Words and Expressions

I. Vocabulary

controversial (adj.) : stirringup controversy；debatable引起争论的

motley (adj.) : of many colors orpatches of color；having orcomposed of many different or clashing elements：heterogeneous杂色的；斑杂的；混杂的，杂乱的

identity (n.) : the condition orfact of being a specific person or thing；individuality个性；个人的特征

prop (n.) : a rigid support，as a beam，stake，or pole，placed under oragainst a structure or part支柱；支持物；撑材

alabaster (n.) : a translucent，whitish，fine—grained variety of gypsum，usedfor statues，vases，etc．雪花石膏

cadence (n.) : inflection ormodulation in tone；any rhythmicflow of sound声音的抑扬顿挫；声调；节奏

pickaninny (n.) : ．a negro child黑人小孩

cripple (v.) : frustrate，hinder；make unable orunfit to act，function effectively，etc．使损伤；使丧失活动能力；使失去战斗力；削弱

breakthrough (n.) : a strikinglyimportant advance or discovery in any field of knowledge or activity突破；重大发现；惊人进展

skirmish (n.) : a brief fight orencounter between small groups，usually anincident of a battle：any slight。unimportant conflict；brush小规模战斗；小冲突

rung (n.) : any of thecrosspieces constituting the steps of a ladder梯级

lukewarm (n.) : (of liquids，etc．)barely ormoderately warm(液体等)微温的

paradox (n.) : a statement thatseems contradictory， unbelievable．or absurd but that may actually be true in fact反论

paranoia (n.) : a mental disordercharacterized by systematized delusions，as ofgrandeur，or，esp. ，persecution，often,except in a schizophrenic state，with anotherwise relatively intact personality妄想狂；偏执狂

accessible (adj.) : easy toapproach or enter易接近的；易进去的

pocket (n.) : a small area orgroup of a specified type小块地区；凹地；小圈子

pimp (n.) : one who is an agentfor a prostitute or prostitutes and lives off their earnings；procurer拉皮条的人；为妓女拉客的人；妓院老板

perpetual (adj.) : continuingindefinitely without interruption：unceasing；constant不断的；重复不停的

preconception (n.) : bias orprejudice偏见

terrace (n.) : an unroofed pavedarea，immediately adjacent to a house，etc．露天平台；阳台

corny (adj. [cloolq.]) :unsophisticated，old—fashioned，trite，banal，sentimental，etc．过时的；陈腐的

sojourn (n.) : a brief 0rtemporary stay；visit旅居；短期访问

incorrigible (adj.) : not corrigible；that cannot be corrected。improved，or reformed，esp.because firmly established, as a habit不可救药的；难以纠正的；根深蒂固的

efface (v.) : rub out，as from a surface；erase；wipe out；obliterate(从表面)擦掉，擦去，抹去；消除(痕迹)

fathom (v.) : measure the depthof；get to the bottom of； understand thoroughly测深；追根究底；弄清…的真相

unprecedented (adj.) : having noprecedent or parallel；unheard—of；novel前所未有的；无前例的；新奇的

compulsive (adj.) : of，having to do with，orresulting from compulsion强迫的；有强迫力的

taboo (n.) : any socialprohibition or restriction that results from convention or tradition(社会习俗或传统习惯方面的)禁忌；避讳

sustenance (n.) : that whichsustains life；nourishment；food食物；营养物

inexorable (adj.) : that cannotbe moved or influenced by persuasion or entreaty；unrelenting不退让的，不屈不挠的；不为所动的

sorely (adv.) : urgently；greatly；extremely迫切地；极其；非常

wed (v.) : unite or join closely密切结合

arm (n.) : any combatant branchof the military forces兵种；军种

intangible (adj.) : that cannotbe easily defined，formulated，or grasped；vague难以确定(或捉摸、掌握)的；模糊的；不明确的

II. Expressions

at bottom :  fundamentally，actually根本上，实际上

       例： Atbottom I don’t trust him．实际上我并不信任他。

in nigllt(from) :  escaping from逃避，逃开

     例： Shehas to face what she is always in flight from now．她现在必须面对自己一直在逃避的事情了。

in relief :  in sharp contrast浮雕一般，鲜明地，显著地

     例： The peaks stood out in bold relief against the azure sky．在蓝天的映衬下，山峰的轮廓极为明显。

be borne．m on／upon sb．:   if a fact isborne in 0n someone,they re-alize that it is tree(事实等)为某人所认识的

  例： Itwas borne in on us how close we had been to disaster．我们已认识到灾难迫在眉睫。