1、Lesson Seven,The Greatest Invention,About the author,Lord Dunsany, (1878-1957), is one of the most acclaimed names in the field of fantastic fiction, held in high esteem by many of todays major writers. A man of broad ability, in the field of writing alone the Writer Lords work ranged from popular p

2、lays through fantasy and science fiction,Words and expressions,appeal: make a serious and urgent request to sb for sth E.g. He earnestly ed to his friends for help. for mercy They are ing for funds to build a new hospital.,aspiration: an earnest desire,E.g. have s for / after fame His entire life, w

3、ith its small triumphs and disasters, its boundless hopes and s for the future She had / cherished s to become an actress.,aspire: desire and seek to attain,E.g. after truth / knowledge It is no wonder that human beings after a standard pronunciation which will reduce as far as possible the chances

4、of misunderstanding. He s at the character of a good man. to the leadership of the party,bribe (briber, bribery),n. a sum of money or another reward offered or demanded in order to procure an action or decision in favor of the giver pay / give / offer / accept / take a The judge rejected a from the

5、defendants family. v. offer or give a to The traffic offender d the policeman to overlook the violation.,grip:,V. to take very tight hold of; to take hold of the attention or feelings of E.g. Walking in the dark, my little child ped my hand in fear. Her description gripped my imagination.,Grip n. a

6、firm hold or grasp,His of the rope weakened as he became tired. get / take a on oneself: e.g. I know you are nervous, but you must get a grip on yourself. Youre due to go on stage in five minutes. lose ones at s,in the of sth e.g. The whole country is in the grip of a serious economic recession. com

7、e to / get to grips with sth / sb e.g. The government has yet to get to grips with the problem of homelessness.,idle,E.g. hours lie / stand : if they are used for a month, they must stand idle for eleven. His words were just threats; he cant hurt us. Stop worrying about rumors. away the hours watchi

8、ng TV,plague,E.g. n. A has broken out. The is now prevailing in this city. avoidlike the v. Youve been plaguing me with silly questions.,rival,E.g. n. encounter / defy / defeat / beat / outdo / surpass ones a powerful / formidable / worthy As a book of reference for English students, this dictionary

9、 is without a . In the whole Elizabethan age there is no to Shakespeare as a tragic dramatist. v. The two teams ed each other for the championship.,soothe: bring or restore to a peaceful or tranquil condition; calm; pacify; comfort,The coffee seemed to have d her headache. The nurse d the crying chi

10、ld with sweets.,splendor: great brightness; magnificence; impressive character; magnificent feature,E.g. His bright blue eyes shone with uncommon keenness and . The sun rises with a different in America. The chateau had been built in imitation of Versailles, but all its had long since been lost.,Lan

11、guage points in text,cohesive chains formed by repeated meanings in paragraph 5 to strengthen the connectiveness between sentences: tropicstropical seatropical sunlight decent winetavernoffer him a glass of winea bottle of strange local winewine poured outwatch it go downa certain amount (of wine) h

12、ad gone down,War is no longer a matterintelligence of scientists,Modern wars no longer depend as much on how large an army you have as the wars in the past. Rather, they depend more and more on the application of advanced science and technology.,He thought of war simply as an opportunity foraspirati

13、ons.,cavalry charges, fine uniforms and glory symbolize the ancient style of warfare. just aspirations: just goals, undertakings or causes,let loose a plague,Here it means to launch a germ war that may cause a destructive plague to wipe out a whole nation, as if a monster were released to harm peopl

14、e.,Must we be silentshall speak,Must we? (rhetorical question) be silent: be passive, dont take actions speak: take actions or do sth to make us felt or our voice heard by others; be more active and aggressive,spurred on by a fierce ambition,spur: prick (a horse) with a spur or spurs in order to urg

15、e a faster pace; urge on by the use of spurs; drive on; hasten; impel; stimulate; urge; prompt E.g. Her loving care red his recovery. He red his players to fight harder. The coach red his team to greater efforts. He was red on by poverty to commit the crime.,But nothing would turn him froma man drug

16、ged.,Nothing could divert his attention from the research in which he was engaged. He was so obsessed and enchanted with his newly conceived ideas that he behaved like an intoxicated person.,but for a fancy that came to this mans mind,had it not been for the fancy; if the man had not been gripped by

17、 the ideas that occurred to him later on,I do not work for uswonder,This statement invokes the ultimate meaning of scientific research, whether it ought to aim at the usefulness, the material benefit, and the practical values only or at the satisfaction of desire on the part of the scientists to exp

18、lore the field of the unknown and the beauty thus created.,P182 Ex. 7. 1) alive, living, live,alive: used only as a predicative living: used as a predicative or attributive live: 1) that is alive or living, as opposed to dead; chiefly used as an attributive; 2) (of performance) heard or watched at t

19、he time of its occurrence, seen or heard as it happens, as opposed to recorded on film or tape etc.; or given in front of a public audience, as opposed to in a recording studio etc.,able: suggests ability above the average as revealed in actual performance: proved that she is an able Shakespeare act

20、ress capable: stresses the having of qualities fitting one for work but does not imply outstanding ability: capable of doing simple tasks under supervision competent and qualified imply having the experience or training for adequate performance: a leap that any competent ballet dancer can execute; seek help from a qualified medical professional,examine suggests looking at sth carefully to see if it is healthy or in good order,The water samples were d for traces of pollution. The doctor d the patient with scrupulous care. the quality of the furnitur