Lesson 54 Sticky fingers粘糊的手指
First listen and then answer the question.听录音，然后回答以下问题。
What two interruptions did the writer have?
After breakfast, I sent the children to school and then I went to the shops. It was still early when I returned home. The children were at school, my husband was at work and the house was quiet. So I decided to make some meat pies. In a short time I was busy mixing butter and flour and my hands were soon covered with sticky pastry. At exactly that moment, the telephone rang. Nothing could have been more annoying. I picked up the receiver between two sticky fingers and was dismayed when I recognized the voice of Helen Bates. It took me ten minutes to persuade her to ring back later. At last I hung up the receiver. What a mess! There was pastry on my fingers, on the telephone, and on the doorknobs. I had no sooner got back to the kitchen than the doorbell rang loud enough to wake the dead. This time it was the postman and he wanted me to sign for a registered letter!
参考译文
早饭后，我送孩子们上学，然后就去了商店。我回到家时，时间还早。孩子们在上学，我丈夫在上班，家里清静得很。于是我决定做些肉馅饼。不一会儿我就忙着调 拌起了黄油和面粉，很快我的手上就沾满了粘粘的面糊。恰恰在此时，电话铃响了。没有什么能比这更烦人了。我用两个沾满面糊的手指捏起了话筒。当听出是海 伦.贝茨的声音时，非常丧气。我用了10分钟的时间才说服她过会儿再来电话。我终于挂上了话筒。真是糟糕透了！我的手指上、电话机上以及门的把手上，都沾 上了面糊。我刚回到厨房，门铃又响了起来，响声足以把死人唤醒。这次是邮递员，他要我签收一封挂号信！
New words and Expressions生词和短语
sticky
adj. 粘的
finger
n. 手指
pie
n. 馅饼
mix
v. 混合，拌和
pastry
n. 面糊
annoying
adj. 恼人的
receiver
n. 电话的话筒
dismay
v. 失望，泄气
recognize
v. 认出，听出
persuade
v. 说服，劝说
mess
n. 乱七八糟
doorknob
n. 门把手
sign
v. 签字
register
v. 挂号邮寄
Lesson 54 自学导读First things first
课文详注 Further notes on the text1．The children were at school, my husband was at work…孩子们在上学，我丈夫在上班……
school和work前都没加冠词，因为不是指具体那个学校或具体干什么工作，只是泛指他们在干什么。
2．at exactly that moment, 恰恰在此时。
exactly用于加强语气，表示“正”、“恰恰”：
That's exactly what I wanted to tell you.
那正是我想要告诉你的。
3．Nothing could have been more annoying.没有什么能比这更烦人了。
用这个句型可以表达许多感情，换一下最后的形容词即可：
Nothing could have been more exciting/ interesting/ embarrassing.
没有什么能比这更激动人心／有趣／令人尴尬的了。
4．It took me ten minutes to persuade her to ring back later. 我用了10分钟的时间才说服她过会儿再来电话。
（1）it为先行主语，代指to persuade引导的不定式短语。
（2）表示说服某人做某事时，可以用persuade+sb.+to do sth.这个结构：
I persuaded him to give up that plan.
我劝他放弃那项计划。也可以用persuade+sb. +into doing sth. 这个结构：
I persuaded him into giving up that plan.
（译文同上）
（3）later可以表示“过后”、“以后”：
Ten minutes later, the bus arrived.
10分钟以后，公共汽车来了。
Please come back later(on).
请过会儿再来。
5．What a mess! 真是糟糕透了！
在口语中，a mess可以用来指“困境”、“窘境”、“一团糟”等含义：
I made a mess of my exam.
我考试考得一团糟。
Make some jam if you want to, but don't make a mess in the kitchen.
你如果愿意就做些果酱，不过别把厨房弄得一团糟。
6．I had no sooner got back to the kitchen than the doorbell rang loud enough to wake the dead.我刚回到厨房，门铃又响了起来，响声足以把死人唤醒。
（1）连词no sooner…than…（刚……就……）用于过去完成时。（cf．第38课语法）
（2）enough作副词用在形容词或副词之后，有“足以……”的含义：
The water in the pool is warm enough (to swim in).
池里的水够暖和的（，可以游泳）。
语法 Grammar in use
a,the, some与any（cf．第6课与第30课语法）
（1）在第6课与第30课的语法中，我们学习了冠词a, the以及some和any的一些基本用法。some和any可用于不可数名词及复数可数名词之前。some通常用于肯定句，any通常用于否定句和疑问句中：
We still have some sugar. We don't need any sugar now.
我们还有一些糖。目前我们不需要糖。
但在期待得到肯定答复的疑问句中也可以用some，而在肯定句中表示“随便哪个”、“任何一个”的含义时也可以用any：
These are the only meat pies I have .Do you want some of them?
我只有这些肉馅饼了。你想要一些吗?
Yes,please.Any meat pies will do.
请给我来一些，任何肉馅饼都行。
（2）有些形容词可以用于the之后（决不能用于 a／an之后），表示作为整体的群体，如the blind（盲人），the deaf（聋子），the living（生者），the dead（死者），the rich（富人），the poor（穷人），the young（年轻人），the old（老人）。这些形容词后要跟复数动词，不可用这些形容词本身来指个体：
The Government always makes sure that the old are cared for.
政府总是确保老人能得到照顾。
This is a special school for the deaf.
这是一所特为聋人办的学校。
如果想指单数个体，则可以说：
Sam is a young man with a lot of money.
萨姆是一个非常有钱的年轻人。
Sam is old now.
萨姆现在老了。
（3）当下列名词指其“主要目的”，即与其相关的动作时，要用零冠词（即名词前没有冠词），如He's in bed（他睡了）中bed是为了睡觉用的）。这类名词有bed, church, class, college（学院），hospital, market, prison（监狱），school, sea, university（大学），work（工作地点）。
I sent the children to school.
我送孩子们上学。
The children were at school and my husband was at work.
孩子们在上学，我丈夫在上班。
但在特指的东西面前要用the：
Your bag is under the bed.
你的提包在床底下。
There's a meeting at the school at 8 o'clock.
8点钟学校有一个会。
泛指同类事物中的任何一个时则用a：
I'm going to the airport.
我要去机场。〔周围可能就这一个机场)
Oh,can I come with you?I've never been to an airport before.
噢，我能与你一起去吗?我以前从来没有去过任何机场。
cinema与theatre的用法与上面提到的名词的用法有区别。
在表示去看电影／戏时要用go to the cinema／theatre：
I went to the theatre last night.
我昨晚看戏去了。
（4）在形容词／副词的最高级前面要用the，但当most表示“大多数”时它前面则不加the：
Joe Sanders has the most beautiful garden in our town.
乔·桑德斯拥有我们镇上最漂亮的花园。
Most young men have to work hard.
大多数年轻人得努力工作。
Most buildings in this district belong to the government.
这个地区的大部分建筑属于政府所有。
词汇学习 Word study
1．mix
（1）vt. 使混和，拌和：
I was busy mixing butter and flour.
我忙着搅和黄油和面粉。
You can mix some salt into the flour.
你可以在面粉里和入一些盐。
（2）vi. 交往，相处：
I'm not going to mix with those people.
我不打算和那些人来往。
Mary doesn't mix much.
玛丽不太和人交往。
2．recognize vt.
（1）辨出，认出，认识：
I recognized the voice of Helen Bates.
我听出是海伦·贝茨的声音。
Can you recognize the man beside Ian?
你能认出伊恩旁边的这个人吗？
（2）承认，确认，认可：
It is recognized that Jane is the most intelligent girl among us.
大家承认简是我们当中最聪明的女孩。
He recognized Dan as one of his best firends.
他承认丹是他最好的朋友之一。
Lesson 54 课后练习和答案Exercises and Answer
