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NINE, TEN, A GOOD FAT HEN 6
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VI
The Rolls called punctually for Poirot at a little before six.
Alistair Blunt and his secretary were the only occupants. Mrs. Olivera and Jane had gone down
in another car earlier, it seemed.
The drive was uneventful. Blunt talked a little, mostly of his garden and of a recent horticultural
show.
Poirot congratulated him on his escape from death, at which Blunt demurred1. He said:
“Oh, that! Don’t think the fellow was shooting at me particularly. Anyway, the poor chap
hadn’t the first idea of how to aim! Just one of these half-crazed students. There’s no harm in them
really. They just get worked up and fancy a pot shot at the P.M. will alter the course of history. It’s
pathetic, really.”
“There have been other attempts on your life, have there not?”
“Sounds quite melodramatic,” said Blunt, with a slight twinkle. “Someone sent me a bomb by
post not long ago. It wasn’t a very efficient bomb. You know, these fellows who want to take on
the management of the world—what sort of an efficient business do they think they could make of
it, when they can’t even devise an effectual bomb?”
He shook his head.
“It’s always the same thing — long- haired woolly idealists — without one practical bit of
knowledge in their heads. I’m not a clever chap—never have been—but I can just read and write
and do arithmetic. D’you understand what I mean by that?”
“I think so, but explain to me further.”
“Well, if I read something that is written down in English I can understand what it means—I
am not talking of abstruse2 stuff, formulae or philosophy—just plain businesslike English—most
people can’t! If I want to write down something I can write down what I mean—I’ve discovered
that quite a lot of people can’t do that either! And, as I say, I can do plain arithmetic. If Jones has
eight bananas and Brown takes ten away from him, how many will Jones have left? That’s the
kind of sum people like to pretend has a simple answer. They won’t admit, first that Brown can’t
do it—and second that there won’t be an answer in plus bananas!”
“They prefer the answer to be a conjuring4 trick?”
“Exactly. Politicians are just as bad. But I’ve always held out for plain common sense. You
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收听单词发音

1
demurred
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v.表示异议,反对( demur的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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abstruse
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adj.深奥的,难解的 | |
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ruse
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n.诡计,计策;诡计 | |
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4
conjuring
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n.魔术 | |
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5
thrillers
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n.紧张刺激的故事( thriller的名词复数 );戏剧;令人感到兴奋的事;(电影)惊悚片 | |
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bust
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vt.打破;vi.爆裂;n.半身像;胸部 | |
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7
disapproval
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n.反对,不赞成 | |
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costly
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adj.昂贵的,价值高的,豪华的 | |
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simplicity
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n.简单,简易;朴素;直率,单纯 | |
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appreciation
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n.评价;欣赏;感谢;领会,理解;价格上涨 | |
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grilled
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adj. 烤的, 炙过的, 有格子的 动词grill的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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frigid
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adj.寒冷的,凛冽的;冷淡的;拘禁的 | |
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hostility
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n.敌对,敌意;抵制[pl.]交战,战争 | |
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hazily
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ad. vaguely, not clear | |
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taut
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adj.拉紧的,绷紧的,紧张的 | |
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robustly
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adv.要用体力地,粗鲁地 | |
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scotch
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n.伤口,刻痕;苏格兰威士忌酒;v.粉碎,消灭,阻止;adj.苏格兰(人)的 | |
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doorway
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n.门口,(喻)入门;门路,途径 | |
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lighting
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n.照明,光线的明暗,舞台灯光 | |
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perfectly
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adv.完美地,无可非议地,彻底地 | |
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publicity
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n.众所周知,闻名;宣传,广告 | |
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hampered
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妨碍,束缚,限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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eyebrows
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眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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curiously
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adv.有求知欲地;好问地;奇特地 | |
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pretext
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n.借口,托词 | |
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exasperated
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adj.恼怒的 | |
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undesirable
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adj.不受欢迎的,不良的,不合意的,讨厌的;n.不受欢迎的人,不良分子 | |
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subversive
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adj.颠覆性的,破坏性的;n.破坏份子,危险份子 | |
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solely
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adv.仅仅,唯一地 | |
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concealed
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a.隐藏的,隐蔽的 | |
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disapproves
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v.不赞成( disapprove的第三人称单数 ) | |
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disapprove
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v.不赞成,不同意,不批准 | |
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dispositions
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安排( disposition的名词复数 ); 倾向; (财产、金钱的)处置; 气质 | |
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shrugged
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vt.耸肩(shrug的过去式与过去分词形式) | |
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unduly
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adv.过度地,不适当地 | |
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fanatic
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n.狂热者,入迷者;adj.狂热入迷的 | |
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strictly
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adv.严厉地,严格地;严密地 | |
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sarcastically
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adv.挖苦地,讽刺地 | |
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irritation
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n.激怒,恼怒,生气 | |
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subsided
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v.(土地)下陷(因在地下采矿)( subside的过去式和过去分词 );减弱;下降至较低或正常水平;一下子坐在椅子等上 | |
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heartily
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adv.衷心地,诚恳地,十分,很 | |
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九,十,肥母鸡 5
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九,十,肥母鸡 6
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