胡敏读故事记单词托福词汇031

Lesson 31 The Carnival¹ 狂欢节

Words:

 

carapace² n. （蟹或龟等的）甲壳

 

carat n. (宝石重量单位)克拉

 

cardiac adj. 心脏的

 

cardinal³ adj. 首要的，主要的；红衣风头鸟（一种美洲鸟，雄性有深红色羽毛）

 

cargo⁴ n. 船货，货物

 

caricature n. （滑稽模仿的）讽刺画

 

carnage n. 大屠杀，残杀

 

carnival n. 狂欢节

 

carnivorous adj. 食肉的

 

carve vt. 切开，雕刻

 

cascade⁵ n. 小瀑布；一连串，连续大量涌出（或落下）的东西

 

cast vt. 浇铸；投、抛

 

castigate⁶ v. 谴责，训斥

 

cast-iron adj. 铸铁的

 

casual adj. 非正式的，随便的；漫不经心的

 

casualty n. 伤亡人员，意外事故

 

cataclysm⁷ n. 大灾难，大变动（常指大洪水或地震）

 

catalyst⁸ n. 催化剂；促使事情发展的因素

 

catalyze⁹ vt. 促使；激励；（化）催化

 

I can’t wait until the next carnival comes to town. I love the casual atmosphere and the taste foods. There’s nothing like watching a cascade of popcorn¹⁰ flowing out of the machine. In fact, I eat so much of it that my friends call me “the cast-iron stomach!”

 

I especially enjoy the wide variety of entertainment, including the animal shows. The lions are the most exciting because they’re carnivorous. Imagine the carnage if they ever escaped their cages. I would suffer a cardiac arrest. I’d probably be the first casualty since I’m so fat and slow. That’s why I also like the tortoise. He’s sluggish¹¹, just like me, although I don’t have a huge carapace on my back to slow me down. It looks like he’s carrying cargo in that big shell of his. However, the cardinal rule is not to bring too much money.

 

You can buy lots of things at a carnival. You can shop for 24 carat gold jewelry¹². You can ask an artist to draw you a caricature of a famous person. You can watch someone carve your name into a piece of wood. You can even buy a type of superglue that comes in two parts. After you use the catalyst to catalyze the glue, it takes only five minutes to form a solid bond.

 

There are a lot of unusual attractions too. Often there will be a fortuneteller who will seem pretty skilled at predicting cataclysms¹³. Sometimes, they will have a wizard who pretends to cast spells.

 

Occasionally, there will be a show that appeals solely¹⁴ to carnal desires. I always stay away from these shows. The last thing I need it to be castigated¹⁵ by my parents, again!

 

我几乎要等不及去下一次城里举行的狂欢节了。我喜欢那里的随和的气氛和美味的食物。看着一堆堆爆米花像瀑布似的从机器里涌出来真乃一大爽事。事实上，我吃了太多的爆米花，以至于朋友们都叫我（什么都消化得了的）“铁胃”。

 

我尤其喜欢欣赏丰富多彩的娱乐节目，比如动物表演。狮子是最激动人心的，因为它们是食肉动物。想象一下它们一旦逃出铁笼后会出现的残杀景象！我会犯心脏病的。我很可能是第一例伤亡，因为我又胖又笨重。这也是我为什么喜欢乌龟的原因。乌龟慢吞吞的，跟我一样，只不过我用不着背着那块大龟甲而放慢速度。看起来乌龟像是在搬运装在它那大甲壳里的货物。但首要准则是别带太多钱。

 

在狂欢节上，你可以疯狂采购。你可以选购24克拉的金首饰；你可以请一名画家为你画一幅某名人的漫画；你可以看着你的名字被人刻在一块木头上；你甚至可以买一种由两部分组成的超级胶水。你先用催化剂催化胶水，5分钟后，胶水就粘得很牢固了。

 

此外，还有很多稀奇古怪的东西吸引你。时常会有一位善于语言灾难的算命先生。有时，又有一位巫师假装在那里下魔咒。

 

偶尔，在狂欢节上会有单纯满足肉欲的表演，遇上这些表演，我总会离得远远的。我才不愿意再让父母训斥一番呢！

1 carnival   

n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演

参考例句：

• I got some good shots of the carnival.我有几个狂欢节的精彩镜头。
• Our street puts on a carnival every year.我们街的居民每年举行一次嘉年华会。

2 carapace   

n.（蟹或龟的）甲壳

参考例句：

• The tortoise pulled its head into his carapace.乌龟把头缩进它的壳里。
• He tickled gently at its glossy carapace,but the stubborn beetle would not budge.他轻轻地搔着甲虫光滑的壳，但这只固执的甲虫就是不动。

3 cardinal   

n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的

参考例句：

• This is a matter of cardinal significance.这是非常重要的事。
• The Cardinal coloured with vexation. 红衣主教感到恼火，脸涨得通红。

4 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

5 cascade   

n.小瀑布，喷流；层叠；vi.成瀑布落下

参考例句：

• She watched the magnificent waterfall cascade down the mountainside.她看着壮观的瀑布从山坡上倾泻而下。
• Her hair fell over her shoulders in a cascade of curls.她的卷发像瀑布一样垂在肩上。

6 castigate   

v.谴责；惩治

参考例句：

• The principal castigate the student who have insult their teacher.校长谴责对老师不敬的学生。
• Marx never lost an opportunity to castigate colonialism.马克思抓住每一个机会严厉谴责殖民主义。

7 cataclysm   

n.洪水，剧变，大灾难

参考例句：

• The extinct volcano's eruption would mean a cataclysm for the city.死火山又重新喷发，对这座城市来说意味着大难临头。
• The cataclysm flooded the entire valley.洪水淹没了整个山谷。

8 catalyst   

n.催化剂，造成变化的人或事

参考例句：

• A catalyst is a substance which speeds up a chemical reaction.催化剂是一种能加速化学反应的物质。
• The workers'demand for better conditions was a catalyst for social change.工人们要求改善工作条件促进了社会变革。

9 catalyze   

v.催化

参考例句：

• They are highly specific for the reactions that they catalyze.它们对被它们催化的反应有很强的专一性。
• They are highly specific for the reactions that they catalyze.它们对被它们催化的反应有很强的专一性。

10 popcorn   

n.爆米花

参考例句：

• I like to eat popcorn when I am watching TV play at home.当我在家观看电视剧时，喜欢吃爆米花。
• He still stood behind his cash register stuffing his mouth with popcorn.他仍站在收银机后，嘴里塞满了爆米花。

11 sluggish   

adj.懒惰的，迟钝的，无精打采的

参考例句：

• This humid heat makes you feel rather sluggish.这种湿热的天气使人感到懒洋洋的。
• Circulation is much more sluggish in the feet than in the hands.脚部的循环比手部的循环缓慢得多。

12 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

13 cataclysms   

n.（突然降临的）大灾难( cataclysm的名词复数 )

参考例句：

14 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。

15 castigated   

v.严厉责骂、批评或惩罚（某人）( castigate的过去式 )

参考例句：

• He castigated himself for being so stupid. 他责怪自己太笨。
• He castigated the secretaries for their sloppy job of filing. 由于秘书们档案工作搞得马虎草率，他严厉地斥责了他们。 来自《简明英汉词典》