When Clara received the letter from Captain Aylmer on which so much is supposed to hang, she made up her mind to say nothing of it to any one not to think of it if she could avoid thinking of it till her cousin should have left her. She could not mention it to him; for, though there was no one from whom she would sooner have asked advice than from him, even on so delicate a matter as this, she could not do so in the present case, as her informant was her cousin’s successful rival. When, therefore, Mrs Askerton on leaving the church had spoken some customary word to Clara, begging her to come to the cottage on the following day, Clara had been unable to answer not having as yet made up her mind whether she would or would not go to the cottage again. Of course the idea of consulting her father occurred to her or rather the idea of telling him; but any such telling would lead to some advice from him which she would find it difficult to obey, and to which she would be unable to trust. And, moreover, why should she repeat this evil story against her neighbours?

She had a long morning by herself after Will had started, and then she endeavoured to arrange her thoughts and lay down for herself a line of conduct. Presuming this story to be true, to what did it amount? It certainly amounted to very much. If, in truth, this woman had left her own husband and gone away to live with another man, she had by doing so at any rate while she was doing so fallen in such a way as to make herself unfit for the society of an unmarried young woman who meant to keep her name unblemished before the world. Clara would not attempt any further unravelling² of the case, even in her own mind but on that point she could not allow herself to have a doubt. Without condemning⁴ the unhappy victim, she understood well that she would owe it to all those who held her dear, if not to herself, to eschew⁵ any close intimacy⁶ with one in such a position. The rules of the world were too plainly written to allow her to guide herself by any special judgment⁷ of her own in such a matter. But if this friend of hers having been thus unfortunate had since redeemed⁸

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 unravelling
解开，拆散，散开( unravel的现在分词 )； 阐明； 澄清； 弄清楚
参考例句：
Nail head clamp the unravelling of nail exteriorize broken nails and clean. 钉头卡钉，拆开钉头取出碎钉并清洁。 The ends of ropes are in good condition and secured without unravelling. 缆绳端部状况良好及牢固，并无松散脱线。

3 condemn
vt.谴责，指责；宣判(罪犯)，判刑
参考例句：
Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。 We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。

4 condemning
v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地
参考例句：
The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。 I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

5 eschew
v.避开，戒绝
参考例句：
Eschew fattening foods if you want to lose weight.你如想减肥，就不要吃致肥的食物。 Good kid should eschew bad company.好孩子应避免交坏朋友。

6 intimacy
n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行
参考例句：
His claims to an intimacy with the President are somewhat exaggerated.他声称自己与总统关系密切，这有点言过其实。 I wish there were a rule book for intimacy.我希望能有个关于亲密的规则。

7 judgment
n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见
参考例句：
The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。 He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

8 redeemed
adj. 可赎回的，可救赎的 动词redeem的过去式和过去分词形式
参考例句：
She has redeemed her pawned jewellery. 她赎回了当掉的珠宝。 He redeemed his watch from the pawnbroker's. 他从当铺赎回手表。

9 imperative
n.命令，需要；规则；祈使语气；adj.强制的；紧急的
参考例句：
He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。 The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。

10 justified
a.正当的，有理的
参考例句：
She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。 The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

11 deference
n.尊重，顺从；敬意
参考例句：
Do you treat your parents and teachers with deference?你对父母师长尊敬吗？ The major defect of their work was deference to authority.他们的主要缺陷是趋从权威。

12 tainted
adj.腐坏的；污染的；沾污的；感染的v.使变质( taint的过去式和过去分词 )；使污染；败坏；被污染，腐坏，败坏
参考例句：
The administration was tainted with scandal. 丑闻使得政府声名狼藉。 He was considered tainted by association with the corrupt regime. 他因与腐败政府有牵连而名誉受损。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 nay
adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者
参考例句：
He was grateful for and proud of his son's remarkable,nay,unique performance.他为儿子出色的，不，应该是独一无二的表演心怀感激和骄傲。 Long essays,nay,whole books have been written on this.许多长篇大论的文章，不，应该说是整部整部的书都是关于这件事的。

14 imperatively
adv.命令式地
参考例句：
Drying wet rice rapidly and soaking or rewetting dry rice kernels imperatively results in severe fissuring. 潮湿米粒快速干燥或干燥籽粒浸水、回潮均会产生严重的裂纹。 来自互联网 Drying wet rice kernels rapidly, Soaking or Rewetting dry rice Kernels imperatively results in severe fissuring. 潮湿米粒的快速干燥，干燥籽粒的浸水或回潮均会带来严重的裂纹。 来自互联网

15 obedience
n.服从，顺从
参考例句：
Society has a right to expect obedience of the law.社会有权要求人人遵守法律。 Soldiers act in obedience to the orders of their superior officers.士兵们遵照上级军官的命令行动。

16 immediate
adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的
参考例句：
His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。 We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

17 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。

18 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。

19 expedient
adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计
参考例句：
The government found it expedient to relax censorship a little.政府发现略微放宽审查是可取的。 Every kind of expedient was devised by our friends.我们的朋友想出了各种各样的应急办法。

20 consolation
n.安慰，慰问
参考例句：
The children were a great consolation to me at that time.那时孩子们成了我的莫大安慰。 This news was of little consolation to us.这个消息对我们来说没有什么安慰。

21 condemnation
n.谴责; 定罪
参考例句：
There was widespread condemnation of the invasion. 那次侵略遭到了人们普遍的谴责。 The jury's condemnation was a shock to the suspect. 陪审团宣告有罪使嫌疑犯大为震惊。

22 subservience
n.有利，有益；从属（地位），附属性；屈从，恭顺；媚态
参考例句：
I could not make subservience an automatic part of my behavior. 我不能把阿谀奉承化为我自动奉行的处世之道。 来自辞典例句 All his actions were in subservience to the general plan. 他的所有行为对整体计划有帮助。 来自互联网

23 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》

24 dreading
v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的现在分词 )
参考例句：
She was dreading having to broach the subject of money to her father. 她正在为不得不向父亲提出钱的事犯愁。 This was the moment he had been dreading. 这是他一直最担心的时刻。

25 blurted
v.突然说出，脱口而出( blurt的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
She blurted it out before I could stop her. 我还没来得及制止，她已脱口而出。 He blurted out the truth, that he committed the crime. 他不慎说出了真相，说是他犯了那个罪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

26 imputed
v.把（错误等）归咎于( impute的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
They imputed the accident to the driver's carelessness. 他们把这次车祸归咎于司机的疏忽。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》 He imputed the failure of his marriage to his wife's shortcomings. 他把婚姻的失败归咎于妻子的缺点。 来自辞典例句

27 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。

28 acquit
vt.宣判无罪；(oneself)使(自己)表现出
参考例句：
That fact decided the judge to acquit him.那个事实使法官判他无罪。 They always acquit themselves of their duty very well.他们总是很好地履行自己的职责。

29 acquitted
宣判…无罪( acquit的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（自己）作出某种表现
参考例句：
The jury acquitted him of murder. 陪审团裁决他谋杀罪不成立。 Five months ago she was acquitted on a shoplifting charge. 五个月前她被宣判未犯入店行窃罪。

30 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。

31 applied
adj.应用的；v.应用，适用
参考例句：
She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。 This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

32 catastrophe
n.大灾难，大祸
参考例句：
I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。 This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

33 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。

34 inquiries
n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听
参考例句：
He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释，等候进一步调查。 I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

35 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。

36 tenants
n.房客( tenant的名词复数 )；佃户；占用者；占有者
参考例句：
A number of tenants have been evicted for not paying the rent. 许多房客因不付房租被赶了出来。 Tenants are jointly and severally liable for payment of the rent. 租金由承租人共同且分别承担。

37 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。

38 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。

39 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。

40 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。

41 acting
n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的
参考例句：
Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。 During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

42 hypocrisy
n.伪善，虚伪
参考例句：
He railed against hypocrisy and greed.他痛斥伪善和贪婪的行为。 He accused newspapers of hypocrisy in their treatment of the story.他指责了报纸在报道该新闻时的虚伪。

43 distressing
a.使人痛苦的
参考例句：
All who saw the distressing scene revolted against it. 所有看到这种悲惨景象的人都对此感到难过。 It is distressing to see food being wasted like this. 这样浪费粮食令人痛心。

44 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。

45 teller
n.银行出纳员；(选举)计票员
参考例句：
The bank started her as a teller.银行起用她当出纳员。 The teller tried to remain aloof and calm.出纳员力图保持冷漠和镇静。

46 concealing
v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的现在分词 )
参考例句：
Despite his outward display of friendliness, I sensed he was concealing something. 尽管他表现得友善，我还是感觉到他有所隐瞒。 来自《简明英汉词典》 SHE WAS BREAKING THE COMPACT, AND CONCEALING IT FROM HIM. 她违反了他们之间的约定，还把他蒙在鼓里。 来自英汉文学 - 三万元遗产

47 sobs
啜泣（声），呜咽（声）( sob的名词复数 )
参考例句：
She was struggling to suppress her sobs. 她拼命不让自己哭出来。 She burst into a convulsive sobs. 她突然抽泣起来。

48 utterance
n.用言语表达，话语，言语
参考例句：
This utterance of his was greeted with bursts of uproarious laughter.他的讲话引起阵阵哄然大笑。 My voice cleaves to my throat,and sob chokes my utterance.我的噪子哽咽，泣不成声。

49 repelling
v.击退( repel的现在分词 )；使厌恶；排斥；推开
参考例句：
He saw himself standing up and repelling a charge. 他仿佛看见自己挺身而起，打退了敌人的进攻。 来自辞典例句 Promote the healthy entertainment styles. Repelling the superstition, gambling, drugs and obscenity. 提倡健康娱乐。抵制封建迷信活动，拒绝黄、赌、毒。 来自互联网

50 bleak
adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的
参考例句：
They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。 The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

51 miseries
n.痛苦( misery的名词复数 )；痛苦的事；穷困；常发牢骚的人
参考例句：
They forgot all their fears and all their miseries in an instant. 他们马上忘记了一切恐惧和痛苦。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 I'm suffering the miseries of unemployment. 我正为失业而痛苦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

52 vices
缺陷( vice的名词复数 )； 恶习； 不道德行为； 台钳
参考例句：
In spite of his vices, he was loved by all. 尽管他有缺点，还是受到大家的爱戴。 He vituperated from the pulpit the vices of the court. 他在教堂的讲坛上责骂宫廷的罪恶。

53 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。

54 extremity
n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度
参考例句：
I hope you will help them in their extremity.我希望你能帮助在穷途末路的他们。 What shall we do in this extremity?在这种极其困难的情况下我们该怎么办呢？

55 dozed
v.打盹儿，打瞌睡( doze的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He boozed till daylight and dozed into the afternoon. 他喝了个通霄，昏沉沉地一直睡到下午。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》 I dozed off during the soporific music. 我听到这催人入睡的音乐，便不知不觉打起盹儿来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

56 distressed
痛苦的
参考例句：
He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions. 他非常苦恼而困惑，无法回答他们的问题。 The news of his death distressed us greatly. 他逝世的消息使我们极为悲痛。

57 provocations
n.挑衅( provocation的名词复数 )；激怒；刺激；愤怒的原因
参考例句：
We cannot ignore such provocations. 对于这种挑衅，我们不能置之不理。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 They must immediately cease all their provocations. 他们必须停止一切挑衅。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

58 horrid
adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的
参考例句：
I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。 The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃，她咽不下去。

59 repented
对（自己的所为）感到懊悔或忏悔( repent的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He repented his thoughtlessness. 他后悔自己的轻率。 Darren repented having shot the bird. 达伦后悔射杀了那只鸟。