英语博客(A cup of English):Where is my bucket?

Beginners.

What sort of things do you like to do during the Summer. Are there any activities that you are particularly fond of? What about when you were a child? If I could sit down and chat with all of you, I would probably be able to write a long list of things that people like to do in the Summer months. Here, our time is mainly spent around water. It's really too hot to do anything else. It's too hot even to go for a walk. Yesterday I took my kids and my brother to a nearby riverbank. The beach area was just the right size for us. It was sandy, but had enough rocks and tree debris¹ to keep the young ones entertained. We took the dogs; it would be a treat for them to be next to the river. Buckets and spades were an essential part of the trip. I remember when I was little, we always had buckets and spades around. They are so very useful. Castles and forts can be built by using them, but then, of course, they can carry water, pretty stones, and even slimey creatures. They can be used for standing² on to help you get something that is out of reach. They can even be used as hats, if your head is small enough. Well, when I was little, I used buckets for just about everything, and my kids do the same. Our trip down to the riverbank became very creative and fun because of those simple, plastic tools.

Grammar notes.

Related vocabulary: riverbank, out of reach, debris, to chat.

Exs:

The fishermen fished quietly from the riverbank, and eventually caught a trout³.

My two year old got into the flour bag and made a terrible mess; thankfully, the medicines are out of reach!

After the bombing, it took hours to clear the debris.

I was on the phone with my sister for two hours; we chatted about all sorts of nonsense.

Advanced.

Thankfully, the weather turned out to be a bit overcast⁴, and therefore cooler than normal. It was perfect weather for sitting on the beach. In between overseeing the dogs, making sure that they didn't run off, and watching a group of fish jump for flies, I observed my children constructing all sorts of sandy projects using their buckets and spades. Whenever they would get too hot, they would fill up their buckets with water and dump it on eachother. At times this was good, but at other times a fight would ensue, and I would have to quickly step in as referee⁶ to keep the peace. Then everyone would settle down and get on with their projects. Nobody wanted to build sandcastles, so they carved long channels that forked towards the river instead. When these were ready, they would fill up their buckets with river water, run up to the top of the channel, and start the waterfall. They did this countless⁷ times, and didn't grow tired. Only occasionally would the work stop to the sound of," Hey, where's my bucket?" Everyone would look around, and invariably it would be found floating down the river. There would be a huge splash of bodies, and the thing would be retrieved⁹. It would be handy to train the dogs to go after those floating buckets; mind you, it would be handy to have the dogs trained in any way at all! One of our dogs, Foxy, loves to swim and retrieve⁸ sticks from the water. Rosie, on the other hand, prefers to sniff¹⁰ around in the debris for mice and rabbits, one of which she almost caught. It was a great day! It was full of activity. By the time we came home, hosed everyone and everything down, and vacuumed out the car, I was exhausted¹¹. It was time to put my feet up and have a very needed cup of tea.

Grammar notes.

Related vocabulary: to retrieve, overcast, to oversee⁵, to ensure, to sniff.

Exs:

I dropped my book in the river, but, thankfully, a nearby dog retrieved it.

Yesterday was sunny until the clouds moved in and it became quite overcast.

The teacher had to oversee the science project for safety reasons.

Please ensure that you shut the gates; I don't want the goats escaping again.

The bear sniffed¹² the air; he could smell the dinner that the hunters were preparing.

 

1 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

2 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

3 trout   

n.鳟鱼；鲑鱼(属)

参考例句：

• Thousands of young salmon and trout have been killed by the pollution.成千上万的鲑鱼和鳟鱼的鱼苗因污染而死亡。
• We hooked a trout and had it for breakfast.我们钓了一条鳟鱼，早饭时吃了。

4 overcast   

adj.阴天的，阴暗的，愁闷的；v.遮盖，（使）变暗，包边缝；n.覆盖，阴天

参考例句：

• The overcast and rainy weather found out his arthritis.阴雨天使他的关节炎发作了。
• The sky is overcast with dark clouds.乌云满天。

5 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

6 referee   

n.裁判员．仲裁人，代表人，鉴定人

参考例句：

• The team was left raging at the referee's decision.队员们对裁判员的裁决感到非常气愤。
• The referee blew a whistle at the end of the game.裁判在比赛结束时吹响了哨子。

7 countless   

adj.无数的，多得不计其数的

参考例句：

• In the war countless innocent people lost their lives.在这场战争中无数无辜的人丧失了性命。
• I've told you countless times.我已经告诉你无数遍了。

8 retrieve   

vt.重新得到，收回；挽回，补救；检索

参考例句：

• He was determined to retrieve his honor.他决心恢复名誉。
• The men were trying to retrieve weapons left when the army abandoned the island.士兵们正试图找回军队从该岛撤退时留下的武器。

9 retrieved   

v.取回( retrieve的过去式和过去分词 )；恢复；寻回；检索（储存的信息）

参考例句：

• Yesterday I retrieved the bag I left in the train. 昨天我取回了遗留在火车上的包。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He reached over and retrieved his jacket from the back seat. 他伸手从后座上取回了自己的夹克。 来自辞典例句

10 sniff   

vi.嗅…味道；抽鼻涕；对嗤之以鼻，蔑视

参考例句：

• The police used dogs to sniff out the criminals in their hiding - place.警察使用警犬查出了罪犯的藏身地点。
• When Munchie meets a dog on the beach, they sniff each other for a while.当麦奇在海滩上碰到另一条狗的时候，他们会彼此嗅一会儿。

11 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

12 sniffed   

v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的过去式和过去分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说

参考例句：

• When Jenney had stopped crying she sniffed and dried her eyes. 珍妮停止了哭泣，吸了吸鼻子，擦干了眼泪。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The dog sniffed suspiciously at the stranger. 狗疑惑地嗅着那个陌生人。 来自《简明英汉词典》