15 Flashcards
venial
（錯誤行為）輕微的，可以原諒的
a venial sin/error
可恕的小罪／小錯誤
genre
（尤指藝術的）風格，類型，體裁
What genre does the book fall into - comedy or tragedy?
這本書屬於甚麽體裁——喜劇還是悲劇？
unsavory
令人討厭的；不道德的
unsavoury sexual practices
不道德的性行爲
candid
（尤指對棘手或令人痛苦之事）率直的，坦誠的，直言不諱的
The two presidents have had candid talks about the current crisis.
兩位總統就當前的危機進行了坦率的交談。
grotesque
怪誕的，荒謬的；奇形怪狀的；醜陋的
By now she’d had so much cosmetic surgery that she looked quite grotesque.
她現在因為作了太多的整容手術，看上去讓人覺得怪異可怖。
compassion
同情，憐憫，惻隱之心
I was hoping she might show a little compassion.
我當時想她或許會表現出一點點同情心。
the epitome of sth
典型；典範
Even now in her sixties, she is the epitome of French elegance.
即使現在已經年屆花甲，她仍堪稱法國人優雅風度的典範。
repugnant
令人厭惡的；令人反感的
a repugnant smell
令人作嘔的氣味
dexterity
純熟，嫻熟；靈巧，敏捷
He caught the ball with great dexterity.
他非常靈巧地接住了球。
the acme
頂峰，頂點
To act on this world-famous stage is surely the acme of any actor’s career.
毋庸置疑，一個演員能在這個舉世聞名的舞臺上演出，就是登上了事業的巔峰。
depict
描繪，描述，描寫
Her paintings depict the lives of ordinary people in the last century.
她的畫反映了上個世紀普通人的生活。
naive
輕信的；天真的；幼稚的
She was very naive to believe that he’d stay with her.
她居然天真地相信他會和她在一起。
copious
大量的，豐富的；過量的
They drank copious amounts of wine.
他們喝了好多酒。
vehemently
激烈地；強烈地；猛烈地
The president has vehemently denied having an extra-marital affair.
總統極力否認自己有婚外情。
ingratiate yourself
討好，奉承
He’s always trying to ingratiate himself with his boss.
他總是設法討好老闆。
covet
覬覦，垂涎（尤指他人之物）；貪求，渴望
She always coveted power but never quite achieved it.
她一直貪求權力，但從未得逞。
penury
赤貧
perfidious
背信棄義的；不忠貞的
She described the new criminal bill as a perfidious attack on democracy.
她稱新的刑法法案是對民主的肆意踐踏。
ignominious
（尤指事件或行為）恥辱的，丟臉的
an ignominious defeat/failure/retreat
聲譽掃地的落敗／可恥的失敗／恥辱的撤退
servile
卑躬的；諂媚的
As a waiter you want to be pleasant to people without appearing totally servile.
作爲服務員，你應該對人友善，但不要表現出完全卑躬屈膝的樣子。
sojourn
逗留，停留
My sojourn in the youth hostel was thankfully short.
幸好我在青年旅館逗留的時間很短。
confront
面對，面臨；遭遇；直面，正視
As she left the court, she was confronted by angry crowds who tried to block her way.
她離開法庭時，憤怒的人群試圖攔住她的去路。
volition
決斷能力；意志力
The singer wished it to be known that he had left the band (out) of his own volition (= it was his decision).
這名歌手希望人們知道他是自己決定離開樂團的。
antipathy
憎惡，厭惡；反感
Despite the deep antipathies between them, the two sides have managed to negotiate an agreement.
儘管雙方芥蒂很深，但還是設法通過談判達成了一項協議。
tenable
（觀點）站得住腳的；（職位）可保持一段時間的
His theory is no longer tenable in the light of the recent discoveries.
根據最新的發現，他的理論已經站不住腳了。
austere
簡樸的；艱苦的；樸素的
an austere childhood during the war
戰火中艱苦的童年生活
superfluous
過多的，多餘的，過剩的
The report was marred by a mass of superfluous detail.
這篇報告壞就壞在裡面細枝末節的東西太多。
felicitous
貼切的；恰當的；得體的
He summed up Jack’s achievements in one or two felicitous phrases.
他用一兩個詞語恰如其分地概括了傑克的成就。
halcyon
（昔日）美好的時光
She recalled the halcyon days of her youth.
她回想起年輕時的美好時光。
iconoclast
反傳統信仰者；反傳統者
Rogers, an iconoclast in architecture, is sometimes described as putting the insides of buildings on the outside.
羅傑斯是個打破建築學傳統的人，有時他被說成是把建築物的內部結構擺到了外觀上。
therapy
治療；療法
occupational therapy
職業療法
motivate
使產生動機；激起
Like so many people, he’s motivated by greed.
像許多人一樣，他為貪婪所驅使。
rationalize
合理地解釋（行為、決定等），為…找出合理的理由；就…辯解
She rationalized the cost by saying that an expensive carpet would last longer than a cheaper one.
她解釋說那些花費是合理的，理由是她買的地毯雖然很貴，但要比便宜貨耐用。
nascent
新生的，萌芽的；開始發展的
a nascent political party
新成立的政黨
phobia
（尤指道理上無法解釋的）恐懼，懼怕
I’ve got a phobia about/of worms.
我很怕蠕蟲。
erudite
博學的；有學問的；博大精深的
He’s the author of an erudite book on Scottish history.
他寫過一本博大精深的有關蘇格蘭歷史的著作。
vertigo
（從高處俯視感到的）暈眩
She can’t stand heights and has always suffered from vertigo.
她恐高，總是會感到眩暈。
conducive
有利的，有助的，有益的
Such a noisy environment was not conducive to a good night’s sleep.
在這樣嘈雜的環境下，晚上難以睡個好覺。
germane
（想法、訊息等）有密切關係的，有重要意義的
Her remarks could not have been more germane to the discussion.
她的說話跟這次討論密切相關。
glib
花言巧語的，油嘴滑舌的；（說話）不誠懇的，未經思考的
He’s a glib, self-centred man.
他是個油嘴滑舌、自私自利的人。
trend
趨勢，趨向；傾向，動向
Surveys show a trend away from home-ownership and toward rented accommodation.
調查顯示，出現了一種從私人擁有住房轉向租賃住房的趨勢。
legerdemain
花招，詭計，欺騙
The survey suggests nearly half the electorate believes the president won through electoral legerdemain.
調查顯示，近一半選民認為總統是採用欺騙贏得大選的。
malleable
具延展性的；易變形的
Lead and tin are malleable metals.
鉛和錫都是具延展性的金屬。
homogeneous
由同類事物（或人）組成的；同類的；相似的
a homogeneous group/society
由同種族人組成的群體／社會
fatal
致命的
This illness is fatal in almost all cases.
這種病幾乎是不治之症。
passé
過時的，落伍的
Wines from that region were quite popular for a while, but now they’re rather passé.
那個地區的葡萄酒一度非常受歡迎，但現在早已風光不再了。
facet
（問題、形勢等的）方面，部分
She has so many facets to her personality.
她的性格具有多面性。
procrastinate
拖延，耽擱
I know I’ve got to deal with the problem at some point - I’m just procrastinating.
我知道遲早得解決這個問題——我只是在拖延時間。
stagnant
（水或空氣）不流動的，汙濁的
a stagnant pond
死水塘
capitulate
投降；屈服；停止抵抗
Their forces capitulated five hours after the bombardment of the city began.
在該市被轟炸了五個小時之後，他們的軍隊投降了。
