The young lady spoke¹ first.

“Mr. Goldenheart,” she said, with the coldest possible politeness, “perhaps you will be good enough to explain what this means?”

She turned back into the dining-room. Amelius followed her in silence. “Here I am, in another scrape with a woman!” he thought to himself. “Are men in general as unlucky as I am, I wonder?”

“You needn’t close the door,” said Regina maliciously². “Everybody in the house is welcome to hear what I have to say to you.”

Amelius made a mistake at the outset — he tried what a little humility³ would do to help him. There is probably no instance on record in which humility on the part of a man has ever really found its way to the indulgence of an irritated woman. The best and the worst of them alike have at least one virtue⁴ in common — they secretly despise a man who is not bold enough to defend himself when they are angry with him.

“I hope I have not offended you?” Amelius ventured to say.

She tossed her head contemptuously. “Oh dear, no! I am not offended. Only a little surprised at your being so very ready to oblige my aunt.”

In the short experience of her which had fallen to the lot of Amelius, she had never looked so charmingly as she looked now. The nervous irritability⁵ under which she was suffering brightened her face with the animation⁶ which was wanting in it at ordinary times. Her soft brown eyes sparkled; her smooth dusky cheeks glowed with a warm red flush; her tall supple⁷ figure asserted its full dignity, robed in a superb dress of silken purple and black lace, which set off her personal attractions to the utmost advantage. She not only roused the admiration⁸ of Amelius — she unconsciously gave him back the self-possession which he had, for the moment, completely lost. He was man enough to feel the

点击收听单词发音  

1 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
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。

2 maliciously
adv.有敌意地
参考例句：
He was charged with maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm. 他被控蓄意严重伤害他人身体。 来自《简明英汉词典》 His enemies maliciously conspired to ruin him. 他的敌人恶毒地密谋搞垮他。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 humility
n.谦逊，谦恭
参考例句：
Humility often gains more than pride.谦逊往往比骄傲收益更多。 His voice was still soft and filled with specious humility.他的声音还是那么温和，甚至有点谦卑。

4 virtue
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。

5 irritability
n.易怒
参考例句：
It was the almost furtive restlessness and irritability that had possessed him. 那是一种一直纠缠着他的隐秘的不安和烦恼。 All organisms have irritability while alive. 所有生物体活着时都有应激性。

6 animation
n.活泼，兴奋，卡通片／动画片的制作
参考例句：
They are full of animation as they talked about their childhood.当他们谈及童年的往事时都非常兴奋。 The animation of China made a great progress.中国的卡通片制作取得很大发展。

7 supple
adj.柔软的，易弯的，逢迎的，顺从的，灵活的；vt.使柔软，使柔顺，使顺从；vi.变柔软，变柔顺
参考例句：
She gets along well with people because of her supple nature.她与大家相处很好，因为她的天性柔和。 He admired the graceful and supple movements of the dancers.他赞扬了舞蹈演员优雅灵巧的舞姿。

8 admiration
n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕
参考例句：
He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。 We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。

9 humiliation
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。

10 kindly
adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地
参考例句：
Her neighbours spoke of her as kindly and hospitable.她的邻居都说她和蔼可亲、热情好客。 A shadow passed over the kindly face of the old woman.一道阴影掠过老太太慈祥的面孔。

11 simplicity
n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯
参考例句：
She dressed with elegant simplicity.她穿着朴素高雅。 The beauty of this plan is its simplicity.简明扼要是这个计划的一大特点。

12 ridicule
v.讥讽，挖苦；n.嘲弄
参考例句：
You mustn't ridicule unfortunate people.你不该嘲笑不幸的人。 Silly mistakes and queer clothes often arouse ridicule.荒谬的错误和古怪的服装常会引起人们的讪笑。

13 dreaded
adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词)
参考例句：
The dreaded moment had finally arrived. 可怕的时刻终于来到了。 He dreaded having to spend Christmas in hospital. 他害怕非得在医院过圣诞节不可。 来自《用法词典》

14 inflicted
把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
They inflicted a humiliating defeat on the home team. 他们使主队吃了一场很没面子的败仗。 Zoya heroically bore the torture that the Fascists inflicted upon her. 卓娅英勇地承受法西斯匪徒加在她身上的酷刑。

15 longing
n.（for）渴望
参考例句：
Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。 His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

16 tranquil
adj. 安静的, 宁静的, 稳定的, 不变的
参考例句：
The boy disturbed the tranquil surface of the pond with a stick. 那男孩用棍子打破了平静的池面。 The tranquil beauty of the village scenery is unique. 这乡村景色的宁静是绝无仅有的。

17 temperament
n.气质，性格，性情
参考例句：
The analysis of what kind of temperament you possess is vital.分析一下你有什么样的气质是十分重要的。 Success often depends on temperament.成功常常取决于一个人的性格。

18 placid
adj.安静的，平和的
参考例句：
He had been leading a placid life for the past eight years.八年来他一直过着平静的生活。 You should be in a placid mood and have a heart-to- heart talk with her.你应该心平气和的好好和她谈谈心。

19 cogent
adj.强有力的，有说服力的
参考例句：
The result is a cogent explanation of inflation.结果令人信服地解释了通货膨胀问题。 He produced cogent reasons for the change of policy.他对改变政策提出了充分的理由。

20 irresistible
adj.非常诱人的，无法拒绝的，无法抗拒的
参考例句：
The wheel of history rolls forward with an irresistible force.历史车轮滚滚向前，势不可挡。 She saw an irresistible skirt in the store window.她看见商店的橱窗里有一条叫人着迷的裙子。

21 penetrate
v.透(渗)入；刺入，刺穿；洞察，了解
参考例句：
Western ideas penetrate slowly through the East.西方观念逐渐传入东方。 The sunshine could not penetrate where the trees were thickest.阳光不能透入树木最浓密的地方。

22 confession
n.自白，供认，承认
参考例句：
Her confession was simply tantamount to a casual explanation.她的自白简直等于一篇即席说明。 The police used torture to extort a confession from him.警察对他用刑逼供。

23 pretence
n.假装，作假；借口，口实；虚伪；虚饰
参考例句：
The government abandoned any pretence of reform. 政府不再装模作样地进行改革。 He made a pretence of being happy at the party.晚会上他假装很高兴。

24 tempting
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。

25 incapable
adj.无能力的，不能做某事的
参考例句：
He would be incapable of committing such a cruel deed.他不会做出这么残忍的事。 Computers are incapable of creative thought.计算机不会创造性地思维。

26 thoroughly
adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地
参考例句：
The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。 The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

27 possessed
adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的
参考例句：
He flew out of the room like a man possessed.他像着了魔似地猛然冲出房门。 He behaved like someone possessed.他行为举止像是魔怔了。

28 perfectly
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。

29 constrainedly
不自然地，勉强地，强制地
参考例句：
Very constrainedly,she agreed a young doctor to operate on her. 她非常勉强地同意让一位年轻的医生为她做手术。

30 melancholy
n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的
参考例句：
All at once he fell into a state of profound melancholy.他立即陷入无尽的忧思之中。 He felt melancholy after he failed the exam.这次考试没通过，他感到很郁闷。

31 degradation
n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变
参考例句：
There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。 Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。

32 vacuous
adj.空的，漫散的，无聊的，愚蠢的
参考例句：
Male models are not always so vacuous as they are made out to be.男模特儿并不总像人们说的那样愚蠢。 His eyes looked dull,almost vacuous.他看上去目光呆滞，茫然若失。

33 hips
abbr.high impact polystyrene 高冲击强度聚苯乙烯，耐冲性聚苯乙烯n.臀部( hip的名词复数 )；[建筑学]屋脊；臀围（尺寸）；臀部…的
参考例句：
She stood with her hands on her hips. 她双手叉腰站着。 They wiggled their hips to the sound of pop music. 他们随着流行音乐的声音摇晃着臀部。 来自《简明英汉词典》

34 remarkable
adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的
参考例句：
She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。 These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

35 catching
adj.易传染的，有魅力的，迷人的，接住
参考例句：
There are those who think eczema is catching.有人就是认为湿疹会传染。 Enthusiasm is very catching.热情非常富有感染力。

36 allusion
n.暗示，间接提示
参考例句：
He made an allusion to a secret plan in his speech.在讲话中他暗示有一项秘密计划。 She made no allusion to the incident.她没有提及那个事件。

37 concealed
a.隐藏的，隐蔽的
参考例句：
The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。 I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。

38 desperately
adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地
参考例句：
He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。 He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

39 pointed
adj.尖的，直截了当的
参考例句：
He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。 She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

40 ornaments
n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )
参考例句：
The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。 Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》