美国小学英语教材3:第145课 培迪的圣诞节(2)

 Then he said, "What is Christmas? It's pretty, and it's lots of fun, and it makes you feel good from the inside out. But what is it?" 然后他说：什么是圣诞节？那个太好玩了，很有趣，能让你由内而外感到舒心。但它究竟是什么？”

I don't know, said Father, and he rumbled¹ back to sleep. 我不知道。他爸爸说，说完，打着呼噜又睡着了。

I don't know, said Mother, and she tumbled back to sleep. 我不知道。他妈妈说，说完，转了个身又睡着了。

I don't know, said Uncle and Aunt, and they grumbled² back to sleep. 我不知道。他叔叔、阿姨说，说完，他们也咕咕哝哝地又睡着了。

Then Paddy waked them all up again and said, "I must find out what Christmas is, because I want one very much. 这时候，培迪又把他们全部弄醒了，说：我一定要弄清楚圣诞节是什么，因为我很想要过一个圣诞节。

If you don't tell me, I'll go down and ask the people in the log house; and you know what they do to bear-cubs." 如果你们不告诉我，我就下去问木屋里的人们；你们是知道他们怎么对待熊宝宝的。

This frightened the grown-up bears so much that Uncle said he would go at once and find out what Christmas is. 这可吓坏了成年的大熊们，他的叔叔说他马上就去搞清楚圣诞节是什么。

Down the mountain-side he went to the little log house. 他顺着山坡走到了小木屋边。

He listened and looked and sniffed³. 他又是听又是看，还用鼻子仔细地嗅了嗅。

Then he came back to Paddy. 接着回到了培迪那里。

Christmas, he said," is holly⁴, and evergreen⁵ trees, and cedar⁶ branches, and things like that. 圣诞节呢，他说，就是冬青啊、常青树啊，或是雪松的树枝啊，以及像这类的东西。

You get them and trim the house and sing songs, and that is Christmas, " Then all the grown-up bears went back to sleep. 你可以拿这些东西装饰一下屋子，再唱唱歌什么的，那便是圣诞节了。然后，所有的成年大熊又回去睡觉了。

 

1 rumbled   

发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋）

参考例句：

• The machine rumbled as it started up. 机器轰鸣着发动起来。
• Things rapidly became calm, though beneath the surface the argument rumbled on. 事情迅速平静下来了，然而，在这种平静的表面背后争论如隆隆雷声，持续不断。

2 grumbled   

抱怨( grumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 发牢骚； 咕哝； 发哼声

参考例句：

• He grumbled at the low pay offered to him. 他抱怨给他的工资低。
• The heat was sweltering, and the men grumbled fiercely over their work. 天热得让人发昏，水手们边干活边发着牢骚。

3 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》

4 holly   

n.[植]冬青属灌木

参考例句：

• I recently acquired some wood from a holly tree.最近我从一棵冬青树上弄了些木料。
• People often decorate their houses with holly at Christmas.人们总是在圣诞节时用冬青来装饰房屋。

5 evergreen   

n.常青树；adj.四季常青的

参考例句：

• Some trees are evergreen;they are called evergreen.有的树是常青的，被叫做常青树。
• There is a small evergreen shrub on the hillside.山腰上有一小块常绿灌木丛。

6 cedar   

n.雪松，香柏(木)

参考例句：

• The cedar was about five feet high and very shapely.那棵雪松约有五尺高,风姿优美。
• She struck the snow from the branches of an old cedar with gray lichen.她把长有灰色地衣的老雪松树枝上的雪打了下来。