soon—she’s had the piano taken in, and yesterday she was singing ‘to keep her voice from getting mildewy,’ but—I don’t know. If she knows—if she’s got any suspicion, she’s the pluckiest little soul I’ve ever known.”
 
After that first awful night, it had become a practice for her to go down to the flat almost daily, each time devising some fresh forms of amusement—Fay was like a child—and directing the domestic machinery49, which was now much smoother. The clinging helpless hands of Fay gave her a strange feeling, and a curious bond had sprung up between them. To Fay, Claudia, with her education and culture, was something wonderfully clever, something she had never known, something that made her long, in her generous, undisciplined heart, to emulate50, to grow into. She considered Claudia’s knowledge of books and pictures amazing. She told all her fellow-professionals who flocked to see her—and they were a strange, bizarre crowd—that her sister-in-law was the most wonderful and splendid lady in the world, and when Jack occasionally talked carelessly of his sister, she was roused to such volleys of wrathful words that the nurse had to ask him not to excite her. In all her moods—sometimes babyish, when she would play with dolls and mechanical toys; sometimes fretful, when nothing pleased her and she wailed51 to get well; sometimes optimistic and full of ideas for new turns and songs—Claudia was always wanted and loudly welcomed. Fay did not always want Jack—perhaps she divined something of his repugnance[228] to sickness—she did not always want her “pals,” but she always listened eagerly for Claudia’s step in the hall, and if she did not come, sent the nurse to the telephone.
 
Soon after, Mrs. Milton took her departure.
 
Pat sat in a low chair, her long legs sprawling52 half across the room. For a long time neither of them spoke53. Claudia stood gazing out of the window across the Park. The trees were gloriously green now, and like fluttering heralds54 of summer, brilliant in the sunlight. The sun touched the gilt55 of the Albert Memorial so that it mingled56 with the tender greens and almost reconciled her to it. She was thinking of Mrs. Milton’s story of Hamilton’s mother and sister. She knew her statement was correct. She knew several large cheques had been despatched to him by people with whom she had brought him in touch. Was he—she shrank from the word like a loathsome57 disease—was he mean? He had evidently not wished to renew his acquaintance with Mrs. Milton that night at the Rivingtons. Why? Did he desire to forget his small beginnings—the obligations of which she must have reminded him? It was a corroding58 idea, and Claudia was glad when Pat commenced to speak in a—for her—thoughtful tone.
 
“I must be a throw-back. That’s the explanation always trotted59 out nowadays, isn’t it?”
 
“A throw-back, Pat? What on earth are you talking about?” She turned and looked at the fresh, boyish face, the slim, long limbs, the sophisticated and yet innocent eyes of her sister.
 
“We’re a funny family, aren’t we? We’ve just dragged ourselves up anyhow. I went to a lecture on heredity the other day. What do we inherit, I asked myself? Father’s an invertebrate60 jellyfish, and mother—well, mother’s Circe! Grandfather, on mother’s side, is a gay old dog still, and father’s father was a leader of lost[229] causes and died young. Bit of a jumble61, isn’t it? I’ve been puzzling over it for days. I heard someone say of you the other day—of course, they were discussing you in connection with The Girlie Girl—‘she’s Circe’s daughter.’ We’re both Circe’s daughters, and I’m not a bit like her. I say, I’m a throw-back somewhere. Mother always cared for men, never for women. I don’t care a scrap62 for men in any sexual way—oh, yes! don’t look so wise, I’ve experimented in a few flirtations—and I simply hate them—that way. I like hunting with them and playing golf and wading63 in the water, fishing, but directly they get sentimental64 and want to kiss me I curl up inside. Most girls, I’ve found out, like being kissed, even if they are not in love. I nearly murdered Dicky Trevor the other day because he kissed me unexpectedly on the nape of the neck. No, Circe hasn’t given me any heritage, and I don’t think I’m so backboneless as father. I’ve got a scheme growing in my head—I shan’t tell you about it till I’m sure of my own mind—but it doesn’t include a husband.”
 
Claudia looked attentively65 at her sister. For the first time it flashed across her that the baffling thing about Pat was that so far she was quite sexless. She had been eager to come out for the fun of the dancing and the parties, but she had never had that shy anticipation66 of love that makes so many girls of eighteen eager to be presented. The books she read as a child were always stirring adventure stories, travels and records of real achievements. Fairy-tales with the all-conquering prince had bored her, all except the passages that dealt with sanguinary fights and treasure-trove. Later on she had read one or two famous French romances out of curiosity, but they had failed to make any appeal whatever. Her enthusiasms, her outbursts of passion, her thrills, were reserved for golf and hockey, and she had once said that the greatest and most satisfying moments of life to her were when she[230] was on the back of her favourite horse, following the hounds. She liked men. Indeed, on the whole, she preferred them to women, but only because they were better and more vigorous sportsmen and less liable to be petty and jealous. As Claudia surveyed her she realized that she neither could give nor did she wish to proffer67 advice. Pat must face her own problem. Before her marriage she would have rushed in where experience fears to tread, and talked to Pat of the joys of love, of the folly68 of the woman who disdained69 or belittled70 what man could offer. Now all her landmarks71 were gone. She had messed up her own life. All she could do was to listen and reflect what an awful muddle72 and enigma24 life was for women, and wonder why Providence73 had given them no chart to steer74 by.
 
“You see,” continued Pat, “I’ve thought the thing out, and it wouldn’t be playing cricket to marry a man if you didn’t want him—that way. I tried to tell a man the other day how I felt, and he said he’d be a chum and wouldn’t worry me; but I saw the look in his eyes even then, and I knew it would be hell for both of us. Men always want women that way.”
 
Who had said something like that recently? Ah, yes! it had been said by Jack, apropos75 of Colin Paton.
 
“You are very wise this morning,” said Claudia, with a forced laugh. “If you feel this way there may be men who also are celibates76 at heart.”
 
“Haven’t met any,” said Pat laconically77, giving Socky a kick to stop his stentorian78 dreams. “He’s chasing bunnies in the Park.”
 
“Oh! there are men. A good many women complain of—lack of attention on the part of their husbands.”
 
“Then the attentions go to some other woman, or he’s an uninteresting money-grabber.”
 
“Don’t generalize so much.... What about a man like Colin Paton?”
 
[231]
 
Pat laughed derisively79, so that Socky got up and barked. “Shut up, you fool; I’m laughing at my sister, who has the foolishness of a babe! Have you known Paton all these years and not seen beneath the surface? Gracious! even if he likes me—which he doesn’t expect to crack jokes with—that would be the last man I’d experiment with. He’s full of emotion underneath80 that quiet exterior81. If I could return it, I’d rather like to be loved by Colin Paton. Why, he’d make the most tender and ardent82 of lovers if he gained the heart of the right woman. Have you seen him with his widowed mother? Oh! he’s perfectly83 sweet to her, and she adores him. She’s such a nice, cosy84 thing, too; you feel you want to sit on a footstool at her feet and have her stroke your hair.”
 
“If you’re right, it’s curious he hasn’t married.”
 
She was looking out of the window again, and she didn’t see the curious look her sister cast at her. Pat finished up the conversation with:
 
“Come on, Socks, we’re going to our happy home. Men like Colin Paton often get left because most women are fools where love is concerned. It’s been the study of their lives for centuries, and even now they can’t tell a piece of glass from a diamond. Because a man doesn’t come along like a raging whirlwind they think he’s cold, and because he loudly swears fidelity85 like a tinkling86 cymbal87 they think they can put their money on him. The metaphors88 are a bit mixed, but what I’m driving at is this. Women seldom have any judgment89 where men are concerned, and the nicer the woman the less sound is her judgment. Only bad women have good judgment regarding men. I—Patricia Iverson—have spoken. Selah! Socks!”

点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 tragic inaw2     
adj.悲剧的,悲剧性的,悲惨的
参考例句:
  • The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
  • Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。
2 sensational Szrwi     
adj.使人感动的,非常好的,轰动的,耸人听闻的
参考例句:
  • Papers of this kind are full of sensational news reports.这类报纸满是耸人听闻的新闻报道。
  • Their performance was sensational.他们的演出妙极了。
3 deliberately Gulzvq     
adv.审慎地;蓄意地;故意地
参考例句:
  • The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
  • They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。
4 jack 53Hxp     
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克
参考例句:
  • I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
  • He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。
5 sneered 0e3b5b35e54fb2ad006040792a867d9f     
讥笑,冷笑( sneer的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • He sneered at people who liked pop music. 他嘲笑喜欢流行音乐的人。
  • It's very discouraging to be sneered at all the time. 成天受嘲讽是很令人泄气的。
6 flattened 1d5d9fedd9ab44a19d9f30a0b81f79a8     
[医](水)平扁的,弄平的
参考例句:
  • She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
  • I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。
7 callously dec3b5c8c8e051ec6020b11c100b4bff     
参考例句:
  • Sri Lanka has callously ignored calls for a humanitarian cease-fire. 斯里兰卡无情地忽视人道停火的呼吁。 来自互联网
  • The pendulum ticks callously, heartlessly. 这是谁的遗训? 来自互联网
8 nostrils 23a65b62ec4d8a35d85125cdb1b4410e     
鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Her nostrils flared with anger. 她气得两个鼻孔都鼓了起来。
  • The horse dilated its nostrils. 马张大鼻孔。
9 dilating 650b63aa5fe0e80f6e53759e79ee96ff     
v.(使某物)扩大,膨胀,张大( dilate的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • Compliance is the dilating extent of elastic tissue below pressure. 顺应性是指外力作用下弹性组织的可扩张性。 来自互联网
  • For dilating the bearing life, bearing should keep lubricative well. 为延长轴承寿命,轴承应保持良好的润滑状态。 来自互联网
10 flair 87jyQ     
n.天赋,本领,才华;洞察力
参考例句:
  • His business skill complements her flair for design.他的经营技巧和她的设计才能相辅相成。
  • He had a natural flair for business.他有做生意的天分。
11 passionately YmDzQ4     
ad.热烈地,激烈地
参考例句:
  • She could hate as passionately as she could love. 她能恨得咬牙切齿,也能爱得一往情深。
  • He was passionately addicted to pop music. 他酷爱流行音乐。
12 virtuous upCyI     
adj.有品德的,善良的,贞洁的,有效力的
参考例句:
  • She was such a virtuous woman that everybody respected her.她是个有道德的女性,人人都尊敬她。
  • My uncle is always proud of having a virtuous wife.叔叔一直为娶到一位贤德的妻子而骄傲。
13 dodged ae7efa6756c9d8f3b24f8e00db5e28ee     
v.闪躲( dodge的过去式和过去分词 );回避
参考例句:
  • He dodged cleverly when she threw her sabot at him. 她用木底鞋砸向他时,他机敏地闪开了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He dodged the book that I threw at him. 他躲开了我扔向他的书。 来自《简明英汉词典》
14 appreciation Pv9zs     
n.评价;欣赏;感谢;领会,理解;价格上涨
参考例句:
  • I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
  • I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。
15 gambolling 9ae7cd962ad5273eabdc4cd1f19819c9     
v.蹦跳,跳跃,嬉戏( gambol的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • lambs gambolling in the meadow 在草地上蹦蹦跳跳的小羊羔
  • The colts and calves are gambolling round the stockman. 小马驹和小牛犊围着饲养员欢蹦乱跳。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
16 boon CRVyF     
n.恩赐,恩物,恩惠
参考例句:
  • A car is a real boon when you live in the country.在郊外居住,有辆汽车确实极为方便。
  • These machines have proved a real boon to disabled people.事实证明这些机器让残疾人受益匪浅。
17 faculties 066198190456ba4e2b0a2bda2034dfc5     
n.能力( faculty的名词复数 );全体教职员;技巧;院
参考例句:
  • Although he's ninety, his mental faculties remain unimpaired. 他虽年届九旬,但头脑仍然清晰。
  • All your faculties have come into play in your work. 在你的工作中,你的全部才能已起到了作用。 来自《简明英汉词典》
18 enjoyment opaxV     
n.乐趣;享有;享用
参考例句:
  • Your company adds to the enjoyment of our visit. 有您的陪同,我们这次访问更加愉快了。
  • After each joke the old man cackled his enjoyment.每逢讲完一个笑话,这老人就呵呵笑着表示他的高兴。
19 sprouting c8222ee91acc6d4059c7ab09c0d8d74e     
v.发芽( sprout的现在分词 );抽芽;出现;(使)涌现出
参考例句:
  • new leaves sprouting from the trees 树上长出的新叶
  • They were putting fresh earth around sprouting potato stalks. 他们在往绽出新芽的土豆秧周围培新土。 来自名作英译部分
20 jargon I3sxk     
n.术语,行话
参考例句:
  • They will not hear critics with their horrible jargon.他们不愿意听到评论家们那些可怕的行话。
  • It is important not to be overawed by the mathematical jargon.要紧的是不要被数学的术语所吓倒.
21 apparently tMmyQ     
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
参考例句:
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
22 erect 4iLzm     
n./v.树立,建立,使竖立;adj.直立的,垂直的
参考例句:
  • She held her head erect and her back straight.她昂着头,把背挺得笔直。
  • Soldiers are trained to stand erect.士兵们训练站得笔直。
23 sarcastic jCIzJ     
adj.讥讽的,讽刺的,嘲弄的
参考例句:
  • I squashed him with a sarcastic remark.我说了一句讽刺的话把他给镇住了。
  • She poked fun at people's shortcomings with sarcastic remarks.她冷嘲热讽地拿别人的缺点开玩笑。
24 enigma 68HyU     
n.谜,谜一样的人或事
参考例句:
  • I've known him for many years,but he remains something of an enigma to me.我与他相识多年,他仍然难以捉摸。
  • Even after all the testimonies,the murder remained a enigma.即使听完了所有的证词,这件谋杀案仍然是一个谜。
25 specialized Chuzwe     
adj.专门的,专业化的
参考例句:
  • There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
  • These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。
26 clannish 5VOyH     
adj.排他的,门户之见的
参考例句:
  • They were a clannish lot,not given to welcoming strangers.他们那帮人抱成一团,不怎么欢迎生人。
  • Firms are also doggedly clannish on the inside.公司内部同时也具有极其顽固的排他性。
27 humiliation Jd3zW     
n.羞辱
参考例句:
  • He suffered the humiliation of being forced to ask for his cards.他蒙受了被迫要求辞职的羞辱。
  • He will wish to revenge his humiliation in last Season's Final.他会为在上个季度的决赛中所受的耻辱而报复的。
28 jot X3Cx3     
n.少量;vi.草草记下;vt.匆匆写下
参考例句:
  • I'll jot down their address before I forget it.我得赶快把他们的地址写下来,免得忘了。
  • There is not a jot of evidence to say it does them any good.没有丝毫的证据显示这对他们有任何好处。
29 virtue BpqyH     
n.德行,美德;贞操;优点;功效,效力
参考例句:
  • He was considered to be a paragon of virtue.他被认为是品德尽善尽美的典范。
  • You need to decorate your mind with virtue.你应该用德行美化心灵。
30 altercation pLzyi     
n.争吵,争论
参考例句:
  • Throughout the entire altercation,not one sensible word was uttered.争了半天,没有一句话是切合实际的。
  • The boys had an altercation over the umpire's decision.男孩子们对裁判的判决颇有争议。
31 sobbed 4a153e2bbe39eef90bf6a4beb2dba759     
哭泣,啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 ); 哭诉,呜咽地说
参考例句:
  • She sobbed out the story of her son's death. 她哭诉着她儿子的死。
  • She sobbed out the sad story of her son's death. 她哽咽着诉说她儿子死去的悲惨经过。
32 shrugged 497904474a48f991a3d1961b0476ebce     
vt.耸肩(shrug的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀,什么也没说。
  • She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩,装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
33 contrived ivBzmO     
adj.不自然的,做作的;虚构的
参考例句:
  • There was nothing contrived or calculated about what he said.他说的话里没有任何蓄意捏造的成分。
  • The plot seems contrived.情节看起来不真实。
34 modish iEIxl     
adj.流行的,时髦的
参考例句:
  • She is always crazy at modish things.她疯狂热爱流行物品。
  • Rhoda's willowy figure,modish straw hat,and fuchsia gloves and shoes surprised Janice.罗达的苗条身材,时髦的草帽,紫红色的手套和鞋使杰妮丝有些惊讶。
35 lucrative dADxp     
adj.赚钱的,可获利的
参考例句:
  • He decided to turn his hobby into a lucrative sideline.他决定把自己的爱好变成赚钱的副业。
  • It was not a lucrative profession.那是一个没有多少油水的职业。
36 adoration wfhyD     
n.爱慕,崇拜
参考例句:
  • He gazed at her with pure adoration.他一往情深地注视着她。
  • The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
37 limbo Z06xz     
n.地狱的边缘;监狱
参考例句:
  • His life seemed stuck in limbo and he could not go forward and he could not go back.他的生活好像陷入了不知所措的境地,进退两难。
  • I didn't know whether my family was alive or dead.I felt as if I was in limbo.我不知道家人是生是死,感觉自己茫然无措。
38 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
39 gloss gloss     
n.光泽,光滑;虚饰;注释;vt.加光泽于;掩饰
参考例句:
  • John tried in vain to gloss over his faults.约翰极力想掩饰自己的缺点,但是没有用。
  • She rubbed up the silver plates to a high gloss.她把银盘擦得很亮。
40 revels a11b91521eaa5ae9692b19b125143aa9     
n.作乐( revel的名词复数 );狂欢;着迷;陶醉v.作乐( revel的第三人称单数 );狂欢;着迷;陶醉
参考例句:
  • Christmas revels with feasting and dancing were common in England. 圣诞节的狂欢歌舞在英国是很常见的。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • Dickens openly revels in the book's rich physical detail and high-hearted conflict. 狄更斯对该书中丰富多彩的具体细节描写和勇敢的争斗公开表示欣赏。 来自辞典例句
41 solicitor vFBzb     
n.初级律师,事务律师
参考例句:
  • The solicitor's advice gave me food for thought.律师的指点值得我深思。
  • The solicitor moved for an adjournment of the case.律师请求将这个案件的诉讼延期。
42 abruptly iINyJ     
adv.突然地,出其不意地
参考例句:
  • He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
  • I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。
43 scrawling eb6c4d9bcb89539d82c601edd338242c     
乱涂,潦草地写( scrawl的现在分词 )
参考例句:
44 weird bghw8     
adj.古怪的,离奇的;怪诞的,神秘而可怕的
参考例句:
  • From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来,他好像有点怪。
  • His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。
45 tempting wgAzd4     
a.诱人的, 吸引人的
参考例句:
  • It is tempting to idealize the past. 人都爱把过去的日子说得那么美好。
  • It was a tempting offer. 这是个诱人的提议。
46 steadily Qukw6     
adv.稳定地;不变地;持续地
参考例句:
  • The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
  • Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。
47 commotion 3X3yo     
n.骚动,动乱
参考例句:
  • They made a commotion by yelling at each other in the theatre.他们在剧院里相互争吵,引起了一阵骚乱。
  • Suddenly the whole street was in commotion.突然间,整条街道变得一片混乱。
48 conundrum gpxzZ     
n.谜语;难题
参考例句:
  • Let me give you some history about a conundrum.让我给你们一些关于谜题的历史。
  • Scientists had focused on two explanations to solve this conundrum.科学家已锁定两种解释来解开这个难题。
49 machinery CAdxb     
n.(总称)机械,机器;机构
参考例句:
  • Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗?
  • Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。
50 emulate tpqx9     
v.努力赶上或超越,与…竞争;效仿
参考例句:
  • You must work hard to emulate your sister.你必须努力工作,赶上你姐姐。
  • You must look at the film and try to emulate his behavior.你们必须观看这部电影,并尽力模仿他的动作。
51 wailed e27902fd534535a9f82ffa06a5b6937a     
v.哭叫,哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She wailed over her father's remains. 她对着父亲的遗体嚎啕大哭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The women of the town wailed over the war victims. 城里的妇女为战争的死难者们痛哭。 来自辞典例句
52 sprawling 3ff3e560ffc2f12f222ef624d5807902     
adj.蔓生的,不规则地伸展的v.伸开四肢坐[躺]( sprawl的现在分词 );蔓延;杂乱无序地拓展;四肢伸展坐着(或躺着)
参考例句:
  • He was sprawling in an armchair in front of the TV. 他伸开手脚坐在电视机前的一张扶手椅上。
  • a modern sprawling town 一座杂乱无序拓展的现代城镇
53 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
54 heralds 85a7677643514d2e94585dc21f41b7ab     
n.使者( herald的名词复数 );预报者;预兆;传令官v.预示( herald的第三人称单数 );宣布(好或重要)
参考例句:
  • The song of birds heralds the approach of spring. 百鸟齐鸣报春到。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
  • The wind sweeping through the tower heralds a rising storm in the mountain. 山雨欲来风满楼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
55 gilt p6UyB     
adj.镀金的;n.金边证券
参考例句:
  • The plates have a gilt edge.这些盘子的边是镀金的。
  • The rest of the money is invested in gilt.其余的钱投资于金边证券。
56 mingled fdf34efd22095ed7e00f43ccc823abdf     
混合,混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 ); 混进,与…交往[联系]
参考例句:
  • The sounds of laughter and singing mingled in the evening air. 笑声和歌声交织在夜空中。
  • The man and the woman mingled as everyone started to relax. 当大家开始放松的时候,这一男一女就开始交往了。
57 loathsome Vx5yX     
adj.讨厌的,令人厌恶的
参考例句:
  • The witch hid her loathsome face with her hands.巫婆用手掩住她那张令人恶心的脸。
  • Some people think that snakes are loathsome creatures.有些人觉得蛇是令人憎恶的动物。
58 corroding 81181f26793e525ddb60be5a5847af9e     
使腐蚀,侵蚀( corrode的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • That sour nature has started corroding those metal parts. 那酸质已开始腐蚀那金属部件。
  • He was driven by a corroding rage for "perfection". 他受追求“完美境界”的极端热情所驱策。
59 trotted 6df8e0ef20c10ef975433b4a0456e6e1     
小跑,急走( trot的过去分词 ); 匆匆忙忙地走
参考例句:
  • She trotted her pony around the field. 她骑着小马绕场慢跑。
  • Anne trotted obediently beside her mother. 安妮听话地跟在妈妈身边走。
60 invertebrate 9a8zt     
n.无脊椎动物
参考例句:
  • Half of all invertebrate species live in tropical rain forests.一半的无脊椎动物物种生活在热带雨林中。
  • Worms are an example of invertebrate animals.蠕虫是无脊椎动物的一个例子。
61 jumble I3lyi     
vt.使混乱,混杂;n.混乱;杂乱的一堆
参考例句:
  • Even the furniture remained the same jumble that it had always been.甚至家具还是象过去一样杂乱无章。
  • The things in the drawer were all in a jumble.抽屉里的东西很杂乱。
62 scrap JDFzf     
n.碎片;废料;v.废弃,报废
参考例句:
  • A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
  • Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。
63 wading 0fd83283f7380e84316a66c449c69658     
(从水、泥等)蹚,走过,跋( wade的现在分词 )
参考例句:
  • The man tucked up his trousers for wading. 那人卷起裤子,准备涉水。
  • The children were wading in the sea. 孩子们在海水中走着。
64 sentimental dDuzS     
adj.多愁善感的,感伤的
参考例句:
  • She's a sentimental woman who believes marriage comes by destiny.她是多愁善感的人,她相信姻缘命中注定。
  • We were deeply touched by the sentimental movie.我们深深被那感伤的电影所感动。
65 attentively AyQzjz     
adv.聚精会神地;周到地;谛;凝神
参考例句:
  • She listened attentively while I poured out my problems. 我倾吐心中的烦恼时,她一直在注意听。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • She listened attentively and set down every word he said. 她专心听着,把他说的话一字不漏地记下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
66 anticipation iMTyh     
n.预期,预料,期望
参考例句:
  • We waited at the station in anticipation of her arrival.我们在车站等着,期待她的到来。
  • The animals grew restless as if in anticipation of an earthquake.各种动物都变得焦躁不安,像是感到了地震即将发生。
67 proffer FBryF     
v.献出,赠送;n.提议,建议
参考例句:
  • He rose and proffered a silver box full of cigarettes.他站起身,伸手递过一个装满香烟的银盒子。
  • I proffer to lend him one.我表示愿意借他一个。
68 folly QgOzL     
n.愚笨,愚蠢,蠢事,蠢行,傻话
参考例句:
  • Learn wisdom by the folly of others.从别人的愚蠢行动中学到智慧。
  • Events proved the folly of such calculations.事情的进展证明了这种估计是愚蠢的。
69 disdained d5a61f4ef58e982cb206e243a1d9c102     
鄙视( disdain的过去式和过去分词 ); 不屑于做,不愿意做
参考例句:
  • I disdained to answer his rude remarks. 我不屑回答他的粗话。
  • Jackie disdained the servants that her millions could buy. 杰姬鄙视那些她用钱就可以收买的奴仆。
70 belittled 39476f0950667cb112a492d64de54dc2     
使显得微小,轻视,贬低( belittle的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She felt her husband constantly belittled her achievements. 她觉得她的丈夫时常贬低她的成就。
  • A poor but honest man is not to be belittled. 穷而诚实的人是不该让人小看的。
71 landmarks 746a744ae0fc201cc2f97ab777d21b8c     
n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 );目标;(标志重要阶段的)里程碑 ~ (in sth);有历史意义的建筑物(或遗址)
参考例句:
  • The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句
72 muddle d6ezF     
n.困惑,混浊状态;vt.使混乱,使糊涂,使惊呆;vi.胡乱应付,混乱
参考例句:
  • Everything in the room was in a muddle.房间里每一件东西都是乱七八糟的。
  • Don't work in a rush and get into a muddle.克服忙乱现象。
73 providence 8tdyh     
n.深谋远虑,天道,天意;远见;节约;上帝
参考例句:
  • It is tempting Providence to go in that old boat.乘那艘旧船前往是冒大险。
  • To act as you have done is to fly in the face of Providence.照你的所作所为那样去行事,是违背上帝的意志的。
74 steer 5u5w3     
vt.驾驶,为…操舵;引导;vi.驾驶
参考例句:
  • If you push the car, I'll steer it.如果你来推车,我就来驾车。
  • It's no use trying to steer the boy into a course of action that suits you.想说服这孩子按你的方式行事是徒劳的。
75 apropos keky3     
adv.恰好地;adj.恰当的;关于
参考例句:
  • I thought he spoke very apropos.我认为他说得很中肯。
  • He arrived very apropos.他来得很及时。
76 celibates 56440d5e135e2f3d2d6ba28a447e08df     
n.独身者( celibate的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Men attach more importance to marriage than women do, and there are fewer male celibates. 男人们更重视结婚。男性独身主义者比女性独身主义者更少。 来自互联网
77 laconically 09acdfe4bad4e976c830505804da4d5b     
adv.简短地,简洁地
参考例句:
  • "I have a key,'said Rhett laconically, and his eyes met Melanie's evenly. "我有钥匙,"瑞德直截了当说。他和媚兰的眼光正好相遇。 来自飘(部分)
  • 'says he's sick,'said Johnnie laconically. "他说他有玻"约翰尼要理不理的说。 来自飘(部分)
78 stentorian 1uCwA     
adj.大声的,响亮的
参考例句:
  • Now all joined in solemn stentorian accord.现在,在这庄严的响彻云霄的和声中大家都联合在一起了。
  • The stentorian tones of auctioneer,calling out to clear,now announced that the sale to commence.拍卖人用洪亮的声音招呼大家闪开一点,然后宣布拍卖即将开始。
79 derisively derisively     
adv. 嘲笑地,嘲弄地
参考例句:
  • This answer came derisively from several places at the same instant. 好几个人都不约而同地以讥讽的口吻作出回答。
  • The others laughed derisively. 其余的人不以为然地笑了起来。
80 underneath VKRz2     
adj.在...下面,在...底下;adv.在下面
参考例句:
  • Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
  • She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣,里面套着一条连衣裙。
81 exterior LlYyr     
adj.外部的,外在的;表面的
参考例句:
  • The seed has a hard exterior covering.这种子外壳很硬。
  • We are painting the exterior wall of the house.我们正在给房子的外墙涂漆。
82 ardent yvjzd     
adj.热情的,热烈的,强烈的,烈性的
参考例句:
  • He's an ardent supporter of the local football team.他是本地足球队的热情支持者。
  • Ardent expectations were held by his parents for his college career.他父母对他的大学学习抱着殷切的期望。
83 perfectly 8Mzxb     
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
  • Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。
84 cosy dvnzc5     
adj.温暖而舒适的,安逸的
参考例句:
  • We spent a cosy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。
  • It was so warm and cosy in bed that Simon didn't want to get out.床上温暖而又舒适,西蒙简直不想下床了。
85 fidelity vk3xB     
n.忠诚,忠实;精确
参考例句:
  • There is nothing like a dog's fidelity.没有什么能比得上狗的忠诚。
  • His fidelity and industry brought him speedy promotion.他的尽职及勤奋使他很快地得到晋升。
86 tinkling Rg3zG6     
n.丁当作响声
参考例句:
  • I could hear bells tinkling in the distance. 我能听到远处叮当铃响。
  • To talk to him was like listening to the tinkling of a worn-out musical-box. 跟他说话,犹如听一架老掉牙的八音盒子丁冬响。 来自英汉文学
87 cymbal cymbal     
n.铙钹
参考例句:
  • The piece ends with a cymbal crash.这支曲子以铙钹的撞击声结束。
  • Cymbal is a pair of round brass plates.铙钹是一对黄铜圆盘。
88 metaphors 83e73a88f6ce7dc55e75641ff9fe3c41     
隐喻( metaphor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • I can only represent it to you by metaphors. 我只能用隐喻来向你描述它。
  • Thus, She's an angel and He's a lion in battle are metaphors. 因此她是天使,他是雄狮都是比喻说法。
89 judgment e3xxC     
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见
参考例句:
  • The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
  • He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。


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