Lesson 62 After the fire
New words and expressions:
1. control
Firemen had been fighting the forest fire for nearly three weeks before they could get it under control.
The situation was out of control.
Parents should not have control over their children.
2. smoke
Now, smoke still rose up from the warm ground over the desolate hills.
The room was full of choking smoke.
The huge fire sent dense smoke up to the sky.
3. desolate
The railway station became desolate in the war.
They changed the desolate land into a prosperous town.
4. threaten
Winter was coming on and the hills threatened the surrounding villages with destruction, for heavy rain would not only wash away the soil but would cause serious floods as well.
He threatened to kidnap her child.
The flood threatened thousands of lives.
5. surrounding
The valley and its surrounding scenery are fascinating.
The surrounding country took on a new look.
6. destruction
The earthquake caused the destruction of the city.
The advanced weapons increased the destruction of war.
7. flood
It (The village) was stricken by a heavy flood.
Food and clothes were sent to the flood-stricken areas.
8. authority
When the fire had at last been put out, the forest authorities ordered several tons of a special type of grass-seed which would grow quickly.
The school authorities laid down (to lay down制定法规) some new rules and regulations.
The local authorities attached great importance to the event.
9. grass-seed
Grass-seed is expensive.
A lot of grass-seed was frozen and made useless during the winter.
10. spray
The seed was sprayed over the ground in huge quantities by aeroplanes.
Vegetables are sprayed.
The workers were spraying paint on the wall.
11. quantity
Large quantities of goods were damaged in the storm.
Yesterday’s typhoon brought a great quantity of rain.
12. root
By then, however, in many places the grass had already taken root.
Many trees were pulled up by the roots.
Vegetation in the desert usually has deep roots.
13. century
In place of the great trees which had been growing there for centuries, patches of green had begun to appear in the blackened soil.
The 20th century witnessed many great changes in China.
This ancient city was deserted for centuries.
14. patch
They toiled on the small patch of land.
There is a patch of garden in front of the house.
15. blacken
Their faces were blackened by the smoke.
Smoking blackened his fingers.
Lesson 63 She was not amused
New words and expressions:
1. circle
Jeremy Hampden has a large circle of friends and is very popular at parties.
This is a close family circle.
He is a famous figure in the cultural circle.
2. admire
Everybody admires him for his great sense of humor — everybody, that is, except his six-year-old daughter, Jenny.
I admire his sense of humor.
His co-workers admire his capacity for work.
3. close
Recently, one of Jeremy’s closest friends asked him to make a speech at a wedding reception.
The two countries have established close relations.
They are in close contact with each other.
4. wedding
He prepared the speech carefully and went to the wedding with Jenny.
The wedding ceremony will take place next Sunday.
They exchanged the wedding rings.
5. reception
They held a reception for the new CEO.
They arranged a farewell reception for John, who had been transferred to the head office.
6. sort
This is the sort of thing that Jeremy loves.
He is not the sort of man to commit such a cruel crime.
This hardware store sells different sorts of tools.