The Wiley & Beck office Christmas party would begin with a lunch catered¹ by two feuding² Greek brothers who made the best baklava in the city. The bar opened at precisely³ eleven forty-five-three bars actually-and soon thereafter things got sloppy⁴. Stanley Wiley would be the first to get smashed-he'd blame it on the loaded eggnog-and he'd stand on a box at the end of the conference table and deliver the same speech he'd given a week earlier at the black-tie Christmas dinner. Then they'd present him with a gift, a shotgun or a new sand wedge or some other useless souvenir that he'd practically cry over, then quietly give to a client months later. There'd be other gifts, some speeches and gags, and a song or two as the booze flowed. Two male strippers appeared one year, and, to the beat of a howling boom box, disrobed down to their leopard⁵ thongs⁶ while the men ran for cover and the secretaries squealed⁷ with delight. Dox, Luther's secretary, had squealed the loudest and still had photos of the boys. In a memo⁸, Stanley had banned future strippers.
By five, some of the most starched⁹ and staid accountants at Wiley & Beck would be groping or attempting to grope some of the homeliest secretaries. Getting plastered was accepted behavior. They'd haul Stanley to his office and fill him with coffee before he could go home. The firm hired cars so no one would drive.
All in all, it was a mess. But the partners loved it because it was a good drunk away from their wives, who'd been properly entertained at the firm's fancy Christmas dinner and had never been invited to the office party. The secretaries loved it because they saw and heard things they could tuck away and use as

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1 catered
提供饮食及服务( cater的过去式和过去分词 )； 满足需要，适合
参考例句：
We catered for forty but only twenty came. 我们准备了40客饭菜，但只来了20个人。 They catered for everyone regardless of social rank. 他们为所有人服务而不计较其社会地位。

2 feuding
vi.长期不和（feud的现在分词形式）
参考例句：
Riccardo and Cafiero had been feuding so openly that the whole town knew about it. 里卡多和卡菲埃罗一直公开地闹别扭，全城的人都知道此事。 来自辞典例句 The two families have been feuding with each other for many generations. 这两个家族有好多代的世仇了。 来自互联网

3 precisely
adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地
参考例句：
It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。 The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

4 sloppy
adj.邋遢的，不整洁的
参考例句：
If you do such sloppy work again,I promise I'll fail you.要是下次作业你再马马虎虎，我话说在头里，可要给你打不及格了。 Mother constantly picked at him for being sloppy.母亲不断地批评他懒散。

5 leopard
n.豹
参考例句：
I saw a man in a leopard skin yesterday.我昨天看见一个穿着豹皮的男人。 The leopard's skin is marked with black spots.豹皮上有黑色斑点。

6 thongs
的东西
参考例句：
Things ain't what they used to be. 现在情况不比从前了。 Things have been going badly . 事情进展得不顺利。

7 squealed
v.长声尖叫，用长而尖锐的声音说( squeal的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He squealed the words out. 他吼叫着说出那些话。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The brakes of the car squealed. 汽车的刹车发出吱吱声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 memo
n.照会，备忘录；便笺；通知书；规章
参考例句：
Do you want me to send the memo out?您要我把这份备忘录分发出去吗？ Can you type a memo for me?您能帮我打一份备忘录吗？

9 starched
adj.浆硬的，硬挺的，拘泥刻板的v.把（衣服、床单等）浆一浆( starch的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
My clothes are not starched enough. 我的衣服浆得不够硬。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》 The ruffles on his white shirt were starched and clean. 白衬衫的褶边浆过了，很干净。 来自辞典例句

10 blackmail
n.讹诈，敲诈，勒索，胁迫，恫吓
参考例句：
She demanded ＄1000 blackmail from him.她向他敲诈了1000美元。 The journalist used blackmail to make the lawyer give him the documents.记者讹诈那名律师交给他文件。

11 fabulous
adj.极好的；极为巨大的；寓言中的，传说中的
参考例句：
We had a fabulous time at the party.我们在晚会上玩得很痛快。 This is a fabulous sum of money.这是一笔巨款。

12 dense
a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的
参考例句：
The general ambushed his troops in the dense woods. 将军把部队埋伏在浓密的树林里。 The path was completely covered by the dense foliage. 小路被树叶厚厚地盖了一层。

13 hemlock
n.毒胡萝卜，铁杉
参考例句：
He was condemned to drink a cup of hemlock.判处他喝一杯毒汁。 Here is a beech by the side of a hemlock,with three pines at hand.这儿有株山毛榉和一株铁杉长在一起，旁边还有三株松树。

14 winced
赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
He winced as the dog nipped his ankle. 狗咬了他的脚腕子，疼得他龇牙咧嘴。 He winced as a sharp pain shot through his left leg. 他左腿一阵剧痛疼得他直龇牙咧嘴。

15 wary
adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的
参考例句：
He is wary of telling secrets to others.他谨防向他人泄露秘密。 Paula frowned,suddenly wary.宝拉皱了皱眉头，突然警惕起来。

16 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。

17 savages
未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 )
参考例句：
There're some savages living in the forest. 森林里居住着一些野人。 That's an island inhabited by savages. 那是一个野蛮人居住的岛屿。

18 lanky
adj.瘦长的
参考例句：
He was six feet four,all lanky and leggy.他身高6英尺4英寸，瘦高个儿，大长腿。 Tom was a lanky boy with long skinny legs.汤姆是一个腿很细的瘦高个儿。

19 wreck
n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难
参考例句：
Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。 No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。

20 famished
adj.饥饿的
参考例句：
When's lunch?I'm famished!什么时候吃午饭？我饿得要死了！ My feet are now killing me and I'm absolutely famished.我的脚现在筋疲力尽，我绝对是极饿了。

21 luxurious
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。

22 anonymous
adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的
参考例句：
Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。 The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

23 prank
n.开玩笑，恶作剧；v.装饰；打扮；炫耀自己
参考例句：
It was thought that the fire alarm had been set off as a prank.人们认为火警报警器响是个恶作剧。 The dean was ranking the boys for pulling the prank.系主任正在惩罚那些恶作剧的男学生。

24 anonymously
ad.用匿名的方式
参考例句：
The manuscripts were submitted anonymously. 原稿是匿名送交的。 Methods A self-administered questionnaire was used to survey 536 teachers anonymously. 方法采用自编“中小学教师职业压力问卷”对536名中小学教师进行无记名调查。

25 boisterous
adj.喧闹的，欢闹的
参考例句：
I don't condescend to boisterous displays of it.我并不屈就于它热热闹闹的外表。 The children tended to gather together quietly for a while before they broke into boisterous play.孩子们经常是先静静地聚集在一起，不一会就开始吵吵嚷嚷戏耍开了。

26 choir
n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱
参考例句：
The choir sang the words out with great vigor.合唱团以极大的热情唱出了歌词。 The church choir is singing tonight.今晚教堂歌唱队要唱诗。

27 spike
n.长钉，钉鞋；v.以大钉钉牢，使...失效
参考例句：
The spike pierced the receipts and held them in order.那个钉子穿过那些收据并使之按顺序排列。 They'll do anything to spike the guns of the opposition.他们会使出各种手段来挫败对手。

28 exuberance
n.丰富；繁荣
参考例句：
Her burst of exuberance and her brightness overwhelmed me.她勃发的热情和阳光的性格征服了我。 The sheer exuberance of the sculpture was exhilarating.那尊雕塑表现出的勃勃生机让人振奋。

29 impromptu
adj.即席的，即兴的；adv.即兴的(地)，无准备的(地)
参考例句：
The announcement was made in an impromptu press conference at the airport.这一宣布是在机场举行的临时新闻发布会上作出的。 The children put on an impromptu concert for the visitors.孩子们为来访者即兴献上了一场音乐会。

30 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。

31 jingle
n.叮当声，韵律简单的诗句；v.使叮当作响，叮当响，押韵
参考例句：
The key fell on the ground with a jingle.钥匙叮当落地。 The knives and forks set up their regular jingle.刀叉发出常有的叮当声。

32 wafting
v.吹送，飘送，（使）浮动( waft的现在分词 )
参考例句：
But that gentle fragrance was clearly wafting from the window. 但那股淡淡的香气，却分明是从母亲的窗户溢出的。 来自互联网 The picture-like XueGuo, wafting dense flavor of Japan, gives us a kind of artistic enjoyment. 画一般的雪国，飘溢着浓郁的日本风情，给人以美的享受。 来自互联网

33 gathering
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。