美国小学英语教材5:第12课 神奇的牛奶罐(10)

 Poor Baucis kept wishing that she might starve for a week to come, if it were possible by so doing to provide these hungry folks with a more plentiful¹ supper. 可怜的柏西斯不停地祈祷，如果她挨饿一周能给这些饥饿的人提供丰盛一点的晚餐的话，她宁愿挨饿一周。

And since the supper was so small, she could not help wishing that their appetites had not been quite so large. 因为晚饭那么少，使她忍不住祈祷，他们的胃口不要那么大。

Why, at their very first sitting down the travelers both drank off all the milk in their two bowls! 哎呀，两个旅行者一坐下就把他们碗里的牛奶都喝了个精光！

"A little more milk, kind Mother Baucis, if you please," said Quicksilver. "The day has been hot, and I am very thirsty." 再来一点牛奶，善良的柏西斯妈妈，如果您愿意的话，水银说。天气一直很热，我感到很口渴。

"Now, my dear people," answered Baucis, "I am so sorry and ashamed! 然而，亲爱的，柏西斯回答说，非常抱歉和惭愧！

But the truth is, there is hardly a drop more milk in the pitcher²." 事实上牛奶罐里几乎连一滴牛奶都没有了。

"Why, it seems to me," cried Quicksilver, starting up from the table and taking the pitcher by the handle, 什么，在我看来，水银从桌子旁站起来，拿着牛奶罐的把手喊道，

"it really seems to me that there is more milk in the pitcher." 真的，在我看来，牛奶罐里还有些牛奶。

So saying, he filled not only his own bowl but his companion's also from the pitcher that was supposed to be almost empty. 说着，他从那个本应是几乎空了的牛奶罐中，不仅为自己倒了一碗牛奶，还为他的同伴倒了一碗。

The good woman could scarcely³ believe her eyes. 那个善良的妇人几乎不敢相信自己的眼睛。

She had certainly poured out nearly all the milk; 她确实已经把几乎所有的牛奶都倒了出来；

and she had peeped⁴ in afterwards and seen the bottom of the pitcher as she set it down on the table. 并且当他把它放在桌子上时，她还偷偷地看了看里面，已经见底了。

1 plentiful   

adj.富裕的，丰富的

参考例句：

• Their family has a plentiful harvest this year.他们家今年又丰收了。
• Rainfall is plentiful in the area.这个地区雨量充足。

2 pitcher   

n.(有嘴和柄的)大水罐；(棒球)投手

参考例句：

• He poured the milk out of the pitcher.他从大罐中倒出牛奶。
• Any pitcher is liable to crack during a tight game.任何投手在紧张的比赛中都可能会失常。

3 scarcely   

adv.几乎不，简直没有，勉强

参考例句：

• He found the dullness of his work scarcely bearable.他觉得他的工作枯燥乏味，简直无法忍受。
• She scarcely earns enough money to make ends meet.她几乎挣不到足够的钱以维持开支。

4 peeped   

窥视( peep的过去式和过去分词 )； 偷看； 隐现； 慢慢露出

参考例句：

• The moon finally peeped out from behind the clouds. 月亮终于从云层后面露了出来。
• At the examination he peeped at his neighbour's paper. 他考试时偷看了他邻座的卷子。