先看完整的双语对照。
Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in America. When reports came into London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five miles south of London, they were not taken seriously. However, as the evidence began to accumulate, experts from the Zoo felt obliged to investigate, for the descriptions given by people who claimed to have seen the puma were extraordinarily similar.
美洲狮是一种体形似猫的大动物,产于美洲。当伦敦动物园接到报告说,在伦敦以南45英里处发现一只美洲狮时,这些报告并没有受到重视。可是,随着证据越来越多,动物园的专家们感到有必要进行一番调查,因为凡是声称见到过美洲狮的人们所描述的情况竟是出奇地相似。
The hunt for the puma began in a small village where a woman picking blackberries saw “a large cat” only five yards away from her. It immediately ran away when she saw it, and experts confirmed that a puma will not attack a human being unless it is cornered. The search proved difficult, for the puma was often observed at one place in the morning and at another place twenty miles away in the evening. Wherever it went, it left behind it a trail of dead deer and small animals like rabbits. Paw prints were seen in a number of places and puma fur was found clinging to bushes. Several people complained of “cat-like noises” at night and a businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree. The experts were now fully convinced that the animal was a puma, but where had it come from? As no pumas had been reported missing from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private collector and somehow managed to escape. The hunt went on for several weeks, but the puma was not caught. It is disturbing to think that a dangerous wild animal is still at large in the quiet countryside.
搜寻美洲狮的工作是从一座小村庄开始的。那里的一位妇女在采摘黑莓时的看见“一只大猫”,离她仅5码远,她刚看见它,它就立刻逃走了。专家证实,美洲狮非被逼得走投无路,是决不会伤人的。事实上搜寻工作很困难,因为常常是早晨在甲地发现那只美洲狮,晚上却在20英里外的乙地发现它的踪迹。无论它走哪儿,一路上总会留下一串死鹿及死兔子之类的小动物,在许多地方看见爪印,灌木丛中发现了粘在上面的美洲狮毛。有人抱怨说夜里听见“像猫一样的叫声”;一位商人去钓鱼,看见那只美洲狮在树上。专家们如今已经完全肯定那只动物就是美洲狮,但它是从哪儿来的呢?由于全国动物园没有一家报告丢了美洲狮,因此那只美洲狮一定是某位私人收藏豢养的,不知怎么设法逃出来了。搜寻工作进行了好几个星期,但始终未能逮住那只美洲狮。想到在宁静的乡村里有一头危险的野兽继续逍遥流窜,真令人担心。
逐字逐句笔记:
1️⃣ Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in America.
美洲狮是一种体形似猫的大动物,产于美洲。
句子结构:which are found in America是定语从句,修饰animals。 puma 美洲狮 = mountain lion;cougar/'kuːgə/;panther/'pænθə/ 美剧熟女镇(Cougar Town)播出以后,人们对代表熟女的cougar一词也熟悉起来。其实爱吃嫩草的女人还有一个别称,就是puma(美洲狮),指的是那些年纪在三十岁左右,魅力四射的轻熟女。
Puma refers to an attractive woman in her late 20s or early 30s. She is a pre-cougar. Cougar is an older woman who frequents clubs in order to score with a much younger man.
“美洲狮”指的是年纪在三十岁左右的漂亮女人。她具有发展为熟女的潜力。熟女指的是经常光临夜店、以钓到年轻男子为目的的老女人。
大型动物用到的形容词是large,形容动物的“大”或者“胖”还可以是fat,huge。 ⚠️ 用fat形容人含有贬义,不合适哦。
💡胖胖英语有这些:
Overweight → 过胖的(需要开始减重) Overweight (n.) increases the risk of cancers.
过重增加了罹患癌症的风险。Obese → 过胖的(已影响身体健康)
One can’t be both obese and healthy.
一个人不能同时肥胖却拥有健康。Plump → 形容丰满有曲线
It would be great if everyone in the world is plump.
如果世界上每个人都能身材圆滚滚的该有多好!补充:Full 也有丰满的意思哦。
They specialize in clothes for women with a fuller figure.
他们专为体形较丰满的女士做衣服。Chubby → 形容健康的胖(多用于小孩) As a kid, I was always chubby.
在还小的时候,我总是胖乎乎的。Flabby → 形容胖到肉松松垮垮的
He’s not just fat. He’s flabby.
他不只是胖,他胖到肉都肉松松的了。Tubby → 又矮又胖,有着圆圆的肚子
The tubby old man always shows up here at noon.
有个又矮又胖的老头每天中午总是会在这出现。Hefty → 虎背熊腰的
I saw the hefty man crying like a little girl.
我看到那个虎背熊腰的男子哭得像小女孩一样。形容男人:strong;heavy 女人:large;plump 小孩子:robust;chubby
✏️ 模仿写作开始:
考拉是一种生长在澳大利亚的长得像熊的小动物。
Koalas are small, bear-like animals which live in Australia.
WTO is a colossal, international organization which deals with all kinds of trades among nations.
世界贸易组织是处理国家间各种贸易事务的一个庞大的、国际性的组织。
📒 总结,也就是先用主系表结构下定义,另外加一个解释的定语从句。
2️⃣ When reports came into London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five miles south of London, they were not taken seriously.
当伦敦动物园接到报告说,在伦敦以南45英里处发现一只美洲狮时,这些报告并没有受到重视。
复合句成分:When引导时间状语从句;that引导分隔式同位语从句。 The thought came to her that maybe she had left the door open when she left home.她突然想起可能在她离开家时没把门关上。 有时同位语从句可以不紧跟在它所说明的名词后,而被别的词语隔开,在语法上叫做分隔式同位语从句。 这里的spot是动词,意为看出;发现。作者用spot其实强调了在荒郊野外“发现”美洲狮很不容易,这就要注意spot的英语释义啦「to see or notice a person or thing, especially suddenly or when it is not easy to do so」 不太容易看到哦。
spots of rain 雨点
A few spots of rain began to fall.
开始下起了几滴小雨。
bright spot (不幸或逆境中的)可喜部分,闪光点
The win last week was the only bright spot in their last ten games.
上周的胜利是他们最近十场比赛中唯一振奋人心的一次。
spot kick 点球
in a spot (美俚)处于困境中
He’s in a spot of trouble. 他遇到一点麻烦。
✏️ 模仿写作开始:
消息传到有关部门,在该市以东30公里的地方发现了禽流感,这个消息立刻
受到了重视。
When news came into the departments concerned that bird flu had been spotted
30 km east to the city, it was taken seriously.有关部门departments concerned
3️⃣ However, as the evidence began to accumulate, experts from the Zoo felt obliged to investigate, for the descriptions given by people who claimed to have seen the puma were extraordinarily similar.
可是,随着证据越来越多,动物园的专家们感到有必要进行一番调查,因为凡是声称见到过美洲狮的人们所描述的情况竟是出奇地相似。
句子结构分析:这是一个超级复合句。as引导时间状语从句,for引导原因状语从句,该句过去分词短语given by people做descriptions的后置定语。最后一个是由who引导的定语从句,修饰people。experts from the Zoo felt obliged to investigate是整个复合句的主句。 注意evidence是不可数名词哦,与之相关的名词还有: attestation 证词
proof 证据
testimony 证词;证言;口供
clue 线索
evidence搭配有:
口头证据 oral evidence
实物证据 real/tangible evidence
显而易见 in evidence
考你,“所有的证据都指出”中的指出用哪个动词呀?suggest!! suggest 建议、提议、指出
All the evidence suggests that the sneaky man stole the lady’s purse.
所有证据都指出那鬼鬼祟祟的男人偷了这位女士的钱包。写作短语总结: feel obliged to do 感到有必要做某事
it’s necessary for sb. to do sth. 某人有必要做某事
be forced to do 被迫做某事
feel/be impelled to do 感到有必要做某事(内因)
be compelled to do sth 被迫做某事(外因)
✏️ 写作模仿
随着证据越收集越多,警察们感到很有必要对这个嫌疑犯进行更加深入的审讯,因为声称见过这个嫌疑犯的人所讲的情况特别相似。 As the proof began to gather, the police felt obliged to interrogate this suspect further, for the descriptions given by people who claimed to have seen the suspect were remarkably similar.
拓展之NYT例句:Yet evidence is mounting that having a working mother has some economic, educational and social benefits for children of both sexes.(然而越来越多的证据表明,职场妈妈在经济、教育和社会层面上会给孩子(无论男女)带来更好的影响。)
4️⃣ The hunt for the puma began in a small village where a woman picking blackberries saw “a large cat” only five yards away from her.
搜寻美洲狮的工作是从一座小村庄开始的。那里的一位妇女在采摘黑莓时的看见“一只大猫”,离她仅5码远。
for the puma作hunt的定语;where引导定语从句,修饰village。picking blackberries作woman的定语。 词汇: hunt 打猎;猎取;寻找 seek 寻找
search 搜索
pursue 追赶
chase 追赶;追逐;追捕
👀 hunt表达:on the hunt for 正在寻找;hunt out 搜寻出;job-hunt 找工作、job-hop 跳槽
blackberry:黑莓 🫐 berry 浆果,🍓 strawberry 草莓,blueberry 蓝莓,red raspberry 覆金子/红树莓,snowberry 雪果,red baybery 杨梅,wood strawberry 欧洲草莓/野草莓,pineapple strawberry 凤梨草莓/洋莓
the hunt for 是抓捕,关于「抓」可以补充这些: hunt for a job 找工作,Missing Wanted 寻人/寻物启事,People Search/Wanted 寻人,People Missing 寻人,Wanted 通缉,wanted man 通缉犯 hunt搭配:go bargain hunting 的意思是 “逢低买货,专找降价商品” 的做法。这里,“bargain” 作名词使用,指 “便宜货、降价品”;单词 “hunting” 比喻为找到便宜货而不惜花时间货比三家的行为。 “Go bargain hunting” 的人可以被称为 “a bargain hunter"—— 一个专买便宜货的人。
特別要注意的是,为什么作者a large cat指代美洲狮呢?因为此处发现美洲狮的是一个生活在偏僻小山村里的农妇,受教育程度可能不高,不认识这种动物,所以在惊慌之下用了“一只大猫”来描述她看到的动物。我们由此可以得出这样一个结论:作者不仅十分细心并善于捕捉细节,而且其写作风格非常真实。
5️⃣ It immediately ran away when she saw it, and experts confirmed that a puma will not attack a human being unless it is cornered.
她刚看见它,它就立刻逃走了。专家证实,美洲狮非被逼得走投无路,是决不会伤人的。
句子结构:it 指代上文出现的puma,when引导时间状语从句,and 连接两个并列的分句,第二个分句中的that引导宾语从句,说明confirm的内容,unless引导条件状语从句。 human being 人类(human being加s表示个体的人) human race 总称,不加s
humanity 侧重人性,不加s
mankind 侧重文明,不加s
man 侧重政治,不加s,也不变为men
👀 人类命运共同体 a human community with a shared future;a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind
corner在这里的意思是「使(人或动物)走投无路;逼…入绝境」,很显然,常用于被动语态,一秒想到言情小说里那种女主走投无路被逼卖身那种情节啦。对了,名词corner也有类似意思:in a corner或者in a tight corner都是「身处困境」。 补充一个表达:four corners of the earth
地球明明是圆的,为什么说是地球的4个「角落」呢?这边的 corners 只是象征含意,类似中文的东、西、南、北,以表示「地球上的各个地方」,最后衍生为「四面八方;世界各地」的意思。🌰 After travelling for over 20 years, he now has lots of friends from the four corners of the earth.旅行超过了20年,他在世界各地都有很多朋友。
drive 迫使;驱使 You’re driving yourself too hard.
你把自己弄得太累了。compel 强迫;迫使;使必须 The law can compel fathers to make regular payments for their children.
这项法律可强制父亲定期支付子女的费用。force 强迫 The President was forced into resigning.
总统被迫辞职。
✏️ 写作模仿
老师告诉他,如果他不努力学习,就永远不能考及格。 The teacher told him that he would never pass the examination unless he studied hard.
医生们证实,婴儿除非在疲倦时,很少会买。 Doctors confirm that a baby seldom cries unless he is tired.
6️⃣ The search proved difficult, for the puma was often observed at one place in the morning and at another place twenty miles away in the evening.
事实上搜寻工作很困难,因为常常是早晨在甲地发现那只美洲狮,晚上却在20英里外的乙地发现它的踪迹。
这句话中含有一个由for引导的原因状语从句。请特别注意,地点状语at one place 和at another place,时间状语in the morning和 in the evening分别形成对照,用这种写法说明正在逃遁中的美洲狮踪迹难觅,增加了抓捕的难度。 because和for的区别 because 指的是道德的或自然的原因(moral or physical cause),而for 则指的是逻辑上的理由(logical reason)。
The river has risen, because it has rained much of late.
河水涨了,因为近来下了许多的雨。(☔️就是自然原因)
It must have rained much of late, for the river is so high.
近来一定下了许多雨,因为河水涨得这样高。(从河水推断)
7️⃣ Wherever it went, it left behind it a trail of dead deer and small animals like rabbits.
无论它走哪儿,一路上总会留下一串死鹿及死兔子之类的小动物。
Wherever遇到地点状语从句;a trail of dead deer and small animals like rabbits和behind it形成倒装哦。 where引导从句表示特定的地点,而wherever引导从句表示非特定的地点。 翻译1:我会开车把你送到你想去的地方。
I will drive you where you want to go.
翻译2:你说去哪儿,我们就去哪儿。
We will go wherever you say.
翻译3:Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will be right here waiting for you.
无论你去哪里、做什么,我都会一直在这里等你。(选自英文歌曲Right Here
Waiting)trail n. (长串的)痕迹,踪迹,足迹 a trail of也可以搭配抽象词汇:
The hurricane left a trail of destruction behind it.
飓风过后满目疮痍。chain 一系列,一连串(人或事) suite 一套家具
8️⃣ Paw prints were seen in a number of places and puma fur was found clinging to bushes.
在许多地方看见爪印,灌木丛中发现了粘在上面的美洲狮毛。
句子结构分析:这是一个由and连接的并列句,意思层层递进,说明美洲狮逃遁的充分证据。「clinging to bushe」为现在分词短语,作主语 「puma fur」的补足语,补充说明主语的状态。看例句: I found a tagboard clinging to my luggage.我发现我的行李上挂着一张标签纸。 词汇之print:指纹;手印;脚印;足迹 fingerprint 指纹,footprint 脚印,palm print 掌纹,watermark 水印,steel seal 钢
印,stamp 印鉴,brand 烙印,offset 平版印刷作者接连列举了美洲狮身上的两种特有的东西,并使用了被动语态,完美地呈现了英语语言的特色。对比本句与下面的句子: People saw paw prints in a number of places and found puma fur clinging to bushes.
可以清楚地看到,如果使用主动语态,美感全无。
a number of 拓展之越来越多: an increasing number of a growing number of more and more
9️⃣ Several people complained of “cat-like noises” at night and a businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree.
有人抱怨说夜里听见“像猫一样的叫声”;一位商人去钓鱼,看见那只美洲狮在树上。
句子结构分析:这又是一个由and连接的并列句,再次递进说明判断美洲狮逃遁的另外两个充分的证据。介词短语on a fishing trip作后置定语,修饰businessman,up a tree作puma的宾语补足语。 此句中出现的cat-like noises与本文第一句中cat-like animals的用法有异曲同工之处,cat-like animals强调美洲狮的体形,cat-like noises则突出美洲狮的声音。这都是比喻的修辞手法。 注意介词的特定用法: There is a man in the tree.树上有个人。(in the tree一般指外来的东西“在树上”,比如人、动物等,而不是树本身所长的东西) There are many apples on the tree.树上有许多苹果。(on the tree通常指树本身长出来的东西,如枝、叶、花、果等) A farmer found a panda up a tree.一位农民发现有一只熊猫上了树。(up a tree在这句话中作panda的宾语补足语)
🔟 The experts were now fully convinced that the animal was a puma, but where had it come from?
专家们如今已经完全肯定那只动物就是美洲狮,但它是从哪儿来的呢?
that引导宾语从句,指were convinced的内容。but引导的分句与前面的分句形成转折并列关系,让抓美洲狮的过程交得更加扑朔迷离。 大家想想,我们平时在写作时可以用believe,be sure,confirm等词汇表达“肯定”,但是本文作者为什么不使用这些词呢?原因是这几个词汇的主观性都太强,而be convinced则更注重客观逻辑推理。 本文第二段在叙述抓美洲狮的过程中写到了很多美洲狮出没的证据,如果说一次偶遇不能算证据,那么这么多的证据恐怕就不能全归结于巧合了。 动物园的专家们对于抓美洲狮的事情首先是重视的,其次,他们给出的结论是十分严谨的,最终用了be convinced,让人有一种“一语惊醒梦中人”的感觉,不由得由衷惊叹:专家就是专家。 💡convinced 英语常用词疑难用法手册
1) 不一定是被他人说服(甚至可以根本没有任何人来试图说服),而是自己由于某一原因而确信。如果是“被他人说服”,to be convinced 是一种瞬时变化(从“不信”到“信”)。如果是“自己确信”,那就是一种延续状态。瞬时变化不能用一般现在时 (*They convince me that...),一般过去时通常也是表示过去的延续状态,较少表示过去发生的瞬时被动变化。
2) 英语(以及其他多种欧洲语言)都有一个同中文不同的现象,就是喜欢用被动的形式来表示某种心态,仿佛这种心态是被他人影响而造成的。convinced 就是一例,还有 interested, amazed, surprised, bored, scared, frightened 等。而中国人的心理,则认为这里没有什么被动的意思,对于被动形式,无形中有一种抗拒,因而容易出现 *I'm interesting, *I'm boring, *I'm surprising 之类的错误。即使对于像 convinced 这样的被动形式,虽然不大会犯 *I'm convincing 的错误,也总是觉得“既然没有别人来说服过我,说 I'm convinced 就不妥当”。其实这个被动形式并不真的表示被动。
They were all the more convinced that he was guilty.他们就更加确信他是有罪的了(延续状态)。 试比较下面两个句子的用词:
We believe that he will succeed. 我们相信他会成功。(表示主观判断)
We are convinced that he will succeed. 我们有理由确信他会成功。(表示这件事有充分的理由成为客观事实)
1️⃣1️⃣ As no pumas had been reported missing from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private collector and somehow managed to escape.
由于全国动物园没有一家报告丢了美洲狮,因此那只美洲狮一定是某位私人收藏豢养的,不知怎么设法逃出来了。
as引导原因状语从句;现在分词短语missing from any zoo in the country作主语pumas的补足语。主语中的this one 指代missing puma,and连接两个并列的动作。 看看possession of 的三个短语: sth. be in the possession of sb. 某物属于某人(被动) Everyone in the company has a laptop to use, but the laptop is in the possession of the company. 公司每名员工都有一台手提电脑办公用,但电脑的所有权属于公司。
sb. be in possession of sth. 某人拥有某物 (主动) Eighty people are in possession of one while the other twenty people do not have one.
有 80 人拥有手机,而其他 20 人没有。
📖 名著例句:It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.
凡是有钱的单身汉,总想娶位太太,这已经成了一条举世公认的真理。
sb. take possession of sth. 某人占有某物(强调所有权) We’re here to take possession of this property.
我们来此的目的是接管这座工厂。
1️⃣2️⃣ The hunt went on for several weeks, but the puma was not caught.
搜寻工作进行了好几个星期,但始终未能逮住那只美洲狮。
在表示「持续」时,keep,go on,last,continue的区别: keep doing sth. 一直做某事(常用于口语中) I keep asking her to turn down her music.
我一直叫她把音乐关小声点。
go on 继续下去(常用于写作体中) My Heart will Go On 《我心永恒》(电影《泰坦尼克号》主题曲)
last 持续(和keep意思相近但用法不同) Most people believe that the strike will last for at least a week.
多数人认为此次罢工至少会持续一个星期。
不可写作:Most people believe that the strike will keep for at least a week.
continue (使)继续(指同一件事继续进行下去,常用于写作中) The battle continued for several hours until darkness came on.
战斗持续了几个小时,直到夜幕降临(才停止)。
1️⃣3️⃣ It is disturbing to think that a dangerous wild animal is still at large in the quiet countryside.
想到在宁静的乡村里有一头危险的野兽继续逍遥流窜,真令人担心。
句子结构分析:这句话中,it是形式主语,真正的主语是disturbing后面的to think that…,但因为它太长了,影响句子的平衡,所以就用it代替而把它放在句子的后面。 写作句型总结: It is disturbing to think that... 一想到…就让人感到不安 It is iritating to think that.…一想到…就让人感到生气 It is worrying to think that... 一想到…就让人感到担心 It is comforting to think that...一想到…就让人感到欣慰 It is exciting to think that...一想到…就让人感到兴奋 It is thrilling to think that... 一想到…就让人害怕
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