Polly cried herself to sleep that night, although Mother Pepper had comforted and cuddled her when the whole story had come out on their return; how in a minute the passion had died down when the two children thought of Mamsie as they stood there in the road. "Joel was the first to be sorry," Polly had said generously, when confessing it all.
"No, I wasn't," contradicted Joel, "Polly looked sorry first."
"Polly was older," Mother Pepper had said gravely.
"I know it," said Polly, and her head
drooped1 lower yet.
"But Joey was very naughty indeed in Mr. Atkins' store and besides, he ought not to have gone there." And Mrs. Pepper's face looked very sad indeed.
The two children, not having a word to say to this, stood very mournfully in front of her. The bedroom door was shut fast, and Ben was doing his best out in the kitchen to keep the other two children amused, in this unwonted state of affairs.
"I wish you'd punish me, Mammy," said Polly, in a broken little voice, "real hard."
"And me, too," cried Joel, sniffling.
"I've never punished you children since you were big enough to know better," said Mother Pepper, slowly, "and I don't believe I can begin now. And it seems to me it's the best way for you to punish yourselves. So I'll leave you to think over it," and she went out and closed the door on them.
How long they sat there, Polly didn't know, and as for Joel, he was in such a state of mind, he couldn't tell anything, only that Polly and he finally crept out in the
gathering2 dusk of the long afternoon. No one but Mother Pepper ever knew the reason for the many unwelcome little tasks that Joey did after that, and, strange to relate, without a single
grumble3, while as Polly couldn't very well do more work than she did at present, and as there were no luxuries to give up in the way of eatables, the Peppers having butter and other nice things only when people were good enough to send them some, it is hard to think what she could do to punish herself. But that was Mother Pepper's and Joel's and her secret. And then Mamsie cuddled them and comforted them. Only Polly, when she went to bed that night, felt the tears drop quite fast on her pillow, and that was the last thing she remembered before she dropped to sleep.
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收听单词发音
1
drooped
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弯曲或下垂,发蔫( droop的过去式和过去分词 ) |
参考例句: |
- Her eyelids drooped as if she were on the verge of sleep. 她眼睑低垂好像快要睡着的样子。
- The flowers drooped in the heat of the sun. 花儿晒蔫了。
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2
gathering
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n.集会,聚会,聚集 |
参考例句: |
- He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
- He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。
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3
grumble
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vi.抱怨;咕哝;n.抱怨,牢骚;咕哝,隆隆声 |
参考例句: |
- I don't want to hear another grumble from you.我不愿再听到你的抱怨。
- He could do nothing but grumble over the situation.他除了埋怨局势之外别无他法。
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4
wry
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adj.讽刺的;扭曲的 |
参考例句: |
- He made a wry face and attempted to wash the taste away with coffee.他做了个鬼脸,打算用咖啡把那怪味地冲下去。
- Bethune released Tung's horse and made a wry mouth.白求恩放开了董的马,噘了噘嘴。
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5
smelt
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v.熔解,熔炼;n.银白鱼,胡瓜鱼 |
参考例句: |
- Tin is a comparatively easy metal to smelt.锡是比较容易熔化的金属。
- Darby was looking for a way to improve iron when he hit upon the idea of smelting it with coke instead of charcoal.达比一直在寻找改善铁质的方法,他猛然想到可以不用木炭熔炼,而改用焦炭。
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6
orchard
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n.果园,果园里的全部果树,(美俚)棒球场 |
参考例句: |
- My orchard is bearing well this year.今年我的果园果实累累。
- Each bamboo house was surrounded by a thriving orchard.每座竹楼周围都是茂密的果园。
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7
pealing
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v.(使)(钟等)鸣响,(雷等)发出隆隆声( peal的现在分词 ) |
参考例句: |
- The bell began pealing. 钟声开始鸣响了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
- The church bells are pealing the message of Christmas joy. 教堂的钟声洪亮地传颂着圣诞快乐的信息。 来自辞典例句
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8
rehearsal
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n.排练,排演;练习 |
参考例句: |
- I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。
- You can sharpen your skills with rehearsal.排练可以让技巧更加纯熟。
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9
tugged
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v.用力拉,使劲拉,猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 ) |
参考例句: |
- She tugged at his sleeve to get his attention. 她拽了拽他的袖子引起他的注意。
- A wry smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. 他的嘴角带一丝苦笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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10
aprons
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围裙( apron的名词复数 ); 停机坪,台口(舞台幕前的部份) |
参考例句: |
- Many people like to wear aprons while they are cooking. 许多人做饭时喜欢系一条围裙。
- The chambermaid in our corridor wears blue checked gingham aprons. 给我们扫走廊的清洁女工围蓝格围裙。
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11
admiration
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n.钦佩,赞美,羡慕 |
参考例句: |
- He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
- We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。
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12
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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13
rapture
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n.狂喜;全神贯注;着迷;v.使狂喜 |
参考例句: |
- His speech was received with rapture by his supporters.他的演说受到支持者们的热烈欢迎。
- In the midst of his rapture,he was interrupted by his father.他正欢天喜地,被他父亲打断了。
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14
hopping
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n. 跳跃
动词hop的现在分词形式 |
参考例句: |
- The clubs in town are really hopping. 城里的俱乐部真够热闹的。
- I'm hopping over to Paris for the weekend. 我要去巴黎度周末。
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15
neatly
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adv.整洁地,干净地,灵巧地,熟练地 |
参考例句: |
- Sailors know how to wind up a long rope neatly.水手们知道怎样把一条大绳利落地缠好。
- The child's dress is neatly gathered at the neck.那孩子的衣服在领口处打着整齐的皱褶。
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16
flopped
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v.(指书、戏剧等)彻底失败( flop的过去式和过去分词 );(因疲惫而)猛然坐下;(笨拙地、不由自主地或松弛地)移动或落下;砸锅 |
参考例句: |
- Exhausted, he flopped down into a chair. 他筋疲力尽,一屁股坐到椅子上。
- It was a surprise to us when his play flopped. 他那出戏一败涂地,出乎我们的预料。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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17
passionately
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ad.热烈地,激烈地 |
参考例句: |
- She could hate as passionately as she could love. 她能恨得咬牙切齿,也能爱得一往情深。
- He was passionately addicted to pop music. 他酷爱流行音乐。
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18
mischief
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n.损害,伤害,危害;恶作剧,捣蛋,胡闹 |
参考例句: |
- Nobody took notice of the mischief of the matter. 没有人注意到这件事情所带来的危害。
- He seems to intend mischief.看来他想捣蛋。
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19
gust
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n.阵风,突然一阵(雨、烟等),(感情的)迸发 |
参考例句: |
- A gust of wind blew the front door shut.一阵大风吹来,把前门关上了。
- A gust of happiness swept through her.一股幸福的暖流流遍她的全身。
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20
sobs
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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。
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21
prancing
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v.(马)腾跃( prance的现在分词 ) |
参考例句: |
- The lead singer was prancing around with the microphone. 首席歌手手执麦克风,神气地走来走去。
- The King lifted Gretel on to his prancing horse and they rode to his palace. 国王把格雷特尔扶上腾跃着的马,他们骑马向天宫走去。 来自辞典例句
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22
hopped
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跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 ); 单足蹦跳; 齐足(或双足)跳行; 摘葎草花 |
参考例句: |
- He hopped onto a car and wanted to drive to town. 他跳上汽车想开向市区。
- He hopped into a car and drove to town. 他跳进汽车,向市区开去。
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23
positively
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adv.明确地,断然,坚决地;实在,确实 |
参考例句: |
- She was positively glowing with happiness.她满脸幸福。
- The weather was positively poisonous.这天气着实讨厌。
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24
drawn
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v.拖,拉,拔出;adj.憔悴的,紧张的 |
参考例句: |
- All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
- Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。
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25
plunging
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adj.跳进的,突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 );暴跌;骤降;突降 |
参考例句: |
- War broke out again, plunging the people into misery and suffering. 战祸复发,生灵涂炭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
- He is plunging into an abyss of despair. 他陷入了绝望的深渊。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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26
delightful
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adj.令人高兴的,使人快乐的 |
参考例句: |
- We had a delightful time by the seashore last Sunday.上星期天我们在海滨玩得真痛快。
- Peter played a delightful melody on his flute.彼得用笛子吹奏了一支欢快的曲子。
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27
grumbled
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抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 ); 发牢骚; 咕哝; 发哼声 |
参考例句: |
- He grumbled at the low pay offered to him. 他抱怨给他的工资低。
- The heat was sweltering, and the men grumbled fiercely over their work. 天热得让人发昏,水手们边干活边发着牢骚。
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28
meandered
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(指溪流、河流等)蜿蜒而流( meander的过去式和过去分词 ) |
参考例句: |
- A stream meandered towards the sea. 一条小河蜿蜒地流向大海。
- The small river meandered in lazy curves down the centre. 小河缓缓地绕着中心地区迤逦流过。
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29
forth
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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。
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30
abruptly
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adv.突然地,出其不意地 |
参考例句: |
- He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
- I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。
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31
exultingly
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兴高采烈地,得意地 |
参考例句: |
- It was exultingly easy. 这容易得让人雀跃。
- I gave him a cup of tea while the rest exultingly drinking aquavit. 当别人继续兴高采烈地喝着白兰地的时候,我随手为那位朋友端去了一杯热茶。
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