英语听力精选进阶版 11248

 

08Aesop's Fables¹  

The Fox and the Grapes

By Tony Payne

One hot day at the end of summer a fox trotted² along the dusty path to a farm, listening out for other creatures and sniffing³ the air, as foxes do. 

It was getting late, and after a long day the sun looked a little red in the face and had dropped out of sight behind a bush. 

It was the time of day that the fox liked best. The farmer’s work was finished. He had taken off his muddy boots and gone inside for tea. The fox only showed himself when the farmer had left his boots outside. Then, if he came running after the fox with his gun - as farmers do - he would first have to sit on the step, put his boots back on again, and the fox would have plenty of time to run away.

The fox is certainly very clever, and handsome too, but no one knows this better than the fox himself. 

He would look at his reflection forhours admiring his beautiful red coat with its snow white bib. He would look at his smart black legs, which matched his sleek⁴ black ears. 

And his sleek black ears matched his shiny black nose, which looked exactly like a small polished pebble⁵. 

But best of all, he thought, was his glorious bushy tail, like a big, soft paintbrush dipped in whitewash⁶.

The farmer locked in the hens at night, and the rabbits and geese, and he shooed the ducks onto their little island in the middle of the duck pond so that the clever fox could not get them. He knew the fox hated swimming. 

But the fox did not only eat chick-ens and rabbits and ducks and geese, though he would put them all on the menu given half a chance. If he couldn’t get into the hen house, and he couldn’t swim to the duck island, and if the geese made a fuss and rattled⁷ their beaks⁸ at him - as geese do - then there was always something else to eat. 

There were slugs and grasshop-pers and mice and worms and frogs and eggs and big meaty bones the farmer put out with the rubbish.

And tonight there was fruit!

The fox looked up at a huge bunch of juicy grapes hanging above his head. He was very thirsty. He could imagine the sweet, delicious juice running down his chin. 

But he couldn’t reach them. He was clever, though, wasn’t he?Everyone said so, and the fox was  used to getting what he wanted – so he would take a run at it, and…jump!

Missed!

He jumped again…And again. He leaped and hopped⁹ and bounced and somersaulted. But the juicy grapes were always just out of reach. 

The fox stopped at last, hot and panting.

'Haaa well!' he said to himself. 

'The grapes don’t look that juicy and I just know they will be as bitter as lemons. Phooey! Who wants  to eat sour grapes! '

And the fox walked slowly along the dusty path back to his den¹⁰ with his nose in the air and his tail between his legs - as hungry, disappointed foxes do.

Sometimes, when we can’t get what we want, we pretend we nev er wanted it anyway.

1 fables   

n.寓言( fable的名词复数 )；神话，传说

参考例句：

• Some of Aesop's Fables are satires. 《伊索寓言》中有一些是讽刺作品。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Little Mexican boys also breathe the American fables. 墨西哥族的小孩子对美国神话也都耳濡目染。 来自辞典例句

2 trotted   

小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走

参考例句：

• She trotted her pony around the field. 她骑着小马绕场慢跑。
• Anne trotted obediently beside her mother. 安妮听话地跟在妈妈身边走。

3 sniffing   

n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；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：

• We all had colds and couldn't stop sniffing and sneezing. 我们都感冒了，一个劲地抽鼻子，打喷嚏。
• They all had colds and were sniffing and sneezing. 他们都伤风了，呼呼喘气而且打喷嚏。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

4 sleek   

adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢

参考例句：

• Women preferred sleek,shiny hair with little decoration.女士们更喜欢略加修饰的光滑闪亮型秀发。
• The horse's coat was sleek and glossy.这匹马全身润泽有光。

5 pebble   

n.卵石，小圆石

参考例句：

• The bird mistook the pebble for egg and tried to hatch it.这只鸟错把卵石当蛋，想去孵它。
• The pebble made a ripple on the surface of the lake.石子在湖面上激起一个涟漪。

6 whitewash   

v.粉刷，掩饰；n.石灰水，粉刷，掩饰

参考例句：

• They tried hard to whitewash themselves.他们力图粉饰自己。
• What he said was a load of whitewash.他所说的是一大堆粉饰之词。

7 rattled   

慌乱的，恼火的

参考例句：

• The truck jolted and rattled over the rough ground. 卡车嘎吱嘎吱地在凹凸不平的地面上颠簸而行。
• Every time a bus went past, the windows rattled. 每逢公共汽车经过这里，窗户都格格作响。

8 beaks   

n.鸟嘴( beak的名词复数 )；鹰钩嘴；尖鼻子；掌权者

参考例句：

• Baby cockatoos will have black eyes and soft, almost flexible beaks. 雏鸟凤头鹦鹉黑色的眼睛是柔和的，嘴几乎是灵活的。 来自互联网
• Squid beaks are often found in the stomachs of sperm whales. 经常能在抹香鲸的胃里发现鱿鱼的嘴。 来自互联网

9 hopped   

跳上[下]( hop的过去式和过去分词 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花

参考例句：

• He hopped onto a car and wanted to drive to town. 他跳上汽车想开向市区。
• He hopped into a car and drove to town. 他跳进汽车，向市区开去。

10 den   

n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室

参考例句：

• There is a big fox den on the back hill.后山有一个很大的狐狸窝。
• The only way to catch tiger cubs is to go into tiger's den.不入虎穴焉得虎子。