Two incidents which occurred at this time tended still more to sharpen the contrary points of view holdingbetween Clyde and Roberta. One of these was no more than a glimpse which Roberta had one evening of Clydepausing at the Central Avenue curb¹ in front of the post-office to say a few words to Arabella Stark², who in alarge and impressive-looking car, was waiting for her father who was still in the Stark Building opposite. AndMiss Stark, fashionably outfitted³ according to the season, her world and her own pretentious⁴ taste, was affectedlyposed at the wheel, not only for the benefit of Clyde but the public in general. And to Roberta, who by now wasreduced to the verge⁶ of distraction⁷ between Clyde's delay and her determination to compel him to act in herbehalf, she appeared to be little less than an epitome⁸ of all the security, luxury and freedom from responsibilitywhich so enticed⁹ and hence caused Clyde to delay and be as indifferent as possible to the dire¹⁰ state whichconfronted her. For, alas¹¹, apart from this claim of her condition, what had she to offer him comparable to all hewould be giving up in case he acceded¹² to her request? Nothing-- a thought which was far from encouraging.

　　Yet, at this moment contrasting her own wretched and neglected state with that of this Miss Stark, for example,she found herself a prey

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1 curb
n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制
参考例句：
I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。 You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

2 stark
adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地
参考例句：
The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。 He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。

3 outfitted
v.装备，配置设备，供给服装( outfit的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
They outfitted for the long journey. 他们为远途旅行准备装束。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》 They outfitted him with artificial legs. 他们为他安了假腿。 来自辞典例句

4 pretentious
adj.自命不凡的，自负的，炫耀的
参考例句：
He is a talented but pretentious writer.他是一个有才华但自命不凡的作家。 Speaking well of yourself would only make you appear conceited and pretentious.自夸只会使你显得自负和虚伪。

5 affected
adj.不自然的，假装的
参考例句：
She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。 His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 verge
n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临
参考例句：
The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。 She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。

7 distraction
n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐
参考例句：
Total concentration is required with no distractions.要全神贯注，不能有丝毫分神。 Their national distraction is going to the disco.他们的全民消遣就是去蹦迪。

8 epitome
n.典型，梗概
参考例句：
He is the epitome of goodness.他是善良的典范。 This handbook is a neat epitome of everyday hygiene.这本手册概括了日常卫生的要点。

9 enticed
诱惑，怂恿( entice的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He enticed his former employer into another dice game. 他挑逗他原来的老板再赌一次掷骰子。 Consumers are courted, enticed, and implored by sellers of goods and services. 消费者受到商品和劳务出售者奉承，劝诱和央求。

10 dire
adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的
参考例句：
There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。 We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

11 alas
int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)
参考例句：
Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！ Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。

12 acceded
v.（正式）加入( accede的过去式和过去分词 )；答应；（通过财产的添附而）增加；开始任职
参考例句：
He acceded to demands for his resignation. 他同意要他辞职的要求。 They have acceded to the treaty. 他们已经加入了那个条约。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 prey
n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨
参考例句：
Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。 The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

14 antagonistic
adj.敌对的
参考例句：
He is always antagonistic towards new ideas.他对新思想总是持反对态度。 They merely stirred in a nervous and wholly antagonistic way.他们只是神经质地，带着完全敌对情绪地骚动了一下。

15 inquiry
n.打听，询问，调查，查问
参考例句：
Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。 The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

16 ironic
adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的
参考例句：
That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。 People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。

17 malicious
adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的
参考例句：
You ought to kick back at such malicious slander. 你应当反击这种恶毒的污蔑。 Their talk was slightly malicious.他们的谈话有点儿心怀不轨。

18 lodge
v.临时住宿，寄宿，寄存，容纳；n.传达室，小旅馆
参考例句：
Is there anywhere that I can lodge in the village tonight?村里有我今晚过夜的地方吗？ I shall lodge at the inn for two nights.我要在这家小店住两个晚上。

19 detour
n.绕行的路，迂回路；v.迂回，绕道
参考例句：
We made a detour to avoid the heavy traffic.我们绕道走，避开繁忙的交通。 He did not take the direct route to his home,but made a detour around the outskirts of the city.他没有直接回家，而是绕到市郊兜了个圈子。

20 junction
n.连接，接合；交叉点，接合处，枢纽站
参考例句：
There's a bridge at the junction of the two rivers.两河的汇合处有座桥。 You must give way when you come to this junction.你到了这个路口必须让路。

21 mere
adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过
参考例句：
That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。 It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

22 hesitation
n.犹豫，踌躇
参考例句：
After a long hesitation, he told the truth at last.踌躇了半天，他终于直说了。 There was a certain hesitation in her manner.她的态度有些犹豫不决。

23 contemplated
adj. 预期的 动词contemplate的过去分词形式
参考例句：
The doctor contemplated the difficult operation he had to perform. 医生仔细地考虑他所要做的棘手的手术。 The government has contemplated reforming the entire tax system. 政府打算改革整个税收体制。

24 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。

25 miserable
adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的
参考例句：
It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。 Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

26 sagging
下垂[沉，陷]，松垂，垂度
参考例句：
The morale of the enemy troops is continuously sagging. 敌军的士气不断低落。 We are sagging south. 我们的船正离开航线向南漂流。

27 ascended
v.上升，攀登( ascend的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He has ascended into heaven. 他已经升入了天堂。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The climbers slowly ascended the mountain. 爬山运动员慢慢地登上了这座山。 来自《简明英汉词典》

28 dreary
adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的
参考例句：
They live such dreary lives.他们的生活如此乏味。 She was tired of hearing the same dreary tale of drunkenness and violence.她听够了那些关于酗酒和暴力的乏味故事。

29 aspired
v.渴望，追求( aspire的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
She aspired to a scientific career. 她有志于科学事业。 Britain,France,the United States and Japan all aspired to hegemony after the end of World War I. 第一次世界大战后，英、法、美、日都想争夺霸权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

30 distress
n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛
参考例句：
Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。 Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

31 baggy
adj.膨胀如袋的，宽松下垂的
参考例句：
My T-shirt went all baggy in the wash.我的T恤越洗越大了。 Baggy pants are meant to be stylish,not offensive.松松垮垮的裤子意味着时髦，而不是无礼。

32 briefly
adv.简单地，简短地
参考例句：
I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。 He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

33 destined
adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的
参考例句：
It was destined that they would marry.他们结婚是缘分。 The shipment is destined for America.这批货物将运往美国。

34 withdrawn
vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出
参考例句：
Our force has been withdrawn from the danger area.我们的军队已从危险地区撤出。 All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries.一切外国军队都应撤回本国去。

35 envelop
vt.包，封，遮盖；包围
参考例句：
All combine to form a layer of mist to envelop this region.织成一层烟雾又笼罩着这个地区。 The dust cloud will envelop the planet within weeks.产生的尘云将会笼罩整个星球长达几周。

36 enveloped
v.包围，笼罩，包住( envelop的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
She was enveloped in a huge white towel. 她裹在一条白色大毛巾里。 Smoke from the burning house enveloped the whole street. 燃烧着的房子冒出的浓烟笼罩了整条街。 来自《简明英汉词典》

37 previously
adv.以前，先前（地）
参考例句：
The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。 Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

38 chattering
n. （机器振动发出的）咔嗒声，(鸟等)鸣，啁啾 adj. 喋喋不休的，啾啾声的 动词chatter的现在分词形式
参考例句：
The teacher told the children to stop chattering in class. 老师叫孩子们在课堂上不要叽叽喳喳讲话。 I was so cold that my teeth were chattering. 我冷得牙齿直打战。

39 intervals
n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息
参考例句：
The forecast said there would be sunny intervals and showers. 预报间晴，有阵雨。 Meetings take place at fortnightly intervals. 每两周开一次会。

40 slain
杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)
参考例句：
The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。 His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。