Malcolm Grey handled the piece of dirty india-rubber almost tenderly. There was a smile on his face which somewhat irritated Tanza. The little Italian, usually so quick at picking up a clue, was quite baffled now. His instinct told him that Grey had made an important discovery. He stretched out his hand eagerly.
"Let me look at it," he said.
"Certainly," Grey said good-naturedly. "Look at it, by all means, but you won't make much out of the thing. It is simply a finger of a glove made of india-rubber, which might mean anything. But to me it conveys a good deal."
"And to me it conveys nothing," Tanza replied. "Now, let me see. Who are the sort of men who wear india-rubber gloves? I suppose they are manufactured for a certain class of sportsmen. I know they are used by electricians, and latterly by up-to-date burglars. You know these
gentry1 have adopted india-rubber gloves to
obliterate2 finger-marks. No doubt one of the fraternity has been here, though I am bound to confess that we are not getting much farther. What do you make of it?"
"If you don't mind, I won't tell you yet," Grey said. "Of course, you have already invented a theory of your own, which may be right and which may be wrong. You may not agree with me, but it is possible that if I tell you my theory you will modify yours, to the destruction of, perhaps, a really logical sequence of ideas. Now, if you keep your notion to yourself and I keep mine to myself we may get a definite conclusion all the sooner. Don't you think I am right?"
"Well, perhaps you are," Tanza said thoughtfully. "As for me, I have already got a notion, so we will both preserve our ideas and see which leads to the goal first."
"I am glad you said that," Grey remarked gravely. "I must confess that when I picked up that finger-stall I was startled. It indicated a fresh train of thought to me. It suggested one of the most startling and most original crimes of modern times. The idea came to me like a flash. But it is one thing to discover the source of a crime, and quite another to put your hand upon the criminal. And now, if you don't mind, I think I should like to be alone. There are one or two things I want to do before I can put my theory into practice, and it would be much more
prudent4 if I exercised this
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收听单词发音
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1
gentry
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| n.绅士阶级，上层阶级 |
参考例句： |
- Landed income was the true measure of the gentry.来自土地的收入是衡量是否士绅阶层的真正标准。
- Better be the head of the yeomanry than the tail of the gentry.宁做自由民之首，不居贵族之末。
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2
obliterate
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| v.擦去，涂抹，去掉...痕迹，消失，除去 |
参考例句： |
- Whole villages were obliterated by fire.整座整座的村庄都被大火所吞噬。
- There was time enough to obliterate memories of how things once were for him.时间足以抹去他对过去经历的记忆。
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gravel
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| n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石 |
参考例句： |
- We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
- More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。
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4
prudent
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| adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的 |
参考例句： |
- A prudent traveller never disparages his own country.聪明的旅行者从不贬低自己的国家。
- You must school yourself to be modest and prudent.你要学会谦虚谨慎。
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5
discretion
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| n.谨慎；随意处理 |
参考例句： |
- You must show discretion in choosing your friend.你择友时必须慎重。
- Please use your best discretion to handle the matter.请慎重处理此事。
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gaily
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| adv.欢乐地，高兴地 |
参考例句： |
- The children sing gaily.孩子们欢唱着。
- She waved goodbye very gaily.她欢快地挥手告别。
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7
oblivious
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| adj.易忘的，遗忘的，忘却的，健忘的 |
参考例句： |
- Mother has become quite oblivious after the illness.这次病后，妈妈变得特别健忘。
- He was quite oblivious of the danger.他完全没有察觉到危险。
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8
bent
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| 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。
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9
backwards
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| adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地 |
参考例句： |
- He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
- All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。
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curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 |
参考例句： |
- He looked curiously at the people.他好奇地看着那些人。
- He took long stealthy strides. His hands were curiously cold.他迈着悄没声息的大步。他的双手出奇地冷。
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beckoned
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| v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 ) |
参考例句： |
- He beckoned to the waiter to bring the bill. 他招手示意服务生把账单送过来。
- The seated figure in the corner beckoned me over. 那个坐在角落里的人向我招手让我过去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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12
curtly
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| adv.简短地 |
参考例句： |
- He nodded curtly and walked away. 他匆忙点了一下头就走了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- The request was curtly refused. 这个请求被毫不客气地拒绝了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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belie
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| v.掩饰，证明为假 |
参考例句： |
- The gentle lower slopes belie the true nature of the mountain.低缓的山坡掩盖了这座山的真实特点。
- His clothes belie his station.他的衣服掩饰了他的身分。
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physically
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| adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律 |
参考例句： |
- He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
- Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。
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cynical
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| adj.(对人性或动机)怀疑的，不信世道向善的 |
参考例句： |
- The enormous difficulty makes him cynical about the feasibility of the idea.由于困难很大，他对这个主意是否可行持怀疑态度。
- He was cynical that any good could come of democracy.他不相信民主会带来什么好处。
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volatile
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| adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质 |
参考例句： |
- With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
- His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。
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hysterical
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| adj.情绪异常激动的，歇斯底里般的 |
参考例句： |
- He is hysterical at the sight of the photo.他一看到那张照片就异常激动。
- His hysterical laughter made everybody stunned.他那歇斯底里的笑声使所有的人不知所措。
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verge
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| n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临 |
参考例句： |
- The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
- She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。
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retired
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| adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的 |
参考例句： |
- The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
- Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。
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precipitately
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| adv.猛进地 |
参考例句： |
- The number of civil wars continued to rise until about 1990 and then fell precipitately. 而国内战争的数量在1990年以前都有增加，1990年后则锐减。 来自互联网
- His wife and mistress, until an hour ago and inviolate were slipping precipitately from his control. 他的妻子和情妇，直到一小时前还是安安稳稳、不可侵犯的，现在却猛不防正从他的控制下溜走。 来自互联网
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rustics
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| n.有农村或村民特色的( rustic的名词复数 )；粗野的；不雅的；用粗糙的木材或树枝制作的 |
参考例句： |
- These rustics are utilized for the rough work of devoton. 那样的乡村气质可以替宗教做些粗重的工作。 来自互联网
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laden
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| adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的 |
参考例句： |
- He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
- Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。
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luxurious
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| adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的 |
参考例句： |
- This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
- The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。
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charred
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| v.把…烧成炭( char的过去式)；烧焦 |
参考例句： |
- the charred remains of a burnt-out car 被烧焦的轿车残骸
- The intensity of the explosion is recorded on the charred tree trunks. 那些烧焦的树干表明爆炸的强烈。 来自《简明英汉词典》
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obstinate
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| adj.顽固的，倔强的，不易屈服的，较难治愈的 |
参考例句： |
- She's too obstinate to let anyone help her.她太倔强了，不会让任何人帮她的。
- The trader was obstinate in the negotiation.这个商人在谈判中拗强固执。
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investigation
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| n.调查，调查研究 |
参考例句： |
- In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
- He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。
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