时间:2019-01-01 作者:英语课 分类:英语博客 A cup of English


英语课

   "Mum, please don't buy me any clothes. I just want to go shopping for clothes with Dad." This request was made by my almost thirteen year old, and echoed 2(1) by my fourteen year old. It was totally unexpected. In fact, I have never heard anything like that before(2). I've shopped for my children's clothes all of their lives, and now, suddenly, I've been told not to. Did their request hurt my feelings? Not really. I understand that my two oldest are adolescents; they have what we call a 'mental fog'(3) of hormones 3 and changing feelings. I was the same. Perhaps they no longer like my style. Perhaps the brand names I buy are just not cool. Or perhaps they know something that I don't know about fashion. I have never really followed fashion; I just buy what I like. But fashion, for my boys, has suddenly become quite important. The reason they want to shop with their dad, is that he doesn't care about bargains, sales, or saving money. I, on the other hand, am always looking for a bargain. I shop around(4). My husband will find the nicest shop, and buy whatever(5) the boys want. That's why they now prefer dad over mum, the traitors 4. So, I decided 5 to show my kids that I'm not out of touch(6), I can be fashionable, and perhaps even cool. The latest thing now, apparently 6, in middle school are Elites 7. They are a super duper(7), special, wonderful, cool-to-the-extreme(8) type of sock. Everybody wears them, well, everybody who is anybody(9) wears them. If you want to be seen as normal you have to have Elites, otherwise your life is meaningless. So, I followed the dictates 8 of fashion, and spent far too much money on socks. And, you know, I think there is something special about them, some kind of magical power. As soon as my boys put them on, they seemed happier, more confident, and definitely cooler. They walked into school like two zebras joining the herd 9(10); they belonged.


  1. 'Echo 1' can be used figuratively when someone's words agree or reflect someone else's.
  a. My sister's words were echoed by her husband: I should go to the doctor immediately.
  b. My grandmother's voice echoed in my daughter's laughter.
  2. 'I have never heard anything like that before' is a useful sentence to practice with different verbs:
  a. I have never seen anything like that before.
  b. I have never eaten anything like that before.
  c. We have never been anywhere like that before.
  d. They have never done anything like that before.
  e. She has never said anything like that before. etc etc
  3. 'Mental fog' is used when talking about health issues, when a person feels forgetful or not fully 10 awake.
  a. If I don't sleep enough, I have a real mental fog.
  b. Depression gives you a mental fog, but exercise and a good diet can make you mentally sharper.
  4. 'To shop around' means to spend time going from one shop to another to find the best price. It is also slang 11 for dating lots of people to gain experience.
  a. I liked the car, but it was too expensive. I think I'll shop around.
  b. You don't have to marry the first man you meet; shop around a little.
  5. 'Whatever' is too important to not mention. It's a great word to use in many situations.
  a. Buy whatever you want. Eat whatever you want. Listen to whatever he says. (The negative of this is 'don't listen to anything he says'). Do whatever you want.
  6. 'To be out of touch' is to not see or respond to reality the way most others do; or to not be realistic. It is also used for being non-communicative with friends and relatives.
  a. My family thinks that I am out of touch because I don't have a computer.
  b. I'm so out of touch; I really need to get on Facebook and catch up with my family and friends.
  7. 'Super duper' is a traditional slang; it's an extension of super and is lighthearted.
  a. After dinner, we had Maria's super duper yummy apple pie.
  b. I think the Honda Leaf is a super duper car.
  8. '.....to-the-extreme' can be used with many different adjectives.
  a. They are sporty-to-the-extreme; it's all they talk about, and all they do.
  b. They are unhealthy-to-the-extreme; they smoke, drink too much, never exercise, and only eat at McDonald's.
  9. 'Anybody' or 'somebody' are both used to refer to someone who has social importance. The opposite is a 'nobody'.
  a. He really thinks he's somebody. He left the party because he said it was full of nobodies. I'm glad he left.
  b. You must see the Oscars; anybody who is anybody will be there. (Here you can say 'everybody who is anybody will be there') also.
  10. A herd is a group of animals, usually 4 legged.
  a. The herd of cows ran when the thunder started.
  b. The huge herd of zebras covered the plains to the horizon.

n.回音,共鸣;vi.发出回声;vt.模仿,附和
  • She shouted on the mountaintop and listened for the echo.她在山顶上大声喊着,然后聆听着回声。
  • I should like to echo the words of the previous speaker.我想重复前面一位发言者的话。
重复,随声附和( echo的过去式和过去分词 ); 类似; 发射(声音等); 发出回声
  • Their shouts re-echoed through the darkness. 他们的喊声回荡在黑暗中。
  • Their footsteps echoed in the silence. 他们的脚步声在一片寂静中回荡着。
卖国贼( traitor的名词复数 ); 叛徒; 背叛者; 背信弃义的人
  • Traitors are held in infamy. 叛徒为人所不齿。
  • Traitors have always been treated with contempt. 叛徒永被人们唾弃。
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
adv.显然地;表面上,似乎
  • An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽,豁然开朗。
  • He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。
精华( elite的名词复数 ); 精锐; 上层集团; (统称)掌权人物
  • The elites are by their nature a factor contributing to underdevelopment. 这些上层人物天生是助长欠发达的因素。
  • Elites always detest gifted and nimble outsiders. 社会名流对天赋聪明、多才多艺的局外人一向嫌恶。
n.命令,规定,要求( dictate的名词复数 )v.大声讲或读( dictate的第三人称单数 );口授;支配;摆布
  • Convention dictates that a minister should resign in such a situation. 依照常规部长在这种情况下应该辞职。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He always follows the dictates of common sense. 他总是按常识行事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
n.兽群,牧群;vt.使集中,把…赶在一起
  • She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
  • He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见,只是人云亦云。
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地
  • The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气,然后全部呼出。
  • They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。
n.俚语,行话;vt.使用俚语,辱骂;vi.辱骂
  • The phrase is labelled as slang in the dictionary.这个短语在这本字典里被注为俚语。
  • Slang often goes in and out of fashion quickly.俚语往往很快风行起来又很快不再风行了。
学英语单词
abdominal part
absolutely stable
absorbing state
adrenochromes
aluminium foils
asymmetric transformation
banded stilts
basivertebral vein
battologized
be let in on the ground floor
body feed
Buridan's ass
cash invoice
Chorzelów
chronographer
clip off
combined vibrating roller
compensating feedback loop
conus planorbis
cost objective
cotton production
cylinder by-pass valve
D-frame
data over voice
days of rest
deglamorization
derestrict
dextrotorsion
dispersion-equalization
ditching attitude
Dohans
electrical characteristics
externally-braced monoplane
fall-out of synchronism
forecaddies
golden eagle
Goldstein-Scheerer tests
graduated string
half-hunter
Haplopappus spinulosus
have analogy to
heating system
heliotridylamine
hildebrand
hotlines
hyuck
indirect type central air-conditioning unit
Internet suffix
Izena-jima
Kurdistani
lampyridaes
leukoplania
liquid waste receiver tank
local acceptance
lsi-cml circuit technology
magnetoresistance magnetometer
merions
metal surface plasmon and second harmonic generator
minimum graph
mohs scales
natural environment management
nervi ampullaris lateralis
neverless
occasional light
once and a way
ordinary life assurance
oscillator padding
Osipa
photocell matrix
piston curl
pivot hinge
pontes
prequalified tenderer
puffest
queueing system structure
reflux column
repair of side ditch
Revere, Paul
sample-reset loop filter
Scirpus rosthornii
scornliche
separation of spinal cord and arachnoid adhesions
silicon diode array
sope
speed through the water
stellite-faced valve
Subprime Meltdown
tee-times
toll free number
toroidal discharge
transitive law
trichomonal urethro-cystitis
under constraint
undistributed score
virus diarrhea
waltz through
white cypresses
wide anode
win ... over
Yak-141
yellow-necked mice
zygomorphic pea flower