【英语时差8,16】你能辨别珍珠的真假吗？（上）

 In your hand is a string of pearls. They look real enough, reflecting the light with a magnificent luster¹, but how can you be sure they aren’t fakes? Simply rub a pearl lightly along your front teeth. If it feels rough or gritty, it’s real. If it feels smooth, it’s fake. How come? Real pearls are created by a number of fresh- and salt-water members of the bivalve mollusk² class, although the pearls used for jewelry³ generally come from pearl oysters⁵. Pearls begin as an irritating particle inside an oyster⁴’s shell, a grain of sand perhaps. The oyster coats this irritant with a substance called “nacre” (pronounced NAY-ker), the same iridescent⁶ material that lines the inside of its shell. Inside a shell, this nacre coating is relatively⁷ thin, and it’s called “mother-of-pearl.” Once the oyster starts wrapping this mother of pearl around an irritant though, it doesn’t know when to stop. It adds layer after layer of nacre, until a full-sized pearl is formed.

1 luster   

n.光辉；光泽，光亮；荣誉

参考例句：

• His great books have added luster to the university where he teaches.他的巨著给他任教的大学增了光。
• Mercerization enhances dyeability and luster of cotton materials.丝光处理扩大棉纤维的染色能力，增加纤维的光泽。

2 mollusk   

n.软体动物

参考例句：

• I swear I have never seen such a mollusk with thorns all over its body.我敢发誓我从来没有见过这种全身长满棘刺的软体动物。
• The colour varies with the mollusk and its environment.颜色因母体及其环境的不同而异。

3 jewelry   

n.（jewllery）（总称）珠宝

参考例句：

• The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
• Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。

4 oyster   

n.牡蛎；沉默寡言的人

参考例句：

• I enjoy eating oyster; it's really delicious.我喜欢吃牡蛎，它味道真美。
• I find I fairly like eating when he finally persuades me to taste the oyster.当他最后说服我尝尝牡蛎时，我发现我相当喜欢吃。

5 oysters   

牡蛎( oyster的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We don't have oysters tonight, but the crayfish are very good. 我们今晚没有牡蛎供应。但小龙虾是非常好。
• She carried a piping hot grill of oysters and bacon. 她端出一盘滚烫的烤牡蛎和咸肉。

6 iridescent   

adj.彩虹色的，闪色的

参考例句：

• The iridescent bubbles were beautiful.这些闪着彩虹般颜色的大气泡很美。
• Male peacocks display their iridescent feathers for prospective female mates.雄性孔雀为了吸引雌性伴侣而展现了他们彩虹色的羽毛。

7 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。