英语听书《海底两万里》第284期 第21章 在陆地上的两天(15)

 　　The islanders were still there, in greater numbers than on the day before, perhaps 500 or 600 of them.  土人守在那里，比昨天的人数更多了，大约有五六百人左右。

　　Taking advantage of the low tide, some of them had moved forward over the heads of coral to within two cable lengths of the Nautilus.  有些土人乘着低潮，来到珊瑚石尖上，离诺第留斯号约四百米远。

　　I could easily distinguish them.  我可以清楚地看见他们。

　　They obviously were true Papuans, men of fine stock, athletic¹ in build, forehead high and broad, nose large but not flat, teeth white.  他们是真正的巴布亚人，身材高大，体格魁伟，前额宽大高起，鼻子粗大，但不扁平，牙齿洁白。

　　Their woolly, red-tinted hair was in sharp contrast to their bodies, which were black and glistening² like those of Nubians.  他们像羊毛一般的头发作红颜色，披散在漆黑发亮的、像非洲纽比人一般的身躯上。

　　Beneath their pierced, distended³ earlobes there dangled⁴ strings⁵ of beads⁶ made from bone.  他们的耳垂子，割开了和拉长了，挂着骨质的耳环。

　　Generally these savages⁷ were naked.  这些土人通常是光着身子，不穿衣服。

　　I noted⁸ some women among them, dressed from hip⁹ to knee in grass skirts held up by belts made of vegetation.  我看见他们中间有些女人，从腰至膝穿一件真正草叶做的粗糙裙子，上面用一根草带子系起来。

　　Some of the chieftains adorned¹⁰ their necks with crescents and with necklaces made from beads of red and white glass.  有些头领脖子上带着一个弯月形的饰物和红白两色的玻璃编成的项链。

　　Armed with bows, arrows, and shields, nearly all of them carried from their shoulders a sort of net, which held those polished stones their slings¹¹ hurl¹² with such dexterity¹³. 差不多全体上人都带了弓、箭和盾，肩上背着象网一类的东西，网中装满他们能巧妙地用投石机投出来的溜圆石块。

　　One of these chieftains came fairly close to the Nautilus, examining it with care.  其中一个头领走到相当接近诺第留斯号的地方，很细心地考察这只船。

　　He must have been a "mado" of high rank, because he paraded in a mat of banana leaves that had ragged¹⁴ edges and was accented with bright colors. 他好像是一个高级的“马多”，因为他披着一条香蕉树叶编的围巾，中边上织成花样，并且染了很鲜明的颜色。

　　I could easily have picked off this islander, he stood at such close range; but I thought it best to wait for an actual show of hostility¹⁵.  我可以很容易击毙这个土人，因为他站在很近的地方；

　　Between Europeans and savages, it's acceptable for Europeans to shoot back but not to attack first. 但我认为等待他表示出真正故意的攻击行动之后，再还手才对。

1 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

2 glistening   

adj.闪耀的，反光的v.湿物闪耀，闪亮( glisten的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Her eyes were glistening with tears. 她眼里闪着晶莹的泪花。
• Her eyes were glistening with tears. 她眼睛中的泪水闪着柔和的光。 来自《用法词典》

3 distended   

v.（使）膨胀，肿胀( distend的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• starving children with huge distended bellies 鼓着浮肿肚子的挨饿儿童
• The balloon was distended. 气球已膨胀。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 dangled   

悬吊着( dangle的过去式和过去分词 )； 摆动不定； 用某事物诱惑…； 吊胃口

参考例句：

• Gold charms dangled from her bracelet. 她的手镯上挂着许多金饰物。
• It's the biggest financial incentive ever dangled before British footballers. 这是历来对英国足球运动员的最大经济诱惑。

5 strings   

n.弦

参考例句：

• He sat on the bed,idly plucking the strings of his guitar.他坐在床上，随意地拨着吉他的弦。
• She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。

6 beads   

n.（空心）小珠子( bead的名词复数 )；水珠；珠子项链

参考例句：

• a necklace of wooden beads 一条木珠项链
• Beads of perspiration stood out on his forehead. 他的前额上挂着汗珠。

7 savages   

未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There're some savages living in the forest. 森林里居住着一些野人。
• That's an island inhabited by savages. 那是一个野蛮人居住的岛屿。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

10 adorned   

[计]被修饰的

参考例句：

• The walls were adorned with paintings. 墙上装饰了绘画。
• And his coat was adorned with a flamboyant bunch of flowers. 他的外套上面装饰着一束艳丽刺目的鲜花。

11 slings   

抛( sling的第三人称单数 )； 吊挂； 遣送； 押往

参考例句：

• "Don't you fear the threat of slings, Perched on top of Branches so high?" 矫矫珍木巅，得无金丸惧？ 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学
• Used for a variety of things including slings and emergency tie-offs. 用于绳套，设置保护点，或者紧急情况下打结。

12 hurl   

vt.猛投，力掷，声叫骂

参考例句：

• The best cure for unhappiness is to hurl yourself into your work.医治愁苦的最好办法就是全身心地投入工作。
• To hurl abuse is no way to fight.谩骂决不是战斗。

13 dexterity   

n.(手的)灵巧，灵活

参考例句：

• You need manual dexterity to be good at video games.玩好电子游戏手要灵巧。
• I'm your inferior in manual dexterity.论手巧，我不如你。

14 ragged   

adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的

参考例句：

• A ragged shout went up from the small crowd.这一小群人发出了刺耳的喊叫。
• Ragged clothing infers poverty.破衣烂衫意味着贫穷。

15 hostility   

n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争

参考例句：

• There is open hostility between the two leaders.两位领导人表现出公开的敌意。
• His hostility to your plan is well known.他对你的计划所持的敌意是众所周知的。