The apartment, rented at one hundred and sixty francs per annum, consisted of four large rooms which it was absolutely impossible to keep warm during the winter. Mme Burle slept in the largest chamber9, her son Captain and Quartermaster Burle occupying a somewhat smaller one overlooking the street, while little Charles had his iron cot at the farther end of a spacious10 drawing room with mildewed11 hangings, which was never used. The few pieces of furniture belonging to the captain and his mother, furniture of the massive style of the First Empire, dented12 and worn by continuous transit13 from one garrison14 town to another, almost disappeared from view beneath the lofty ceilings whence darkness fell. The flooring of red-colored tiles was cold and hard to the feet; before the chairs there were merely a few threadbare little rugs of poverty-stricken aspect, and athwart this desert all the winds of heaven blew through the disjointed doors and windows.
Near the fireplace sat Mme Burle, leaning back in her old yellow velvet15 armchair and watching the last vine branch smoke, with that stolid16, blank stare of the aged5 who live within themselves. She would sit thus for whole days together, with her tall figure, her long stern face and her thin lips that never smiled. The widow of a colonel who had died just as he was on the point of becoming a general, the mother of a captain whom she had followed even in his campaigns, she had acquired a military stiffness of bearing and formed for herself a code of honor, duty and patriotism17 which kept her rigid18, desiccated, as it were, by the stern application of discipline. She seldom, if ever, complained. When her son had become a widower19 after five years of married life she had undertaken the education of little Charles as a matter of course, performing her duties with the severity of a sergeant20 drilling recruits. She watched over the child, never tolerating the slightest waywardness or irregularity, but compelling him to sit up till midnight when his exercises were not finished, and sitting up herself until he had completed them. Under such implacable despotism Charles, whose constitution was delicate, grew up pale and thin, with beautiful eyes, inordinately21 large and clear, shining in his white, pinched face.
During the long hours of silence Mme Burle dwelt continuously upon one and the same idea: she had been disappointed in her son. This thought sufficed to occupy her mind, and under its influence she would live her whole life over again, from the birth of her son, whom she had pictured rising amid glory to the highest rank, till she came down to mean and narrow garrison life, the dull, monotonous22 existence of nowadays, that stranding23 in the post of a quartermaster, from which Burle would never rise and in which he seemed to sink more and more heavily. And yet his first efforts had filled her with pride, and she had hoped to see her dreams realized. Burle had only just left Saint-Cyr when he distinguished24 himself at the battle of Solferino, where he had captured a whole battery of the enemy’s artillery25 with merely a handful of men. For this feat26 he had won the cross; the papers had recorded his heroism27, and he had become known as one of the bravest soldiers in the army. But gradually the hero had grown stout28, embedded29 in flesh, timorous30, lazy and satisfied. In 1870, still a captain, he had been made a prisoner in the first encounter, and he returned from Germany quite furious, swearing that he would never be caught fighting again, for it was too absurd. Being prevented from leaving the army, as he was incapable31 of embracing any other profession, he applied32 for and obtained the position of captain quartermaster, “a kennel,” as he called it, “in which he would be left to kick the bucket in peace.” That day Mme Burle experienced a great internal disruption. She felt that it was all over, and she ever afterward33 preserved a rigid attitude with tightened34 lips.
A blast of wind shook the Rue des Recollets and drove the rain angrily against the windowpanes. The old lady lifted her eyes from the smoking vine roots now dying out, to make sure that Charles was not falling asleep over his Latin exercise. This lad, twelve years of age, had become the old lady’s supreme35 hope, the one human being in whom she centered her obstinate36 yearning37 for glory. At first she had hated him with all the loathing38 she had felt for his mother, a weak and pretty young lacemaker whom the captain had been foolish enough to marry when he found out that she would not listen to his passionate39 addresses on any other condition. Later on, when the mother had died and the father had begun to wallow in vice40, Mme Burle dreamed again in presence of that little ailing41 child whom she found it so hard to rear. She wanted to see him robust42, so that he might grow into the hero that Burle had declined to be, and for all her cold ruggedness43 she watched him anxiously, feeling his limbs and instilling44 courage into his soul. By degrees, blinded by her passionate desires, she imagined that she had at last found the man of the family. The boy, whose temperament45 was of a gentle, dreamy character, had a physical horror of soldiering, but as he lived in mortal dread46 of his grandmother and was extremely shy and submissive, he would echo all she said and resignedly express his intention of entering the army when he grew up.
Mme Burle observed that the exercise was not progressing. In fact, little Charles, overcome by the deafening47 noise of the storm, was dozing48, albeit49 his pen was between his fingers and his eyes were staring at the paper. The old lady at once struck the edge of the table with her bony hand; whereupon the lad started, opened his dictionary and hurriedly began to turn over the leaves. Then, still preserving silence, his grandmother drew the vine roots together on the hearth50 and unsuccessfully attempted to rekindle51 the fire.
At the time when she had still believed in her son she had sacrificed her small income, which he had squandered52 in pursuits she dared not investigate. Even now he drained the household; all its resources went to the streets, and it was through him that she lived in penury53, with empty rooms and cold kitchen. She never spoke54 to him of all those things, for with her sense of discipline he remained the master. Only at times she shuddered55 at the sudden fear that Burle might someday commit some foolish misdeed which would prevent Charles from entering the army.
She was rising up to fetch a fresh piece of wood in the kitchen when a fearful hurricane fell upon the house, making the doors rattle56, tearing off a shutter57 and whirling the water in the broken gutters like a spout58 against the window. In the midst of the uproar59 a ring at the bell startled the old lady. Who could it be at such an hour and in such weather? Burle never returned till after midnight, if he came home at all. However, she went to the door. An officer stood before her, dripping with rain and swearing savagely60.
It was Major Laguitte, a brave old soldier who had served under Colonel Burle during Mme Burle’s palmy days. He had started in life as a drummer boy and, thanks to his courage rather than his intellect, had attained62 to the command of a battalion63, when a painful infirmity—the contraction64 of the muscles of one of his thighs65, due to a wound—obliged him to accept the post of major. He was slightly lame66, but it would have been imprudent to tell him so, as he refused to own it.
“What, you, Major?” said Mme Burle with growing astonishment67.
“Yes, thunder,” grumbled68 Laguitte, “and I must be confoundedly fond of you to roam the streets on such a night as this. One would think twice before sending even a parson out.”
He shook himself, and little rivulets69 fell from his huge boots onto the floor. Then he looked round him.
“I particularly want to see Burle. Is the lazy beggar already in bed?”
“No, he is not in yet,” said the old woman in her harsh voice.
The major looked furious, and, raising his voice, he shouted: “What, not at home? But in that case they hoaxed70 me at the cafe, Melanie’s establishment, you know. I went there, and a maid grinned at me, saying that the captain had gone home to bed. Curse the girl! I suspected as much and felt like pulling her ears!”
After this outburst he became somewhat calmer, stamping about the room in an undecided way, withal seeming greatly disturbed. Mme Burle looked at him attentively71.
“Is it the captain personally whom you want to see?” she said at last.
“Yes,” he answered.
“Can I not tell him what you have to say?”
“No.”
She did not insist but remained standing72 without taking her eyes off the major, who did not seem able to make up his mind to leave. Finally in a fresh burst of rage he exclaimed with an oath: “It can’t be helped. As I am here you may as well know—after all, it is, perhaps, best.”
He sat down before the chimney piece, stretching out his muddy boots as if a bright fire had been burning. Mme Burle was about to resume her own seat when she remarked that Charles, overcome by fatigue73, had dropped his head between the open pages of his dictionary. The arrival of the major had at first interested him, but, seeing that he remained unnoticed, he had been unable to struggle against his sleepiness. His grandmother turned toward the table to slap his frail74 little hands, whitening in the lamplight, when Laguitte stopped her.
“No—no!” he said. “Let the poor little man sleep. I haven’t got anything funny to say. There’s no need for him to hear me.”
“Well, yes,” said the major at last, punctuating76 his words with an angry motion of his chin, “he has been and done it; that hound Burle has been and done it!”
Not a muscle of Mme Burle’s face moved, but she became livid, and her figure stiffened77. Then the major continued: “I had my doubts. I had intended mentioning the subject to you. Burle was spending too much money, and he had an idiotic78 look which I did not fancy. Thunder and lightning! What a fool a man must be to behave so filthily79!”
Then he thumped80 his knee furiously with his clenched81 fist and seemed to choke with indignation. The old woman put the straightforward82 question:
“He has stolen?”
“You can’t have an idea of it. You see, I never examined his accounts; I approved and signed them. You know how those things are managed. However, just before the inspection—as the colonel is a crotchety old maniac—I said to Burle: ‘I say, old man, look to your accounts; I am answerable, you know,’ and then I felt perfectly83 secure. Well, about a month ago, as he seemed queer and some nasty stories were circulating, I peered a little closer into the books and pottered over the entries. I thought everything looked straight and very well kept—”
At this point he stopped, convulsed by such a fit of rage that he had to relieve himself by a volley of appalling84 oaths. Finally he resumed: “It isn’t the swindle that angers me; it is his disgusting behavior to me. He has gammoned me, Madame Burle. By God! Does he take me for an old fool?”
“So he stole?” the mother again questioned.
“This evening,” continued the major more quietly, “I had just finished my dinner when Gagneux came in—you know Gagneux, the butcher at the corner of the Place aux Herbes? Another dirty beast who got the meat contract and makes our men eat all the diseased cow flesh in the neighborhood! Well, I received him like a dog, and then he let it all out—blurted out the whole thing, and a pretty mess it is! It appears that Burle only paid him in driblets and had got himself into a muddle—a confusion of figures which the devil himself couldn’t disentangle. In short, Burle owes the butcher two thousand francs, and Gagneux threatens that he’ll inform the colonel if he is not paid. To make matters worse, Burle, just to blind me, handed me every week a forged receipt which he had squarely signed with Gagneux’s name. To think he did that to me, his old friend! Ah, curse him!”
With increasing profanity the major rose to his feet, shook his fist at the ceiling and then fell back in his chair. Mme Burle again repeated: “He has stolen. It was inevitable85.”
Then without a word of judgment86 or condemnation87 she added simply: “Two thousand francs—we have not got them. There are barely thirty francs in the house.”
“I expected as much,” said Laguitte. “And do you know where all the money goes? Why, Melanie gets it—yes, Melanie, a creature who has turned Burle into a perfect fool. Ah, those women! Those fiendish women! I always said they would do for him! I cannot conceive what he is made of! He is only five years younger than I am, and yet he is as mad as ever. What a woman hunter he is!”
Another long silence followed. Outside the rain was increasing in violence, and throughout the sleepy little town one could hear the crashing of slates88 and chimney pots as they were dashed by the blast onto the pavements of the streets.
“Come,” suddenly said the major, rising, “my stopping here won’t mend matters. I have warned you—and now I’m off.”
“Don’t give way—we must consider. If I only had the two thousand francs—but you know that I am not rich.”
The major stopped short in confusion. This old bachelor, wifeless and childless, spent his pay in drink and gambled away at ecarte whatever money his cognac and absinthe left in his pocket. Despite that, however, he was scrupulously90 honest from a sense of discipline.
“Never mind,” he added as he reached the threshold. “I’ll begin by stirring him up. I shall move heaven and earth! What! Burle, Colonel Burle’s son, condemned91 for theft! That cannot be! I would sooner burn down the town. Now, thunder and lightning, don’t worry; it is far more annoying for me than for you.”
He shook the old lady’s hand roughly and vanished into the shadows of the staircase, while she held the lamp aloft to light the way. When she returned and replaced the lamp on the table she stood for a moment motionless in front of Charles, who was still asleep with his face lying on the dictionary. His pale cheeks and long fair hair made him look like a girl, and she gazed at him dreamily, a shade of tenderness passing over her harsh countenance92. But it was only a passing emotion; her features regained93 their look of cold, obstinate determination, and, giving the youngster a sharp rap on his little hand, she said:
“Charles—your lessons.”
The boy awoke, dazed and shivering, and again rapidly turned over the leaves. At the same moment Major Laguitte, slamming the house door behind him, received on his head a quantity of water falling from the gutters above, whereupon he began to swear in so loud a voice that he could be heard above the storm. And after that no sound broke upon the pelting94 downpour save the slight rustle95 of the boy’s pen traveling over the paper. Mme Burle had resumed her seat near the chimney piece, still rigid, with her eyes fixed96 on the dead embers, preserving, indeed, her habitual97 attitude and absorbed in her one idea.
《Nana娜娜》
《Doctor Pascal》
《Nana娜娜》
《Doctor Pascal》
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1 retired | |
adj.隐退的,退休的,退役的 | |
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2 chilly | |
adj.凉快的,寒冷的 | |
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3 rue | |
n.懊悔,芸香,后悔;v.后悔,悲伤,懊悔 | |
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4 deserted | |
adj.荒芜的,荒废的,无人的,被遗弃的 | |
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5 aged | |
adj.年老的,陈年的 | |
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6 gutters | |
(路边)排水沟( gutter的名词复数 ); 阴沟; (屋顶的)天沟; 贫贱的境地 | |
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7 torrents | |
n.倾注;奔流( torrent的名词复数 );急流;爆发;连续不断 | |
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8 meager | |
adj.缺乏的,不足的,瘦的 | |
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9 chamber | |
n.房间,寝室;会议厅;议院;会所 | |
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10 spacious | |
adj.广阔的,宽敞的 | |
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11 mildewed | |
adj.发了霉的,陈腐的,长了霉花的v.(使)发霉,(使)长霉( mildew的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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12 dented | |
v.使产生凹痕( dent的过去式和过去分词 );损害;伤害;挫伤(信心、名誉等) | |
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13 transit | |
n.经过,运输;vt.穿越,旋转;vi.越过 | |
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14 garrison | |
n.卫戍部队;驻地,卫戍区;vt.派(兵)驻防 | |
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15 velvet | |
n.丝绒,天鹅绒;adj.丝绒制的,柔软的 | |
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16 stolid | |
adj.无动于衷的,感情麻木的 | |
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17 patriotism | |
n.爱国精神,爱国心,爱国主义 | |
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18 rigid | |
adj.严格的,死板的;刚硬的,僵硬的 | |
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19 widower | |
n.鳏夫 | |
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20 sergeant | |
n.警官,中士 | |
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21 inordinately | |
adv.无度地,非常地 | |
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22 monotonous | |
adj.单调的,一成不变的,使人厌倦的 | |
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23 stranding | |
n.(船只)搁浅v.使滞留,使搁浅( strand的现在分词 ) | |
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24 distinguished | |
adj.卓越的,杰出的,著名的 | |
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25 artillery | |
n.(军)火炮,大炮;炮兵(部队) | |
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26 feat | |
n.功绩;武艺,技艺;adj.灵巧的,漂亮的,合适的 | |
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27 heroism | |
n.大无畏精神,英勇 | |
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29 embedded | |
a.扎牢的 | |
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30 timorous | |
adj.胆怯的,胆小的 | |
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31 incapable | |
adj.无能力的,不能做某事的 | |
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32 applied | |
adj.应用的;v.应用,适用 | |
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33 afterward | |
adv.后来;以后 | |
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34 tightened | |
收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 ); (使)变紧; (使)绷紧; 加紧 | |
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35 supreme | |
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的 | |
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36 obstinate | |
adj.顽固的,倔强的,不易屈服的,较难治愈的 | |
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37 yearning | |
a.渴望的;向往的;怀念的 | |
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38 loathing | |
n.厌恶,憎恨v.憎恨,厌恶( loathe的现在分词);极不喜欢 | |
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39 passionate | |
adj.热情的,热烈的,激昂的,易动情的,易怒的,性情暴躁的 | |
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40 vice | |
n.坏事;恶习;[pl.]台钳,老虎钳;adj.副的 | |
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41 ailing | |
v.生病 | |
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42 robust | |
adj.强壮的,强健的,粗野的,需要体力的,浓的 | |
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43 ruggedness | |
险峻,粗野; 耐久性; 坚固性 | |
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44 instilling | |
v.逐渐使某人获得(某种可取的品质),逐步灌输( instil的现在分词 );逐渐使某人获得(某种可取的品质),逐步灌输( instill的现在分词 ) | |
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45 temperament | |
n.气质,性格,性情 | |
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46 dread | |
vt.担忧,忧虑;惧怕,不敢;n.担忧,畏惧 | |
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47 deafening | |
adj. 振耳欲聋的, 极喧闹的 动词deafen的现在分词形式 | |
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48 dozing | |
v.打瞌睡,假寐 n.瞌睡 | |
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49 albeit | |
conj.即使;纵使;虽然 | |
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50 hearth | |
n.壁炉炉床,壁炉地面 | |
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51 rekindle | |
v.使再振作;再点火 | |
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52 squandered | |
v.(指钱,财产等)浪费,乱花( squander的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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53 penury | |
n.贫穷,拮据 | |
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54 spoke | |
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 | |
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55 shuddered | |
v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 );发抖;(机器、车辆等)突然震动;颤动 | |
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56 rattle | |
v.飞奔,碰响;激怒;n.碰撞声;拨浪鼓 | |
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57 shutter | |
n.百叶窗;(照相机)快门;关闭装置 | |
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58 spout | |
v.喷出,涌出;滔滔不绝地讲;n.喷管;水柱 | |
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59 uproar | |
n.骚动,喧嚣,鼎沸 | |
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60 savagely | |
adv. 野蛮地,残酷地 | |
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61 growled | |
v.(动物)发狺狺声, (雷)作隆隆声( growl的过去式和过去分词 );低声咆哮着说 | |
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62 attained | |
(通常经过努力)实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 ); 达到; 获得; 达到(某年龄、水平、状况) | |
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63 battalion | |
n.营;部队;大队(的人) | |
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64 contraction | |
n.缩略词,缩写式,害病 | |
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65 thighs | |
n.股,大腿( thigh的名词复数 );食用的鸡(等的)腿 | |
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66 lame | |
adj.跛的,(辩解、论据等)无说服力的 | |
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67 astonishment | |
n.惊奇,惊异 | |
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68 grumbled | |
抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 ); 发牢骚; 咕哝; 发哼声 | |
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69 rivulets | |
n.小河,小溪( rivulet的名词复数 ) | |
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70 hoaxed | |
v.开玩笑骗某人,戏弄某人( hoax的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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71 attentively | |
adv.聚精会神地;周到地;谛;凝神 | |
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72 standing | |
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的 | |
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73 fatigue | |
n.疲劳,劳累 | |
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74 frail | |
adj.身体虚弱的;易损坏的 | |
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75 reigned | |
vi.当政,统治(reign的过去式形式) | |
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76 punctuating | |
v.(在文字中)加标点符号,加标点( punctuate的现在分词 );不时打断某事物 | |
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77 stiffened | |
加强的 | |
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78 idiotic | |
adj.白痴的 | |
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79 filthily | |
adv.污秽地,丑恶地,不洁地 | |
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80 thumped | |
v.重击, (指心脏)急速跳动( thump的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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81 clenched | |
v.紧握,抓紧,咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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82 straightforward | |
adj.正直的,坦率的;易懂的,简单的 | |
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83 perfectly | |
adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地 | |
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84 appalling | |
adj.骇人听闻的,令人震惊的,可怕的 | |
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85 inevitable | |
adj.不可避免的,必然发生的 | |
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86 judgment | |
n.审判;判断力,识别力,看法,意见 | |
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87 condemnation | |
n.谴责; 定罪 | |
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88 slates | |
(旧时学生用以写字的)石板( slate的名词复数 ); 板岩; 石板瓦; 石板色 | |
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89 drearily | |
沉寂地,厌倦地,可怕地 | |
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90 scrupulously | |
adv.一丝不苟地;小心翼翼地,多顾虑地 | |
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91 condemned | |
adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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92 countenance | |
n.脸色,面容;面部表情;vt.支持,赞同 | |
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93 regained | |
复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 ); 赢回; 重回; 复至某地 | |
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94 pelting | |
微不足道的,无价值的,盛怒的 | |
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95 rustle | |
v.沙沙作响;偷盗(牛、马等);n.沙沙声声 | |
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96 fixed | |
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的 | |
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97 habitual | |
adj.习惯性的;通常的,惯常的 | |
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