Early in the morning, while it was still dark, two companies carrying axes and commanded by Poltoratsky marched six miles beyond the Shagirinsk Gate, and having thrown out a line of sharpshooters set to work to fell trees as soon as the day broke. Towards eight o’clock the mist which had mingled¹ with the perfumed smoke of the hissing² and crackling damp green branches on the bonfires began to rise and the wood-fellers — who till then had not seen five paces off but had only heard one another — began to see both the bonfires and the road through the forest, blocked with falled trees. The sun now appeared like a bright spot in the fog and now again was hidden.

In the glade³, some way from the road, Poltoratsky, his subaltern Tikhonov, two officers of the Third Company, and Baron⁴ Freze, an ex-officer of the Guards and a fellow student of Poltoratsky at the Cadet College, who had been reduced to the ranks for fighting a duel⁵, were sitting on drums. Bits of paper that had contained food, cigarette stumps⁶, and empty bottles, lat scattered⁷ around them. The officers had had some vodka and were now eating, and drinking porter. A drummer was uncorking their third bottle.

Poltoratsky, although he had not had enough sleep, was in that peculiar⁸ state of elation⁹ and kindly¹⁰ careless gaiety which he always felt when he found himself among his soldiers and with his comrades where there was a possibility of danger.

The officers were carrying on an animated

点击收听单词发音  

1 mingled
混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系]
参考例句：
The sounds of laughter and singing mingled in the evening air. 笑声和歌声交织在夜空中。 The man and the woman mingled as everyone started to relax. 当大家开始放松的时候，这一男一女就开始交往了。

2 hissing
n. 发嘶嘶声, 蔑视 动词hiss的现在分词形式
参考例句：
The steam escaped with a loud hissing noise. 蒸汽大声地嘶嘶冒了出来。 His ears were still hissing with the rustle of the leaves. 他耳朵里还听得萨萨萨的声音和屑索屑索的怪声。 来自汉英文学 - 春蚕

3 glade
n.林间空地，一片表面有草的沼泽低地
参考例句：
In the midst of a glade were several huts.林中的空地中间有几间小木屋。 The family had their lunch in the glade.全家在林中的空地上吃了午饭。

4 baron
n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王
参考例句：
Henry Ford was an automobile baron.亨利·福特是一位汽车业巨头。 The baron lived in a strong castle.男爵住在一座坚固的城堡中。

5 duel
n./v.决斗；(双方的)斗争
参考例句：
The two teams are locked in a duel for first place.两个队为争夺第一名打得难解难分。 Duroy was forced to challenge his disparager to duel.杜洛瓦不得不向诋毁他的人提出决斗。

6 stumps
（被砍下的树的）树桩( stump的名词复数 )； 残肢； （板球三柱门的）柱； 残余部分
参考例句：
Rocks and stumps supplied the place of chairs at the picnic. 野餐时石头和树桩都充当了椅子。 If you don't stir your stumps, Tom, you'll be late for school again. 汤姆，如果你不快走，上学又要迟到了。

7 scattered
adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的
参考例句：
Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

8 peculiar
adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的
参考例句：
He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。 He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

9 elation
n.兴高采烈，洋洋得意
参考例句：
She showed her elation at having finally achieved her ambition.最终实现了抱负，她显得十分高兴。 His supporters have reacted to the news with elation.他的支持者听到那条消息后兴高采烈。

10 kindly
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。

11 animated
adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的
参考例句：
His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。 We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。

12 gallant
adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的
参考例句：
Huang Jiguang's gallant deed is known by all men. 黄继光的英勇事迹尽人皆知。 These gallant soldiers will protect our country.这些勇敢的士兵会保卫我们的国家的。

13 hacked
生气
参考例句：
I hacked the dead branches off. 我把枯树枝砍掉了。 I'm really hacked off. 我真是很恼火。

14 desperately
adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地
参考例句：
He was desperately seeking a way to see her again.他正拼命想办法再见她一面。 He longed desperately to be back at home.他非常渴望回家。

15 specially
adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地
参考例句：
They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。 The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

16 hacking
n.非法访问计算机系统和数据库的活动
参考例句：
The patient with emphysema is hacking all day. 这个肺气肿病人整天不断地干咳。 We undertook the task of hacking our way through the jungle. 我们负责在丛林中开路。

17 jaunty
adj．愉快的，满足的；adv.心满意足地，洋洋得意地；n.心满意足；洋洋得意
参考例句：
She cocked her hat at a jaunty angle.她把帽子歪戴成俏皮的样子。 The happy boy walked with jaunty steps.这个快乐的孩子以轻快活泼的步子走着。

18 misty
adj.雾蒙蒙的，有雾的
参考例句：
He crossed over to the window to see if it was still misty.他走到窗户那儿，看看是不是还有雾霭。 The misty scene had a dreamy quality about it.雾景给人以梦幻般的感觉。

19 cordon
n.警戒线，哨兵线
参考例句：
Police officers threw a cordon around his car to protect him.警察在他汽车周围设置了防卫圈以保护他。 There is a tight security cordon around the area.这一地区周围设有严密的安全警戒圈。

20 delightful
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。

21 descending
n. 下行 adj. 下降的
参考例句：
The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。 The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。

22 outskirts
n.郊外，郊区
参考例句：
Our car broke down on the outskirts of the city.我们的汽车在市郊出了故障。 They mostly live on the outskirts of a town.他们大多住在近郊。

23 incessant
adj.不停的，连续的
参考例句：
We have had incessant snowfall since yesterday afternoon.从昨天下午开始就持续不断地下雪。 She is tired of his incessant demands for affection.她厌倦了他对感情的不断索取。

24 rattle
v.飞奔，碰响；激怒；n.碰撞声；拨浪鼓
参考例句：
The baby only shook the rattle and laughed and crowed.孩子只是摇着拨浪鼓，笑着叫着。 She could hear the rattle of the teacups.她听见茶具叮当响。

25 distraction
n.精神涣散，精神不集中，消遣，娱乐
参考例句：
Total concentration is required with no distractions.要全神贯注，不能有丝毫分神。 Their national distraction is going to the disco.他们的全民消遣就是去蹦迪。

26 ambush
n.埋伏(地点)；伏兵；v.埋伏；伏击
参考例句：
Our soldiers lay in ambush in the jungle for the enemy.我方战士埋伏在丛林中等待敌人。 Four men led by a sergeant lay in ambush at the crossroads.由一名中士率领的四名士兵埋伏在十字路口。

27 prone
adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的
参考例句：
Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。 He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。

28 rhythmic
adj.有节奏的，有韵律的
参考例句：
Her breathing became more rhythmic.她的呼吸变得更有规律了。 Good breathing is slow,rhythmic and deep.健康的呼吸方式缓慢深沉而有节奏。

29 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。

30 trot
n.疾走，慢跑；n.老太婆；现成译本；(复数）trots:腹泻（与the 连用）；v.小跑，快步走，赶紧
参考例句：
They passed me at a trot.他们从我身边快步走过。 The horse broke into a brisk trot.马突然快步小跑起来。

31 chestnut
n.栗树，栗子
参考例句：
We have a chestnut tree in the bottom of our garden.我们的花园尽头有一棵栗树。 In summer we had tea outdoors,under the chestnut tree.夏天我们在室外栗树下喝茶。

32 envoy
n.使节，使者，代表，公使
参考例句：
Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。 The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

33 imposing
adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的
参考例句：
The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。 He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。

34 ornaments
n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )
参考例句：
The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。 Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

35 eyebrows
眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )
参考例句：
Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。 His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。

36 kindliness
n.厚道，亲切，友好的行为
参考例句：
Martha looked up into a strange face and dark eyes alight with kindliness and concern. 马撒慢慢抬起头，映入眼帘的是张陌生的脸，脸上有一双充满慈爱和关注的眼睛。 来自辞典例句 I think the chief thing that struck me about Burton was his kindliness. 我想，我对伯顿印象最深之处主要还是这个人的和善。 来自辞典例句

37 morose
adj.脾气坏的，不高兴的
参考例句：
He was silent and morose.他沉默寡言、郁郁寡欢。 The publicity didn't make him morose or unhappy?公开以后，没有让他郁闷或者不开心吗？

38 vivacious
adj.活泼的，快活的
参考例句：
She is an artless,vivacious girl.她是一个天真活泼的女孩。 The picture has a vivacious artistic conception.这幅画气韵生动。

39 peculiarity
n.独特性，特色；特殊的东西；怪癖
参考例句：
Each country has its own peculiarity.每个国家都有自己的独特之处。 The peculiarity of this shop is its day and nigth service.这家商店的特点是昼夜服务。

40 attentively
adv.聚精会神地；周到地；谛；凝神
参考例句：
She listened attentively while I poured out my problems. 我倾吐心中的烦恼时，她一直在注意听。 来自《简明英汉词典》 She listened attentively and set down every word he said. 她专心听着，把他说的话一字不漏地记下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

41 rosy
adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的
参考例句：
She got a new job and her life looks rosy.她找到一份新工作，生活看上去很美好。 She always takes a rosy view of life.她总是对生活持乐观态度。

42 lashless
adj.无睫毛的
参考例句：
As she spoke, India's pale lashless eyes met hers piercingly. 当她这样说时，她发现英迪亚那双没有睫毛的眼睛正犀利地盯着她。 来自飘（部分）

43 suite
n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员
参考例句：
She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。 That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。

44 pointed
adj.尖的，直截了当的
参考例句：
He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。 She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

45 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。

46 retinues
n.一批随员( retinue的名词复数 )
参考例句：
One institution particularly favored the rise of kingship: the retinues. 有一种制度促进了王权的产生，这就是扈从队制度。 来自互联网

47 squints
斜视症( squint的名词复数 )； 瞥
参考例句：
The new cashier squints, has a crooked nose and very large ears. 新来的出纳斜眼、鹰钩鼻子，还有两只大耳朵。 They both have squints. 他俩都是斜视。