新视野大学英语视听说教程 2 Unit 5-4

Task 3: A Sudden¹ Change in the Parrot’s Attitude
A young man named John received a parrot as a gift. The parrot had a bad attitude and an even worse vocabulary. Every word out of this bird’s mouth was rude. John tried every method to change the bird’s attitude by constantly² saying polite words, playing soft music, and anything he could think of to set a good example. Nothing worked. Finally, John got fed up and he yelled³ at the parrot. And the bird yelled back. John shook the parrot, and the bird got angrier and ruder. Finally, in a moment of desperation, John put the bird in the refrigerator freezer. For a few minutes, John heard the bird scream and kick. Then suddenly there was silence. Not a sound for over a minute. Fearing that he’s hurt the bird, John quickly opened the door to the freezer. The parrot calmly stepped out and said, “I believe I may have offended⁴ you with my rude language and actions. I am truly sorry, and I will do everything I can to correct my poor behavior.”
John was greatly surprised at the bird’s change of attitude. As he was about to ask the parrot what had caused such a sudden change in his behavior, the bird continued, “May Ii ask why you put the chickens there and what they did wrong?”
1.C   2.D   3.B   4.C     5.A

1 sudden   

n.突然，忽然；adj.突然的，意外的，快速的

参考例句：

• All of a sudden he turned about and saw me.他突然转过身来看见了我。
• The horse was badly frightened by the sudden noise.那匹马被突然而来的嘈杂声吓坏了。

2 constantly   

adv.不变地，不断地，时常地

参考例句：

• The two countries have been warring constantly for years.这两国多年来一直交战。
• We should constantly urge ourselves on to study hard.我们要经常鞭策自己努力学习。

3 yelled   

v.叫喊，号叫，叫着说( yell的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He yelled at the other driver. 他冲着另一位司机大叫。
• The lost man yelled, hoping someone in the woods would hear him. 迷路的人大声喊着，希望林子里的人会听见。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 offended   

v.触怒( offend的过去式和过去分词 )；得罪；冒犯；使反感令人不适

参考例句：

• They'll be offended if you don't go to their wedding. 你若不参加他们的婚礼，他们会生气的。
• She was offended by the vulgarity of their jokes. 他们那些粗俗的笑话使她大为不快。