The next morning, the farmer on the Matten farm sent word to Elsbeth, to come up to see him towards evening, as he had something to talk with her about. At the right time she laid aside her hoe, tied on a clean
apron1, and said:
"Finish the hoeing, Toni; then you can milk the goat and give her some fresh straw, so she will have a better bed. Then I will be back again."
She went up to the Matten farm. The farmer was
standing2 in the open barn-door gazing with satisfaction at his beautiful cows, wandering in a long procession to the well. Elsbeth stepped up to him.
"Well, I am glad you have come," he said, holding out his hand to her. "I have been thinking about you on account of the boy's welfare. He is now at an age to do some light work and help you a little, at least to take care of himself."
"I have already been thinking about that," replied Elsbeth, "and wanted to ask you, if you could give him a little light work in the fields?"
"That is fortunate," continued the farmer. "I have a little job for him, healthy and not very hard, that is to say not hard at all. He can go up to the small mountain with the cows. The herdsman with his boys is on the big mountain and a man is also there to come every morning and evening for the milking, so the boy will not be
entirely4 alone and will have nothing to do but watch the cows so that none wander off, that they don't hook each other or do anything out of the way. While he sits there on the mountain he is master and can have all the milk he wants. A king couldn't have anything better."
Elsbeth was a little frightened by the offer. If Toni had been more with the farm men, and had been with cows, or if he had naturally a different
disposition5, wilder and more roving and commanding-but as he was so quiet and shy, and besides without any knowledge of such things, to be for the first time all alone for several months, away from home, up on the mountains, watching a
herd3 of cows, this seemed to her too hard for Toni. What would the poor boy, who was not particularly strong, do if anything happened to him or to the herd? She expressed all her thoughts to the farmer, but it made no difference; he thought it would be good for the boy to get out for once, and up on the mountain he would be much stronger than at home, and nothing could happen to him, for he would be given a horn and if anything went wrong he could blow lustily, and immediately the farm man would come from the other mountain; in a half hour he would be there.
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收听单词发音
1
apron
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n.围裙;工作裙 |
参考例句: |
- We were waited on by a pretty girl in a pink apron.招待我们的是一位穿粉红色围裙的漂亮姑娘。
- She stitched a pocket on the new apron.她在新围裙上缝上一只口袋。
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2
standing
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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。
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3
herd
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n.兽群,牧群;vt.使集中,把…赶在一起 |
参考例句: |
- She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
- He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见,只是人云亦云。
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4
entirely
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ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地 |
参考例句: |
- The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
- His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
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5
disposition
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n.性情,性格;意向,倾向;排列,部署 |
参考例句: |
- He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
- He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。
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6
decided
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adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的 |
参考例句: |
- This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
- There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
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7
jug
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n.(有柄,小口,可盛水等的)大壶,罐,盂 |
参考例句: |
- He walked along with a jug poised on his head.他头上顶着一个水罐,保持着平衡往前走。
- She filled the jug with fresh water.她将水壶注满了清水。
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8
assented
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同意,赞成( assent的过去式和过去分词 ) |
参考例句: |
- The judge assented to allow the prisoner to speak. 法官同意允许犯人申辩。
- "No," assented Tom, "they don't kill the women -- they're too noble. “对,”汤姆表示赞同地说,“他们不杀女人——真伟大!
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9
descend
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vt./vi.传下来,下来,下降 |
参考例句: |
- I hope the grace of God would descend on me.我期望上帝的恩惠。
- We're not going to descend to such methods.我们不会沦落到使用这种手段。
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10
mighty
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adj.强有力的;巨大的 |
参考例句: |
- A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
- The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。
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11
sobbed
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哭泣,啜泣( sob的过去式和过去分词 ); 哭诉,呜咽地说 |
参考例句: |
- She sobbed out the story of her son's death. 她哭诉着她儿子的死。
- She sobbed out the sad story of her son's death. 她哽咽着诉说她儿子死去的悲惨经过。
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12
lured
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吸引,引诱(lure的过去式与过去分词形式) |
参考例句: |
- The child was lured into a car but managed to escape. 那小孩被诱骗上了车,但又设法逃掉了。
- Lured by the lust of gold,the pioneers pushed onward. 开拓者在黄金的诱惑下,继续奋力向前。
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13
spoke
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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。
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14
perfectly
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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。
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15
carving
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n.雕刻品,雕花 |
参考例句: |
- All the furniture in the room had much carving.房间里所有的家具上都有许多雕刻。
- He acquired the craft of wood carving in his native town.他在老家学会了木雕手艺。
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16
frightful
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adj.可怕的;讨厌的 |
参考例句: |
- How frightful to have a husband who snores!有一个发鼾声的丈夫多讨厌啊!
- We're having frightful weather these days.这几天天气坏极了。
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17
bellowed
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v.发出吼叫声,咆哮(尤指因痛苦)( bellow的过去式和过去分词 );(愤怒地)说出(某事),大叫 |
参考例句: |
- They bellowed at her to stop. 他们吼叫着让她停下。
- He bellowed with pain when the tooth was pulled out. 当牙齿被拔掉时,他痛得大叫。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
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18
prey
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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。
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19
shrieks
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n.尖叫声( shriek的名词复数 )v.尖叫( shriek的第三人称单数 ) |
参考例句: |
- shrieks of fiendish laughter 恶魔般的尖笑声
- For years, from newspapers, broadcasts, the stages and at meetings, we had heard nothing but grandiloquent rhetoric delivered with shouts and shrieks that deafened the ears. 多少年来, 报纸上, 广播里, 舞台上, 会场上的声嘶力竭,装腔做态的高调搞得我们震耳欲聋。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
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20
overthrow
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v.推翻,打倒,颠覆;n.推翻,瓦解,颠覆 |
参考例句: |
- After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后,这个国家处于混乱中。
- The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。
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21
peals
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n.(声音大而持续或重复的)洪亮的响声( peal的名词复数 );隆隆声;洪亮的钟声;钟乐v.(使)(钟等)鸣响,(雷等)发出隆隆声( peal的第三人称单数 ) |
参考例句: |
- She burst into peals of laughter. 她忽然哈哈大笑起来。
- She went into fits/peals of laughter. 她发出阵阵笑声。 来自辞典例句
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22
exhausted
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adj.极其疲惫的,精疲力尽的 |
参考例句: |
- It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长,到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
- Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。
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23
unbearably
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adv.不能忍受地,无法容忍地;慌 |
参考例句: |
- It was unbearably hot in the car. 汽车里热得难以忍受。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- She found it unbearably painful to speak. 她发现开口说话痛苦得令人难以承受。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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24
fodder
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n.草料;炮灰 |
参考例句: |
- Grass mowed and cured for use as fodder.割下来晒干用作饲料的草。
- Guaranteed salt intake, no matter which normal fodder.不管是那一种正常的草料,保证盐的摄取。
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25
enveloped
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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》
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26
crouched
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v.屈膝,蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) |
参考例句: |
- He crouched down beside her. 他在她的旁边蹲了下来。
- The lion crouched ready to pounce. 狮子蹲下身,准备猛扑。
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27
pastor
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n.牧师,牧人 |
参考例句: |
- He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
- We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师:教会的事是由五位执事管理的。
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28
kindly
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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。
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helping
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n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的 |
参考例句: |
- The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
- By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
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