胡敏读故事记单词托福词汇079（在线收听）

Lesson 79 A Strange Piece of Wood 一根奇怪的木头

Words:

dreary adj. 沉闷的

drench v. 使湿透

drift vi. 漂流，漂泊

driftwood n. 浮水

drill vt. 钻孔，打眼 n./vi. 训练，操练；反复练习；n. 钻头，钻机

drizzle v. 下毛毛雨n. 细雨

drought n. 干旱

drowsy adj. 昏昏欲睡的

drudgery n. 苦工，苦差事

dual adj. 二重的，两层的

ductile adj. 易延展的；柔软的

due adj. 预定的，到期的

dull adj. 钝的；感觉或理解迟钝的

dumb adj. 哑的

dumbbell-like adj. 哑铃形状的

dump vt. 倾泻，倾倒

dungeon n. 地牢

duplicate vt. 复写，复制; adj. 完全相同的，复制的

duplicity n. 欺骗，口是心非

durable adj. 持久的，耐用的

It was a warm and dreary afternoon at the beach. The only exciting occurrence was the unexpected drizzle. It had drenched

my clothes. Since we were experiencing a drought on the island, the rain was a welcome relief.

I had just eaten my lunch. I was feeling somewhat drowsy. Suddenly, something in the distance caught my attention. I had spotted a strange piece of driftwood. It was drifting in and out of the waves about fifty meters offshore. I immediately put on my durable swim fins and dived into the ocean. Upon reaching it, I noticed something else unusual. The shape of the wood was dumbbell-like and it had s message written on it. My curiosity caused me to drag it to the shore for further examination.

“I’m confined in a dungeon,” the message said. “I suffer through drudgery every day. I’m forced to pound and shape ductile metals into armor. I cannot speak because I have been dumb since birth. My drill is a bit dull, but it can still be used to write messages. I hope this piece of wood will be dumped into the ocean so that someone will find it. If you find it, please help me. I am due to be executed by the end of the year. I have not been able to duplicate this message, so you are my only hope.”

I thought for a moment. This must be a trick. How can a prisoner have a dual purpose drill in his possession? What a strange case of duplicity!

故事发生在海边一个温暖但沉闷的下午。唯一让人高兴的事情就是一场细雨不期而降，它淋湿了我的衣服。岛上正值干旱，所以这场及时雨使旱情得到了缓解。

我刚刚吃过午饭，感到有点昏昏欲睡。走到沙滩上，突然，我注意到远处一个什么东西。我辨认出那是一根奇怪的浮木。它漂浮在离岸边大约50米的海浪上，时隐时现。我迅速穿上耐用的潜水脚蹼，潜入海中。到跟前抓住它时，我注意到它有些异常：它的形状像个哑铃，上面还写着留言。好奇心促使我把它拖到岸上再进一步查看。

留言是这样写的：我正被囚禁在地牢里，每天我都在服苦役。他们强迫我把易延展的金属打至成盔甲。我不会说话，天生就是哑巴。我的钻头很钝，但仍可用来写留言。我真希望这根木头会被投进大海，这样就会有人发现它。如果你发现了，请你救救我。我预期在今年年底被处死刑。我无法复制留言，所以你是我唯一的希望。

我想了片刻，认为这一定是个骗局。一个囚犯如何会有一个有双重功能的钻头呢？多么力气的欺诈案呀！