A New Force Disturbs the Current

Wildeve stared. Venn looked coolly towards Wildeve, and, without a word being spoken, he deliberately¹ sat himself down where Christian² had been seated, thrust his hand into his pocket, drew out a sovereign, and laid it on the stone.

"You have been watching us from behind that bush?" said Wildeve.

The reddleman nodded. "Down with your stake," he said. "Or haven't you pluck enough to go on?"

Now, gambling³ is a species of amusement which is much more easily begun with full pockets than left off with the same; and though Wildeve in a cooler temper might have prudently⁴ declined this invitation, the excitement of his recent success carried him completely away. He placed one of the guineas on a slab⁶ beside the reddleman's sovereign. "Mine is a guinea," he said.

"A guinea that's not your own," said Venn sarcastically⁷.

"It is my own," answered Wildeve haughtily⁸. "It is my wife's, and what is hers is mine."

"Very well; let's make a beginning." He shook the box, and threw eight, ten, and nine; the three casts amounted to twenty-seven.

This encouraged Wildeve. He took the box; and his three casts amounted to forty-five.

Down went another of the reddleman's sovereigns against his first one which Wildeve laid. This time Wildeve threw fifty-one points, but no pair. The reddleman looked grim, threw a raffle⁹ of aces¹⁰, and pocketed the stakes.

"Here you are again," said Wildeve contemptuously. "Double the stakes." He laid two of Thomasin's guineas, and the reddleman his two pounds. Venn won again. New stakes were laid on the stone, and the gamblers proceeded as before.

点击收听单词发音  

1 deliberately
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。

2 Christian
adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒
参考例句：
They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。 His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

3 gambling
n.赌博；投机
参考例句：
They have won a lot of money through gambling.他们赌博赢了很多钱。 The men have been gambling away all night.那些人赌了整整一夜。

4 prudently
adv. 谨慎地，慎重地
参考例句：
He prudently pursued his plan. 他谨慎地实行他那计划。 They had prudently withdrawn as soon as the van had got fairly under way. 他们在蓬车安全上路后立即谨慎地离去了。

5 ace
n.A牌；发球得分；佼佼者；adj.杰出的
参考例句：
A good negotiator always has more than one ace in the hole.谈判高手总有数张王牌在手。 He is an ace mechanic.He can repair any cars.他是一流的机械师,什么车都会修。

6 slab
n.平板，厚的切片；v.切成厚板，以平板盖上
参考例句：
This heavy slab of oak now stood between the bomb and Hitler.这时笨重的橡木厚板就横在炸弹和希特勒之间了。 The monument consists of two vertical pillars supporting a horizontal slab.这座纪念碑由两根垂直的柱体构成，它们共同支撑着一块平板。

7 sarcastically
adv.挖苦地，讽刺地
参考例句：
'What a surprise!' Caroline murmured sarcastically.“太神奇了!”卡罗琳轻声挖苦道。 Pierce mocked her and bowed sarcastically. 皮尔斯嘲笑她，讽刺地鞠了一躬。

8 haughtily
adv. 傲慢地, 高傲地
参考例句：
She carries herself haughtily. 她举止傲慢。 Haughtily, he stalked out onto the second floor where I was standing. 他傲然跨出电梯，走到二楼，我刚好站在那儿。

9 raffle
n.废物，垃圾，抽奖售卖；v.以抽彩出售
参考例句：
The money was raised by the sale of raffle tickets.这笔款子是通过出售购物彩券筹集的。 He won a car in the raffle.他在兑奖售物活动中赢得了一辆汽车。

10 aces
abbr.adjustable convertible-rate equity security (units) 可调节的股本证券兑换率；aircraft ejection seat 飞机弹射座椅；automatic control evaluation simulator 自动控制评估模拟器n.擅长…的人( ace的名词复数 )；精于…的人；（ 网球 ）（对手接不到发球的）发球得分；爱司球
参考例句：
The local representative of ACES will define the local area. ACES的当地代表将划定当地的范围。 来自互联网 Any medical expenses not covered by ACES insurance are the sole responsibility of the parents. 任何ACES保险未包括的医疗费用一律是父母的责任。 来自互联网

11 writhed
（因极度痛苦而）扭动或翻滚( writhe的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He writhed at the memory, revolted with himself for that temporary weakness. 他一想起来就痛悔不已，只恨自己当一时糊涂。 The insect, writhed, and lay prostrate again. 昆虫折腾了几下，重又直挺挺地倒了下去。

12 fumed
愤怒( fume的过去式和过去分词 )； 大怒； 发怒； 冒烟
参考例句：
He fumed with rage because she did not appear. 因为她没出现，所以他大发雷霆。 He fumed and fretted and did not know what was the matter. 他烦躁，气恼，不知是怎么回事。

13 automaton
n.自动机器，机器人
参考例句：
This is a fully functional automaton.这是一个有全自动功能的机器人。 I get sick of being thought of as a political automaton.我讨厌被看作政治机器。

14 dice
n.骰子；vt.把（食物）切成小方块，冒险
参考例句：
They were playing dice.他们在玩掷骰子游戏。 A dice is a cube.骰子是立方体。

15 moth
n.蛾，蛀虫
参考例句：
A moth was fluttering round the lamp.有一只蛾子扑打着翅膀绕着灯飞。 The sweater is moth-eaten.毛衣让蛀虫咬坏了。

16 moths
n.蛾( moth的名词复数 )
参考例句：
The moths have eaten holes in my wool coat. 蛀虫将我的羊毛衫蛀蚀了几个小洞。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The moths tapped and blurred at the window screen. 飞蛾在窗帘上跳来跳去，弄上了许多污点。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

17 bout
n.侵袭，发作；一次(阵，回)；拳击等比赛
参考例句：
I was suffering with a bout of nerves.我感到一阵紧张。 That bout of pneumonia enfeebled her.那次肺炎的发作使她虚弱了。

18 arena
n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台
参考例句：
She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。 He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

19 frantic
adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的
参考例句：
I've had a frantic rush to get my work done.我急急忙忙地赶完工作。 He made frantic dash for the departing train.他发疯似地冲向正开出的火车。

20 exasperated
adj.恼怒的
参考例句：
We were exasperated at his ill behaviour. 我们对他的恶劣行为感到非常恼怒。 Constant interruption of his work exasperated him. 对他工作不断的干扰使他恼怒。

21 lapsed
adj.流失的，堕落的v.退步( lapse的过去式和过去分词 )；陷入；倒退；丧失
参考例句：
He had lapsed into unconsciousness. 他陷入了昏迷状态。 He soon lapsed into his previous bad habits. 他很快陷入以前的恶习中去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 rattle
v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓
参考例句：
The baby only shook the rattle and laughed and crowed.孩子只是摇着拨浪鼓，笑着叫着。 She could hear the rattle of the teacups.她听见茶具叮当响。

23 rattled
慌乱的，恼火的
参考例句：
The truck jolted and rattled over the rough ground. 卡车嘎吱嘎吱地在凹凸不平的地面上颠簸而行。 Every time a bus went past, the windows rattled. 每逢公共汽车经过这里，窗户都格格作响。

24 converged
v.（线条、运动的物体等）会于一点( converge的过去式 )；（趋于）相似或相同；人或车辆汇集；聚集
参考例句：
Thousands of supporters converged on London for the rally. 成千上万的支持者从四面八方汇聚伦敦举行集会。 People converged on the political meeting from all parts of the city. 人们从城市的四面八方涌向这次政治集会。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 behold
v.看，注视，看到
参考例句：
The industry of these little ants is wonderful to behold.这些小蚂蚁辛勤劳动的样子看上去真令人惊叹。 The sunrise at the seaside was quite a sight to behold.海滨日出真是个奇景。

26 hurled
v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的过去式和过去分词 )；大声叫骂
参考例句：
He hurled a brick through the window. 他往窗户里扔了块砖。 The strong wind hurled down bits of the roof. 大风把屋顶的瓦片刮了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

27 momentary
adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的
参考例句：
We are in momentary expectation of the arrival of you.我们无时无刻不在盼望你的到来。 I caught a momentary glimpse of them.我瞥了他们一眼。

28 irritation
n.激怒，恼怒，生气
参考例句：
He could not hide his irritation that he had not been invited.他无法掩饰因未被邀请而生的气恼。 Barbicane said nothing,but his silence covered serious irritation.巴比康什么也不说，但是他的沉默里潜伏着阴郁的怒火。

29 steadily
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。

30 fluctuations
波动，涨落，起伏( fluctuation的名词复数 )
参考例句：
He showed the price fluctuations in a statistical table. 他用统计表显示价格的波动。 There were so many unpredictable fluctuations on the Stock Exchange. 股票市场瞬息万变。

31 diminutive
adj.小巧可爱的，小的
参考例句：
Despite its diminutive size,the car is quite comfortable.尽管这辆车很小，但相当舒服。 She has diminutive hands for an adult.作为一个成年人，她的手显得非常小。

32 rustle
v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声
参考例句：
She heard a rustle in the bushes.她听到灌木丛中一阵沙沙声。 He heard a rustle of leaves in the breeze.他听到树叶在微风中发出的沙沙声。

33 standing
n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的
参考例句：
After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。 They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

34 inspection
n.检查，审查，检阅
参考例句：
On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。 The soldiers lined up for their daily inspection by their officers.士兵们列队接受军官的日常检阅。

35 galloped
（使马）飞奔，奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 )； 快速做[说]某事
参考例句：
Jo galloped across the field towards him. 乔骑马穿过田野向他奔去。 The children galloped home as soon as the class was over. 孩子们一下课便飞奔回家了。

36 shrieked
v.尖叫( shriek的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
She shrieked in fright. 她吓得尖叫起来。 Li Mei-t'ing gave a shout, and Lu Tzu-hsiao shrieked, "Tell what? 李梅亭大声叫，陆子潇尖声叫：“告诉什么？ 来自汉英文学 - 围城

37 whining
n. 抱怨，牢骚 v. 哭诉，发牢骚
参考例句：
That's the way with you whining, puny, pitiful players. 你们这种又爱哭、又软弱、又可怜的赌棍就是这样。 The dog sat outside the door whining (to be let in). 那条狗坐在门外狺狺叫着（要进来）。

38 thither
adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的
参考例句：
He wandered hither and thither looking for a playmate.他逛来逛去找玩伴。 He tramped hither and thither.他到处流浪。

39 vented
表达，发泄（感情，尤指愤怒）( vent的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He vented his frustration on his wife. 他受到挫折却把气发泄到妻子身上。 He vented his anger on his secretary. 他朝秘书发泄怒气。

40 adversary
adj.敌手，对手
参考例句：
He saw her as his main adversary within the company.他将她视为公司中主要的对手。 They will do anything to undermine their adversary's reputation.他们会不择手段地去损害对手的名誉。

41 determined
adj.坚定的；有决心的
参考例句：
I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。 He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

42 forth
adv.向前；向外，往外
参考例句：
The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。 He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

43 incongruity
n.不协调，不一致
参考例句：
She smiled at the incongruity of the question.面对这样突兀的问题，她笑了。 When the particular outstrips the general,we are faced with an incongruity.当特别是超过了总的来讲，我们正面临着一个不协调。

44 solitude
n. 孤独; 独居,荒僻之地,幽静的地方
参考例句：
People need a chance to reflect on spiritual matters in solitude. 人们需要独处的机会来反思精神上的事情。 They searched for a place where they could live in solitude. 他们寻找一个可以过隐居生活的地方。

45 intruded
n.侵入的，推进的v.侵入，侵扰，打扰( intrude的过去式和过去分词 )；把…强加于
参考例句：
One could believe that human creatures had never intruded there before. 你简直会以为那是从来没有人到过的地方。 来自辞典例句 The speaker intruded a thin smile into his seriousness. 演说人严肃的脸上掠过一丝笑影。 来自辞典例句

46 exclamations
n.呼喊( exclamation的名词复数 )；感叹；感叹语；感叹词
参考例句：
The visitors broke into exclamations of wonder when they saw the magnificent Great Wall. 看到雄伟的长城，游客们惊叹不已。 来自《简明英汉词典》 After the will has been read out, angry exclamations aroused. 遗嘱宣读完之后，激起一片愤怒的喊声。 来自辞典例句

47 solitary
adj.孤独的，独立的，荒凉的；n.隐士
参考例句：
I am rather fond of a solitary stroll in the country.我颇喜欢在乡间独自徜徉。 The castle rises in solitary splendour on the fringe of the desert.这座城堡巍然耸立在沙漠的边际，显得十分壮美。

48 tampering
v.窜改( tamper的现在分词 )；篡改；（用不正当手段）影响；瞎摆弄
参考例句：
Two policemen were accused of tampering with the evidence. 有两名警察被控篡改证据。 来自《简明英汉词典》 As Harry London had forecast, Brookside's D-day caught many meter-tampering offenders. 正如哈里·伦敦预见到的那样，布鲁克赛德的D日行动抓住了不少非法改装仪表的人。 来自辞典例句

49 erect
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。

50 fixed
adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的
参考例句：
Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？ Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

51 untoward
adj.不利的，不幸的，困难重重的
参考例句：
Untoward circumstances prevent me from being with you on this festive occasion.有些不幸的事件使我不能在这欢庆的时刻和你在一起。 I'll come if nothing untoward happens.我要是没有特殊情况一定来。

52 scattered
adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的
参考例句：
Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

53 clenched
v.紧握，抓紧，咬紧( clench的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He clenched his fists in anger. 他愤怒地攥紧了拳头。 She clenched her hands in her lap to hide their trembling. 她攥紧双手放在腿上，以掩饰其颤抖。 来自《简明英汉词典》

54 upwards
adv.向上，在更高处...以上
参考例句：
The trend of prices is still upwards.物价的趋向是仍在上涨。 The smoke rose straight upwards.烟一直向上升。

55 smacked
拍，打，掴( smack的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He smacked his lips but did not utter a word. 他吧嗒两下嘴，一声也不言语。 She smacked a child's bottom. 她打孩子的屁股。

56 cleft
n.裂缝；adj.裂开的
参考例句：
I hid the message in a cleft in the rock.我把情报藏在石块的裂缝里。 He was cleft from his brother during the war.在战争期间，他与他的哥哥分离。

57 pervaded
v.遍及，弥漫( pervade的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
A retrospective influence pervaded the whole performance. 怀旧的影响弥漫了整个演出。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The air is pervaded by a smell [smoking]. 空气中弥散着一种气味[烟味]。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

58 descending
n. 下行 adj. 下降的
参考例句：
The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。 The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。

59 eastward
adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部
参考例句：
The river here tends eastward.这条河从这里向东流。 The crowd is heading eastward,believing that they can find gold there.人群正在向东移去，他们认为在那里可以找到黄金。

60 misery
n.痛苦，苦恼，苦难；悲惨的境遇，贫苦
参考例句：
Business depression usually causes misery among the working class.商业不景气常使工薪阶层受苦。 He has rescued me from the mire of misery.他把我从苦海里救了出来。

61 interval
n.间隔，间距；幕间休息，中场休息
参考例句：
The interval between the two trees measures 40 feet.这两棵树的间隔是40英尺。 There was a long interval before he anwsered the telephone.隔了好久他才回了电话。

62 bent
n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的
参考例句：
He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。 We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

63 ascending
adj.上升的，向上的
参考例句：
Now draw or trace ten dinosaurs in ascending order of size.现在按照体型由小到大的顺序画出或是临摹出10只恐龙。

64 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。

65 obeisance
n.鞠躬，敬礼
参考例句：
He made obeisance to the king.他向国王表示臣服。 While he was still young and strong all paid obeisance to him.他年轻力壮时所有人都对他毕恭毕敬。

66 privately
adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地
参考例句：
Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。 The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

67 rectify
v.订正，矫正，改正
参考例句：
The matter will rectify itself in a few days.那件事过几天就会变好。 You can rectify this fault if you insert a slash.插人一条斜线便可以纠正此错误。

68 halfway
adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途
参考例句：
We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。 In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

69 plunged
v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降
参考例句：
The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。 She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。

70 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。