At the present time no one I know has the slightest desire to hit Samuel Meredith; possibly this is because a man over fifty is liable to be rather severely¹ cracked at the impact of a hostile fist, but, for my part, I am inclined to think that all his hitable qualities have quite vanished. But it is certain that at various times in his life hitable qualities were in his face, as surely as kissable qualities have ever lurked² in a girl’s lips.

I’m sure every one has met a man like that, been casually³ introduced, even made a friend of him, yet felt he was the sort who aroused passionate⁴ dislike — expressed by some in the involuntary clinching⁵ of fists, and in others by mutterings about “takin’ a poke” and “landin’ a swift smash in ee eye.” In the juxtaposition⁶ of Samuel Meredith’s features this quality was so strong that it influenced his entire life.

What was it? Not the shape, certainly, for he was a pleasant- looking man from earliest youth: broad-bowed with gray eyes that were frank and friendly. Yet I’ve heard him tell a room full of reporters angling for a “success” story that he’d be ashamed to tell them the truth that they wouldn’t believe it, that it wasn’t one story but four, that the public would not want to read about a man who had been walloped into prominence⁷.

It all started at Phillips Andover Academy when he was fourteen. He had been brought up on a diet of caviar and bell-boys’ legs in half the capitals of Europe, and it was pure luck that his mother had nervous prostration⁸ and had to delegate his education to less tender, less biassed⁹ hands.

点击收听单词发音  

1 severely
adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地
参考例句：
He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。 He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

2 lurked
vi.潜伏，埋伏（lurk的过去式与过去分词形式）
参考例句：
The murderers lurked behind the trees. 谋杀者埋伏在树后。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Treachery lurked behind his smooth manners. 他圆滑姿态的后面潜伏着奸计。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

3 casually
adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地
参考例句：
She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。 I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。

4 passionate
adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的
参考例句：
He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。 He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

5 clinching
v.（尤指两人）互相紧紧抱[扭]住( clinch的现在分词 )；解决（争端、交易），达成（协议）
参考例句：
Joe gets clinching evidence of the brains role when he dreams. 乔做梦时得到了大脑发生作用的决定性依据。 来自辞典例句 Clinching, wrestling, pushing, or seizing, without attempting a throw or other technique. 抱，扭摔，推或抓而没有摔或其它的技术。 来自互联网

6 juxtaposition
n.毗邻，并置，并列
参考例句：
The juxtaposition of these two remarks was startling.这两句话连在一起使人听了震惊。 It is the result of the juxtaposition of contrasting colors.这是并列对比色的结果。

7 prominence
n.突出；显著；杰出；重要
参考例句：
He came to prominence during the World Cup in Italy.他在意大利的世界杯赛中声名鹊起。 This young fashion designer is rising to prominence.这位年轻的时装设计师的声望越来越高。

8 prostration
n. 平伏, 跪倒, 疲劳
参考例句：
a state of prostration brought on by the heat 暑热导致的虚脱状态 A long period of worrying led to her nervous prostration. 长期的焦虑导致她的神经衰弱。

9 biassed
（统计试验中）结果偏倚的，有偏的
参考例句：

10 hood
n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖
参考例句：
She is wearing a red cloak with a hood.她穿着一件红色带兜帽的披风。 The car hood was dented in.汽车的发动机罩已凹了进去。

11 faculty
n.才能；学院，系；(学院或系的)全体教学人员
参考例句：
He has a great faculty for learning foreign languages.他有学习外语的天赋。 He has the faculty of saying the right thing at the right time.他有在恰当的时候说恰当的话的才智。

12 irate
adj.发怒的，生气
参考例句：
The irate animal made for us,coming at a full jump.那头发怒的动物以最快的速度向我们冲过来。 We have received some irate phone calls from customers.我们接到顾客打来的一些愤怒的电话

13 aquarium
n.水族馆，养鱼池，玻璃缸
参考例句：
The first time I saw seals was in an aquarium.我第一次看见海豹是在水族馆里。 I'm going to the aquarium with my parents this Sunday.这个星期天，我要和父母一起到水族馆去。

14 chilly
adj.凉快的，寒冷的
参考例句：
I feel chilly without a coat.我由于没有穿大衣而感到凉飕飕的。 I grew chilly when the fire went out.炉火熄灭后，寒气逼人。

15 sanitary
adj.卫生方面的，卫生的，清洁的，卫生的
参考例句：
It's not sanitary to let flies come near food.让苍蝇接近食物是不卫生的。 The sanitary conditions in this restaurant are abominable.这家饭馆的卫生状况糟透了。

16 truculently
参考例句：
She said it almost truculently but she was weeping with fright. 她的语气简直有点粗暴，不过她却因为恐惧而哭哭啼啼。 来自教父部分 They strive for security by truculently asserting their own interests. 他们通过拼命维护自身利益来争取安全保障。 来自互联网

17 succinctly
adv.简洁地；简洁地，简便地
参考例句：
He writes simply and succinctly, rarely adding too much adornment. 他的写作风格朴实简练，很少添加饰词。 来自互联网 No matter what question you are asked, answer it honestly and succinctly. 总之，不管你在面试中被问到什么问题，回答都要诚实而简明。 来自互联网

18 bully
n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮
参考例句：
A bully is always a coward.暴汉常是懦夫。 The boy gave the bully a pelt on the back with a pebble.那男孩用石子掷击小流氓的背脊。

19 passionately
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。

20 detested
v.憎恶，嫌恶，痛恨( detest的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句：
They detested each other on sight. 他们互相看着就不顺眼。 The freethinker hated the formalist; the lover of liberty detested the disciplinarian. 自由思想者总是不喜欢拘泥形式者，爱好自由者总是憎恶清规戒律者。 来自辞典例句

21 glowering
v.怒视( glower的现在分词 )
参考例句：
The boy would not go, but stood at the door glowering at his father. 那男孩不肯走，他站在门口对他父亲怒目而视。 来自《简明英汉词典》 Then he withdrew to a corner and sat glowering at his wife. 然后他溜到一个角落外，坐在那怒视着他的妻子。 来自辞典例句

22 miserable
adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的
参考例句：
It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。 Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

23 lashing
n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥
参考例句：
The speaker was lashing the crowd. 演讲人正在煽动人群。 来自《简明英汉词典》 The rain was lashing the windows. 雨急打着窗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 butts
笑柄( butt的名词复数 )； （武器或工具的）粗大的一端； 屁股； 烟蒂
参考例句：
The Nazis worked them over with gun butts. 纳粹分子用枪托毒打他们。 The house butts to a cemetery. 这所房子和墓地相连。

25 witticisms
n.妙语，俏皮话( witticism的名词复数 )
参考例句：
We do appreciate our own witticisms. 我们非常欣赏自己的小聪明。 来自辞典例句 The interpreter at this dinner even managed to translate jokes and witticisms without losing the point. 这次宴会的翻译甚至能设法把笑话和俏皮话不失其妙意地翻译出来。 来自辞典例句

26 adolescence
n.青春期，青少年
参考例句：
Adolescence is the process of going from childhood to maturity.青春期是从少年到成年的过渡期。 The film is about the trials and tribulations of adolescence.这部电影讲述了青春期的麻烦和苦恼。

27 pariah
n.被社会抛弃者
参考例句：
Shortly Tom came upon the juvenile pariah of the village.不一会儿，汤姆碰上了村里的少年弃儿。 His landlady had treated him like a dangerous criminal,a pariah.房东太太对待他就像对待危险的罪犯、对待社会弃儿一样。

28 despondent
adj.失望的，沮丧的，泄气的
参考例句：
He was up for a time and then，without warning,despondent again.他一度兴高采烈，但忽然又情绪低落下来。 I feel despondent when my work is rejected.作品被拒后我感到很沮丧。

29 promptly
adv.及时地，敏捷地
参考例句：
He paid the money back promptly.他立即还了钱。 She promptly seized the opportunity his absence gave her.她立即抓住了因他不在场给她创造的机会。

30 realization
n.实现；认识到，深刻了解
参考例句：
We shall gladly lend every effort in our power toward its realization.我们将乐意为它的实现而竭尽全力。 He came to the realization that he would never make a good teacher.他逐渐认识到自己永远不会成为好老师。

31 discreet
adj.(言行)谨慎的；慎重的；有判断力的
参考例句：
He is very discreet in giving his opinions.发表意见他十分慎重。 It wasn't discreet of you to ring me up at the office.你打电话到我办公室真是太鲁莽了。