英文短篇故事（纽约）454 Is There a Largebone Too?

 　　Lester was walking along East 65th Street. A store window's fancy lettering caught his eye. It said, "Smallbone of Devizes." Underneath¹ that, it said, "Hand-made English Cabinetry." He understood "cabinetry." But "Smallbone of Devizes"? What in the world was that? He went inside the store. Moments later, a man walked down from upstairs. Lester said, "Hi. I'm just curious. Could you tell me what Smallbone of Devizes means?" The man smiled and said, "Smallbone is the surname of Charlie, the founder². Devizes is the name of a small town in England." Lester said, "Ohh. That explains it. I guess you hear this question all the time." The man said, "You know, you're the first person who's ever asked." Lester said, "Really? I've always had a knack³ for asking questions that others don't." The man smiled and said, "No, not really. I was joshing. I hear that question every other day."

1 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

2 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

3 knack   

n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法

参考例句：

• He has a knack of teaching arithmetic.他教算术有诀窍。
• Making omelettes isn't difficult,but there's a knack to it.做煎蛋饼并不难，但有窍门。