Back

Barron词汇 S

Barron词汇 S



3046. saboteur

释义: one who commits sabotage; destroyer of property

例句: Members of the Resistance acted as saboteurs, blowing up train lines to prevent supplies from reaching the Nazi army.



3047. saccharine

释义: cloyingly sweet

例句: She tried to ingratiate herself, speaking sweetly and smiling a saccharine smile.



3048. sacrilegious

释义: desecrating; profane

例句: His stealing of the altar cloth was a very sacrilegious act.



3049. sacrosanct

释义: most sacred; inviolable

例句: The brash insurance salesman invaded the sacrosanct privacy of the office of the president of the company.



3050. sadistic

释义: inclined to cruelty

例句: If we are to improve conditions in this prison, we must first get rid of the sadistic warden.



3051. saga

释义: Scandinavian myth; any legend

例句: This is a saga of the sea and the men who risk their lives on it.



3052. sagacious

释义: keen; shrewd; having insight

例句: He is much too sagacious to be fooled by a trick like that.



3053. sage

释义: person celebrated for wisdom

例句: Hearing tales of a mysterious Master of All Knowledge who lived in the hills of Tibet, Sandy was possessed with a burning desire to consult the legendary sage.



3054. salacious

释义: lascivious; lustful

例句: Chaucer's monk is not pious but salacious, a teller of lewd tales and ribald jests.



3055. salient

释义: prominent

例句: One of the salient features of that newspaper is its excellent editorial page.



3056. saline

释义: salty

例句: The slightly saline taste of this mineral water is pleasant.



3057. sallow

释义: yellowish; sickly in color

例句: We were disturbed by his sallow complexion, which was due to jaundice.



3058. salubrious

释义: healthful

例句: Many people with hay fever move to more salubrious sections of the country during the months of August and September.



3059. salutary

释义: tending to improve; beneficial; wholesome

例句: The punishment had a salutary effect on the boy, as he became a model student.



3060. salvage

释义: rescue from loss

例句: All attempts to salvage the wrecked ship failed.



3061. sanctimonious

释义: displaying ostentatious or hypocritical devoutness

例句: You do not have to be so sanctimonious to prove that you are devout.



3062. sanction

释义: approve; ratify

例句: Nothing will convince me to sanction the engagement of my daughter to such a worthless young man.



3063. sanguinary

释义: bloody

例句: The battle of lwo Jina was unexpectedly sanguinary with many casualties.



3064. sanguine

释义: cheerful; hopeful

例句: Let us not be too sanguine about the outcome; something could go wrong.



3065. sap

释义: diminish; undermine

例句: The element kryptonite had an unhealthy effect on Superman: it sapped his strength.



3066. sarcasm

释义: scornful remarks, stinging rebuke

例句: His feelings were hurt by the sarcasm of his supposed friends.



3067. sardonic

释义: disdainful; sarcastic; cynical

例句: The sardonic humor of nightclub comedians who satirize or ridicule patrons in the audience strikes some people as amusing and others as rude.



3068. sartorial

释义: pertaining to tailors

例句: He was as famous for the sartorial splendor of his attire as he was for his acting.



3069. sate

释义: satisfy to the full; cloy

例句: Its hunger sated, the lion dozed.



3070. satellite

释义: small body revolving around a larger one

例句: During the first few years of the Space Age, hundreds of satellites were launched by Russia and the United States.



3071. satiate

释义: surfeit; satisfy fully

例句: The guests, having eaten until they were satiated, now listened inattentively to the speakers.



3072. satire

释义: form of literature in which irony, sarcasm, and ridicule are employed to attack vice and folly

例句: Gulliver's Travels, which is regarded by many as a tale for children, is actually a bitter satire attacking human folly.



3073. satirical

释义: mocking

例句: The humor of cartoonists Gary Trudeau often is satirical; though the comments of the Doonesbury characters, Trudeau ridicules political corruption and folly.



3074. saturate

释义: soak

例句: Their clothes were saturated by the rain.



3075. saturnine

释义: gloomy

例句: Do not be misled by his saturnine countenance; he is not as gloomy as he looks.



3076. satyr

释义: half-human, half-bestial being in the court of Dionysus, portrayed as wanton and cunning

例句: He was like a satyr in his lustful conduct.



3077. saunter

释义: stroll slowly

例句: As we sauntered through the park, we stopped frequently to admire the spring flowers.



3078. savant

释义: scholar

例句: Our faculty includes many worldfamous savants.



3079. savor

释义: enjoy; have a distinctive flavor, smell, or quality

例句: Relishing his triumph, Costner especially savored the chagrin of the critics who had predicted his failure.



3080. savory

释义: tasty; pleasing, attractive, or agreeable

例句: Julia Child's recipes enable amateur chefs to create savory delicacies for their guests.



3081. scabbard

释义: case for a sword blade; sheath

例句: The drill master told the recruit to wipe the blood from his sword before slipping it back into the scabbard.



3082. scad

释义: a great quantity

例句: Refusing Dave's offer to lend him a shirt, Phil replied, "No, thanks: I've got scads of clothes."



3083. scaffold

释义: temporary platform for workers; bracing framework; platform for execution

例句: Before painting the house, the workers put up a scaffold to allow them to work on the second story.



3084. scale

释义: climb up; ascend

例句: To locate a book on the top shelf of the stacks, Lee had to scale an exceptionally rickety ladder.



3085. scanty

释义: meager; insufficient

例句: Thinking his helping of food was scanty, Oliver Twist asked for more.



3086. scapegoat

释义: someone who bears the blame for others

例句: After the Challenger disaster, NASA searched for scapegoats on whom they could cast the blame.



3087. scavenge

释义: hunt through discarded materials for usable items; search, especially for food

例句: If you need car parts that the dealers no longer stock, try scavenging for odd bits and pieces at the auto wreckers' yards.



3088. scenario

释义: plot outline; screenplay; opera libretto

例句: Scaramouche startled the other actors in the commedia troupe when he suddenly departed from their customary scenario and began to improvise.



3089. schematic

释义: relating to an outline or diagram; using a system of symbols

例句: In working out the solution to an analytical logic question, you may find it helpful to construct a simple schematic diagram illustrating the relationships between the items of information given in the question.



3090. schism

释义: division; split

例句: Let us not widen the schism by further bickering.



3091. scintilla

释义: shred; least bit

例句: You have not produced a scintilla of evidence to support your argument.



3092. scintillate

释义: sparkle; flash

例句: I enjoy her dinner parties because the food is excellent and the conversation scintillates.



3093. scoff

释义: mock; ridicule

例句: He scoffed at dentists until he had his first toothache.



3094. scotch

释义: stamp out; thwart; hinder

例句: Heather tried to scotch the rumor that she had stolen her best friend's fiance.



3095. scourge

释义: lash; whip; severe punishment

例句: They feared the plague and regarded it as a deadly scourge.



3096. scruple

释义: fret about; hesitate, for ethical reasons

例句: Fearing that her husband had become involved in an affair, she did not scruple to read his diary.



3097. scrupulous

释义: conscientious; extremely thorough

例句: I can recommend him for a position of responsibility for I have found him a very scrupulous young man.



3098. scrutinize

释义: examine closely and critically

例句: Searching for flaws, the sergeant scrutinized every detail of the private's uniform.



3099. scuffle

释义: struggle confusedly; move off in a confused hurry.

例句: The twins briefly scuffled, wrestling to see which of them would get the toy. When their big brother yelled, "Let go of my Gameboy!" they scuffled off down the hall.



3100. scurrilous

释义: obscene; indecent

例句: Your scurrilous remarks are especially offensive because they are untrue.



3101. scurry

释义: move briskly

例句: The White Rabbit had to scurry to get to his appointment on time.



3102. scurvy

释义: despicable; contemptible

例句: Peter Pan sneered at Captain Hook and his scurvy crew.



3103. scuttle

释义: sink

例句: The sailors decided to scuttle their vessel rather than surrender it to the enemy.



3104. seamy

释义: sordid; unwholesome

例句: In the Godfather, Michael Corleone is unwilling to expose his wife and children to the seamy side of his life as the son of a Mafia don.



3105. sear

释义: char or burn; brand

例句: Accidentally brushing against the hot grill, she seared her hand badly.



3106. seasoned

释义: experienced

例句: Though pleased with her new batch of rookies, the basketball coach wished she had a few more seasoned players on the team.



3107. secession

释义: withdrawal

例句: The secession of the Southern states provided Lincoln with his first major problem after his inauguration.



3108. seclusion

释义: isolation; solitude

例句: One moment she loved crowds; the next, she sought seclusion.



3109. secrete

释义: hide away or cache; produce and release a substance into an organism.

例句: The pack rat secretes odds and ends in its nest; the pancreas secretes insulin in the islets of Langerhans.



3110. sectarian

释义: narrow-minded; limited in scope

例句: As university chaplain, she sought to address universal religious issues and not limit herself to mere sectarian concerns.



3111. secular

释义: worldly; not pertaining to church matters; temporal

例句: The church leaders decided not interfere in secular matters.



3112. sedate

释义: composed; grave

例句: The parents were worried because they felt their son was too quiet and sedate.



3113. sedentary

释义: requiring sitting

例句: Because he had a sedentary occupation, he decided to visit a gymnasium weekly.



3114. sedition

释义: resistance to authority; insubordination

例句: His words, though not treasonous in themselves, were calculated to arouse thoughts of sedition.



3115. sedulous

释义: diligent

例句: The young woman was so sedulous that she received a commendation for her hard work.



3116. seedy

释义: run-down; decrepit; disreputable

例句: I would rather stay in dormitory lodgings in a decent youth hostel than have a room of my own in a seedy downtown hotel.



3117. seemly

释义: proper; appropriate

例句: Lady Bracknell did not think it was seemly for Ernest to lack a proper family; no baby abandoned on a doorstep could grow up to marry her daughter.



3118. seep

释义: ooze; trickle

例句: During the rainstorm, water seeped through the crack in the basement wall and damaged the floor boards.



3119. seethe

释义: be disturbed; boil

例句: The nation was seething with discontent as the nobleman continued their arrogant ways.



3120. seine

释义: net for catching fish

例句: When the shad run during the spring, you may see fishermen with seines along the banks of our coastal rivers.



3121. seismic

释义: pertaining to earthquakes

例句: The Richter scale is a measurement of seismic disturbances.



3122. semblance

释义: outward appearance; guise

例句: Although this book has a semblance of wisdom and scholarship, a careful examination will reveal many errors and omissions.



3123. seminal

释义: germinal; influencing future developments; related to seed or semen

例句: Although Freud has generally been regarded as a seminal thinker who shaped the course of psychology, his psychoanalytic methods have come under attack recently.



3124. seminary

释义: school for training future ministers; secondary school, especially for young women

例句: Sure of his priestly vocation, Terrence planned to pursue his theological training at the local Roman Catholic seminary.



3125. senility

释义: old age; feeble mindedness of old age

例句: Most of the decisions are being made by the junior members of the company because of the senility of the president.



3126. sensual

释义: devoted to the pleasures of the senses; carnal; voluptous

例句: I cannot understand what caused him to drop his sensual way of life and become so ascetic.



3127. sensuous

释义: pertaining to the physical senses; operating through the senses

例句: He was stimulated by the sights, sounds and smells about him; he was enjoying his sensuous experience.



3128. sententious

释义: terse; concise; aphoristic

例句: After reading so many redundant speeches, I find his sententious style particulary pleasing.



3129. sentinel

释义: sentry; lookout

例句: Though camped in enemy territory, Bledsoe ignored the elementary precaution of posting sentinels around the encampment.



3130. septic

释义: putrid; producing putrefaction

例句: The hospital was in such a filthy state that we were afraid that many of the patients would suffer from septic poisoning.



3131. sepulcher

释义: tomb

例句: Annabel Lee was buried in a sepulcher by the sea.



3132. sequester

释义: retire from public life; segregate; seclude

例句: Although he had hoped for a long time to sequester himself in a small community, he never was able to drop his busy round of activities in the city.



3133. sere

释义: parched; dry

例句: After the unseasonably dry winter the Berkeley hills looked dusty and sere.



3134. serendipity

释义: gift for finding valuable or desirable things by accident; accidental good fortune or luck

例句: Many scientific discoveries are a matter of serendipity: Newton was not sitting there thinking about gravity when the apple dropped on his head.



3135. serenity

释义: calmness; placidity

例句: The serenity of the sleepy town was shattered by a tremendous explosion.



3136. serpentine

释义: winding; twisting

例句: The car swerved at every curve in the serpentine road.



3137. serrated

释义: having a sawtoothed edge

例句: The beech tree is one of many plants that have serrated leaves.



3138. servile

释义: slavish; cringing

例句: Constantly fawning on his employer, humble Uriah Heap was a servile creature.



3139. servitude

释义: slavery; compulsory labor

例句: Born a slave, Douglass resented his wife of servitude and plotted to escape to the North.



3140. severance

释义: division; partition; separation

例句: The severance of church and state is a basic principle of our government.



3141. severity

释义: harshness; plainness

例句: The newspapers disapproved of the severity of the sentence.



3142. sextant

释义: navigation tool used to determine a ship's latitude and longitude

例句: Given a clear night, with the aid of his sextant and compass, he could keep the ship safely on course.



3143. shackle

释义: chain; fetter

例句: The criminal's ankles were shackled to prevent his escape.



3144. sham

释义: pretend

例句: He shammed sickness to get out of going to school.



3145. shambles

释义: slaughterhouse; scene of carnage

例句: By the time the police arrived, the room was a shambles.



3146. shard

释义: fragment, generally of pottery

例句: The archaeologist assigned several students the task of reassembling earthenware vessels from the shards he had brought back from the expedition.



3147. sheaf

释义: bundle of stalks of grain; any bundle of things tied together

例句: The lawyer picked up a sheaf of papers as he rose to question the witness.



3148. sheathe

释义: place into a case

例句: As soon as he recognized the approaching men, he sheathed his dagger and hailed them as friends.



3149. sherbet

释义: flavored dessert ice

例句: I prefer raspberry sherbet to ice cream since it is less fattening.



3150. shimmer

释义: glimmer intermittently

例句: The moonlight shimmered on the water as the moon broke through the clouds for a moment.



3151. shirk

释义: avoid (responsibility, work, etc.); malinger

例句: Brian has a strong sense of duty; he would never shirk any responsibility.



3152. shoddy

释义: sham; not genuine; inferior

例句: You will never get the public to buy such shoddy material.



3153. shrew

释义: scolding woman

例句: No one wanted to marry Shakespeare's Kate because she was a shrew.



3154. shrewd

释义: clever; astute

例句: A shrewd investor, he took clever advantage of the fluctuations of the stock market.



3155. shun

释义: keep away from

例句: Cherishing his solitude, the recluse shunned the company of other human beings.



3156. shunt

释义: turn aside; divert; sidetrack

例句: If the switchman failed to shunt the Silver Streak onto a side track, the train would plow right into Union Station.



3157. shyster

释义: lawyer using questionable methods.

例句: On L.A. Law, respectable attorney Brackman was horrified to learn that his newly discovered half brother was a cheap shyster.



3158. sibling

释义: brother or sister

例句: We may not enjoy being siblings, but we cannot forget that we still belong to the same family.



3159. sibylline

释义: prophetic; oracular

例句: Until their destruction by fire in 83 B.C., the sibylline books were often consulted by the Romans.



3160. sidereal

释义: relating to the stars

例句: Although hampered by optical and mechanical flaws, the orbiting Hubble space telescope has relayed extraordinary images of distant sidereal bodies.



3161. silt

释义: sediment deposited by running water

例句: The harbor channel must be dredged annually to remove the silt.



3162. simian

释义: monkeylike

例句: Lemurs are nocturnal mammals and have many simian characteristics, although they are less intelligent than monkeys.



3163. simile

释义: comparison of one thing with another, using the word like or as

例句: "My love is like a red, red rose" is a simile.



3164. simper

释义: smirk; smile affectedly

例句: Complimented on her appearance, Stella self-consciously simpered.



3165. simplistic

释义: oversimplified

例句: Though Jack's solution dealt adequately with one aspect of the problem, it was simplistic in failing to consider various complicating factors that might arise.



3166. simulate

释义: feign

例句: He simulated insanity in order to avoid punishment for his crime.



3167. sinecure

释义: well-paid position with little responsibility

例句: My job is no sinecure; I work long hours and have much responsibility.



3168. sinewy

释义: tough; strong and firm

例句: The steak was too sinewy to chew



3169. singular

释义: unique; extraordinary; odd

例句: Though the young man tried to understand Father William's singular behavior, he still found it odd that the old man incessantly stood on his head.



3170. sinister

释义: evil

例句: We must defeat the sinister forces that seek our downfall.



3171. sinuous

释义: winding; bending in and out; not morally honest

例句: The snake moved in a sinuous manner.



3172. skeptic

释义: doubter; person who suspends judgment until he has examined the evidence supporting a point of view.

例句: In this matter, I am a skeptic; I want proof.



3173. skiff

释义: small, light sailboat or rowboat

例句: Tom dreamed of owning an ocean-going yacht but had to settle for a skiff he could sail in the bay.



3174. skimp

释义: provide scantily; live very economically

例句: They were forced to skimp on necessities in order to make their limited supplies last the winter.



3175. skinflint

释义: miser

例句: The old skinflint refused to give her a raise.



3176. skirmish

释义: minor fight

例句: Custer's troops expected they might run into a skirmish or two on maneuvers; they did not expect to face a major battle.



3177. skittish

释义: lively; frisky

例句: She is as skittish as a kitten playing with a piece of string.



3178. skulduggery

释义: dishonest behavior

例句: The investigation into municipal corruption turned up new instances of skulduggery daily.



3179. skulk

释义: move furtively and secretly

例句: He skulked through the less fashionable sections of the city in order to avoid meeting any of his former friends.



3180. slacken

释义: slow up; loosen

例句: As they passed the finish line, the runners slackened their pace.



3181. slag

释义: residue from smelting metal; dross; waste matter

例句: The blast furnace had a special opening at the bottom to allow the workers to remove the worthless slag.



3182. slake

释义: quench; sate

例句: When we reached the oasis, we were able to slake our thirst.



3183. slander

释义: defamation; utterance of false and malicious statements

例句: Unless you can prove your allegations, your remarks constitute slander.



3184. slapdash

释义: haphazard; careless; sloppy

例句: From the number of typos and misspellings I've found on it, it's clear that Mario proofread the report in a remarkably slapdash fashion.



3185. sleazy

释义: flimsy; unsubstantial

例句: This is a sleazy fabric; it will not wear well.



3186. sleeper

释义: something originally of little value or importance that in time becomes very valuable

例句: Unnoticed by the critics at its publication, the eventual Pulitzer Prize winner was a classic sleeper.



3187. sleight

释义: dexterity

例句: The magician amazed the audience with his sleight of hand.



3188. slight

释义: insult to one's dignity; snub

例句: Hypersensitive and ready to take offense at any discourtesy, Bertha was always on the lookout for real or imaginary slights.



3189. slither

释义: slip or slide

例句: During the recent ice storm, many people slithered down this hill as they walked to the station.



3190. sloth

释义: laziness

例句: Such sloth in a young person is deplorable; go to work!



3191. sloth

释义: slow-moving tree-dwelling mammal

例句: Note how well the somewhat greenish coat of the sloth enables it to blend in with its arboreal surroundings.



3192. slough

释义: cast off

例句: Each spring, the snake sloughs off its skin.



3193. slovenly

释义: untidy; slipshod

例句: Such slovenly work habits will never produce good products.



3194. sluggard

释义: lazy person

例句: "You are a sluggard, a drone, a parasite," the angry father shouted at his lazy son.



3195. sluggish

释义: slow; lazy; lethargic

例句: After two nights without sleep, she felt sluggish and incapable of exertion.



3196. sluice

释义: artificial channel for directing or controlling the flow of water

例句: In times of drought, this sluice enables farmers to obtain water for irrigation.



3197. slur

释义: insult to one's character or reputation; slander

例句: Polls revealed that the front-runner's standing had been damaged by the slurs and innuendoes circulated by his opponent's staff.



3198. smattering

释义: slight knowledge

例句: I don't know whether it is better to be ignorant of a subject or to have a mere smattering of information about it.



3199. smirk

释义: conceited smile

例句: Wipe that smirk off your face!



3200. smolder

释义: burn without flame; be liable to break out at any moment

例句: The rags smoldered for hours before they burst into flame.



3201. snicker

释义: half-stifled laugh

例句: The boy could not suppress a snicker when the teacher sat on the tack.



3202. snivel

释义: run at the nose; snuffle; whine

例句: Don't you come sniveling to me complaining about your big brother.



3203. sobriety

释义: moderation (especially regarding indulgence in alcohol); seriousness

例句: Neither drunkards nor comics are noted for sobriety.



3204. sodden

释义: soaked; dull, as if from drink

例句: He set his sodden overcoat near the radiator to dry.



3205. sojourn

释义: temporary stay

例句: After his sojourn in Florida, he began to long for the colder climate of his native New England home.



3206. solace

释义: comfort in trouble

例句: I hope you will find solace in the thought that all of us share your loss.



3207. solder

释义: repair or make whole by using a metal alloy

例句: The plumber fixed the leak in the pipes by soldering a couple of joints from which water had been oozing.



3208. solecism

释义: construction that is flagrantly incorrect grammatically

例句: I must give this paper a failing mark because it contains many solecisms.



3209. solemnity

释义: seriousness; gravity

例句: The minister was concerned that nothing should disturb the solemnity of the marriage service.



3210. solicit

释义: request earnestly; seek

例句: Knowing she needed to have a solid majority for the budget to pass, the mayor telephoned all the members of the city council to solicit their votes.



3211. solicitous

释义: worried, concerned

例句: The employer was very solicitous about the health of her employees as replacements were difficult to get.



3212. soliloquy

释义: talking to oneself

例句: The soliloquy is a device used by the dramatist to reveal a character's innermost thoughts and emotions.



3213. solstice

释义: point at which the sun is farthest from the equator

例句: The winter solstice usually occurs on December 21.



3214. solvent

释义: able to pay all debts

例句: By dint of very frugal living, he was finally able to become solvent and avoid bankruptcy proceedings.



3215. somatic

释义: pertaining to the body; physical

例句: Why do you ignore the spiritual aspects and emphasize only the corporeal and the somatic ones?



3216. somber

释义: gloomy; depressing

例句: From the doctor's grim expression, I could tell he had somber news.



3217. somnambulist

释义: sleepwalker

例句: The most famous somnambulist in literature is Lady Macbeth; her monologue in the sleepwalking scene is one of the highlights of Shakespeare's play.



3218. somnolent

释义: half asleep

例句: The heavy meal and the overheated room made us all somnolent and indifferent to the speaker.



3219. sonorous

释义: resonant

例句: His sonorous voice resounded through the hall.



3220. sophist

释义: teacher of philosophy; quibbler; employer of fallacious reasoning

例句: You are using all the devices of a sophist in trying to prove your case; your argument is specious.



3221. sophistication

释义: artificiality; unnaturalness; act of employing sophistry in reasoning

例句: Sophistication is an acquired characteristic, found more frequently among city dwellers than among residents of rural areas.



3222. sophistry

释义: seemingly plausible but fallacious reasoning

例句: Instead of advancing valid arguments, he tried to overwhelm his audience with a flood of sophistries.



3223. sophomoric

释义: immature; shallow

例句: Your sophomoric remarks are a sign of your youth and indicate that you have not given much thought to the problem.



3224. soporific

释义: sleep producing

例句: I do not need a sedative when I listen to one of his soporific speeches.



3225. sordid

释义: filthy; base; vile

例句: The social worker was angered by the sordid housing provided for the homeless.



3226. spangle

释义: small metallic piece sewn to clothing for ornamentation

例句: The thousands of spangles on her dress sparkled in the glare of the stage lights.



3227. spartan

释义: lacking luxury and comfort; sternly disciplined

例句: Looking over the bare, unheated room with its hard cot, he wondered what he was doing in such spartan quarters. Only his spartan sense of duty kept him at his post.



3228. spasmodic

释义: fitful; periodic

例句: The spasmodic coughing in the auditorium annoyed the performers.



3229. spat

释义: squabble; minor dispute

例句: What had started out as a mere spat escalated into a full-blown argument.



3230. spate

释义: sudden flood

例句: I am worried about the possibility of a spate if the rains do not diminish soon.



3231. spatial

释义: relating to space

例句: It is difficult to visualize the spatial extent of our universe.



3232. spatula

释义: broad-bladed instrument used for spreading or mixing

例句: The manufacturers of this frying pan recommended the use of a rubber spatula to avoid scratching the specially treated surface.



3233. spawn

释义: lay eggs

例句: Fish ladders had to be built in the dams to assist the salmon returning to spawn in their native streams.



3234. specious

释义: seemingly reasonable but incorrect

例句: Let us not be misled by such specious arguments.



3235. spectral

释义: ghostly

例句: We were frightened by the spectral glow that filled the room.



3236. spectrum

释义: colored band produced when a beam of light passes through a prism

例句: The visible portion of the spectrum includes red at one end and violet at the other.



3237. spendthrift

释义: someone who wastes money

例句: Easy access to credit encourages people to turn into spendthrifts who shop till they drop.



3238. sphinx-like

释义: enigmatic; mysterious

例句: The Mona Lisa's sphinx-like expression has puzzled art lovers for centuries.



3239. splice

释义: fasten together; unite

例句: Before you splice two strips of tape together, be sure to line them up evenly.



3240. spontaneity

释义: impulsiveness; absence of premeditation

例句: What I liked best about Dale's parties was their spontaneity: a couple of friends would drop by, someone would pull out a fiddle or guitar, and before you knew it the party would be in full swing.



3241. spoonerism

释义: accidental transposition of sounds in sucessive words

例句: When the radio announcer introduced the President as Hoobert Herver, he was guilty of spoonerism.



3242. sporadic

释义: occurring irregularly

例句: Although there are still sporadic outbursts of shooting in the streets, the rebellion is essentially over.



3243. sportive

释义: playful

例句: Such a sportive attitude is surprising in a person as serious as you usually are.



3244. spruce

释义: neat and trim

例句: Every button buttoned, tie firmly in place, young Alex Keaton looked spruce and tidy for his job interview at the bank.



3245. spry

释义: vigorously active; nimble

例句: She was eighty years old, yet still spry and alert.



3246. spurious

释义: false; counterfeit; forged; illogical

例句: The hero of Jonathan Gash's mystery novels is an antique dealer who gives the reader advice on how to tell spurious antiques from the real things.



3247. spurn

释义: reject; scorn

例句: The heroine spurned the villain's advances.



3248. squabble

释义: minor quarrel; bickering

例句: Children invariably get involved in petty squabbles; wise parents know when to interfere and when to let the children work things out on their own.



3249. squalid

释义: dirty; neglected; poor

例句: It is easy to see how crime can breed in such a squalid neighborhood.



3250. squander

释义: waste

例句: The prodigal son squandered the family estate.



3251. squat

释义: stocky; short and thick

例句: Tolkien's hobbits are somewhat squat, sturdy little creatures, fond of good ale, good music, and good food.



3252. staccato

释义: played in an abrupt manner; marked by abrupt, sharp sound

例句: His staccato speech reminded one of the sound of a machine gun.



3253. stagnant

释义: motionless; stale; dull

例句: The stagnant water was a breeding ground for disease



3254. staid

释义: sober; sedate

例句: Her conduct during the funeral ceremony was staid and solemn.



3255. stalemate

释义: deadlock

例句: Negotiations between the union and the employers have reached a stalemate; neither side is willing to budge from previously stated positions.



3256. stalwart

释义: strong, brawny; steadfast

例句: His consistent support of the party has proved that he is a stalwart and loyal member.



3257. stamina

释义: strength; staying power

例句: I doubt that she has the stamina to run the full distance of the marathon race.



3258. stanch

释义: check flow of blood

例句: It is imperative that we stanch the gushing wound before we attend to the other injuries.



3259. stanza

释义: division of a poem

例句: Do you know the last stanza of "The Star-Spangled Banner"?



3260. static

释义: unchanging; lacking development

例句: Nothing had changed at home; things were static there



3261. statute

释义: law

例句: We have many statutes in our law books which should be repealed.



3262. statutory

释义: created by statute or legislative action

例句: The judicial courts review and try statutory crimes.



3263. steadfast

释义: loyal; unswerving

例句: Penelope was steadfast in her affections, faithfully waiting for Ulysses to return from his wanderings.



3264. stealth

释义: slyness; sneakiness; secretiveness

例句: Fearing detection by the sentries on duty, the scout inched his way toward the enemy camp with great stealth.



3265. steep

释义: soak; saturate

例句: Be sure to steep the fabric in the dye bath for the full time prescribed.



3266. stellar

释义: pertaining to the stars

例句: He was the stellar attraction of the entire performance.



3267. stem

释义: check the flow

例句: The paramedic used a tourniquet to stem the bleeding from the slashed artery.



3268. stemfrom

释义: arise from

例句: Milton's problems in school stemmed from his poor study habits.



3269. stentorian

释义: extremely loud

例句: The town crier had stentorian voice.



3270. streotyped

释义: oversimplified; lacking individuality; seen as a type

例句: My chief objection to the book is that the characters are stereotyped; they come across as ethnic caricatures, not as real people with individual quirks, fears, and dreams.



3271. stickler

释义: perfectionist; person who insists things be exactly right

例句: The Internal Revenue Service agent was a stickler for accuracy; no approximations or rough estimates would satisfy him.



3272. stifle

释义: suppress; extinguish; inhibit

例句: Halfway through the boring lecture, Laura gave up trying to stifle her yawns.



3273. stigma

释义: token of disgrace; brand

例句: I do not attach any stigma to the fact that you were accused of this crime; the fact that you were acquitted clears you completely.



3274. stilted

释义: bombastic; stiffly pompous

例句: His stilted rhetoric did not impress the college audience; they were immune to bombastic utterances.



3275. stint

释义: be thrifty; set limits

例句: "Spare no expense," the bride's father said, refusing to stint on the wedding arrangements.



3276. stint

释义: supply; allotted amount; assigned portion of work

例句: He performed his daily stint cheerfully and willingly.



3277. stipend

释义: pay for services

例句: There is a nominal stipend for this position.



3278. stipple

释义: paint or draw with dots

例句: Seurat carefully stippled dabs of pure color on the canvas, juxtaposing dots of blue and yellow that the viewer's eye would interpret as green.



3279. stipulate

释义: make express conditions, specify

例句: Before agreeing to reduce American military forces in Europe, the president stipulated that NATO teams be allowed to inspect Soviet bases.



3280. stodgy

释义: stuffy; boringly conservative

例句: For a young person, Winston seems remarkably stodgy: you'd expect someone of his age to have a little more life.



3281. stoic

释义: person who is indifferent to pleasure or pain

例句: The doctor called her patient a stoic because he had borne the pain of the examination without whimpering.



3282. stoke

释义: stir up a fire; feed plentifully

例句: As a Scout, Marisa learned how to light a fire, how to stoke it if it started to die down, and how to extinguish it completely.



3283. stolidity

释义: dullness; impassivenss

例句: The earthquake shattered his usual stolidity; trembling, he crouched on the no longer stable ground.



3284. stratified

释义: divided into classes; arranged into strata

例句: As the economic gap between the rich and the poor increased, Roman society grew increasingly stratified.



3285. stratum

释义: layer of earth's surface; layer of society

例句: Unless we alleviate conditions in the lowest stratum of our society, we may expect grumbling and revolt.



3286. strew

释义: spread randomly; sprinkle; scatter

例句: Preceding the bride to the altar, the flower girl will strew rose petals along the aisle.



3287. striated

释义: marked with parallel bands; grooved

例句: The glacier left many striated rocks.



3288. stricture

释义: critical comments; severe and adverse criticism

例句: His strictures on the author's style are prejudiced and unwarranted.



3289. strident

释义: loud and harsh

例句: She scolded him in a strident voice



3290. stringent

释义: binding; rigid

例句: I think these regulations are too stringent.



3291. strut

释义: pompous walk

例句: His strut as he marched about the parade ground revealed him for what he was: a pompous buffoon.



3292. strut

释义: supporting bar

例句: The engineer calculated that the strut supporting the rafter needed to be reinforced.



3293. studied

释义: unspontaneous; deliberate; thoughtful

例句: Given Jill's previous slights, Jack felt that the omission of his name from the guest list was a studied insult.



3294. stultify

释义: cause to appear or become stupid or inconsistent; frustrate or hinder

例句: His long hours in the blacking factory left young Dickens numb and incurious, as if the menial labor had stultified his mind.



3295. stupefy

释义: make numb; stun; amaze

例句: Disapproving of drugs in general, Laura refused to take sleeping pills or any other medicine that might stupefy her.



3296. stupor

释义: state of apathy; daze; lack of awareness

例句: In his stupor, the addict was unaware of the events taking place around him.



3297. stymie

释义: present an obstacle; stump

例句: The detective was stymied by the contradictory evidence in the robbery investigation.



3298. suavity

释义: urbanity; polish

例句: He is particulary good in roles that require suavity and sophistication.



3299. subaltern

释义: subordinate

例句: The captain treated his subalterns as though they were children rather than commissioned officers.



3300. subjective

释义: occurring or taking place within the mind; unreal

例句: Your analysis is highly subjective; you have permitted your emotions and your opinions to color your thinking.



3301. subjugate

释义: conquer; bring under control

例句: It is not our aim to subjugate our foe; we are interested only in establishing peaceful relations.



3302. sublimate

释义: refine; purify

例句: We must strive to sublimate these desires and emotions into worthwhile activities.



3303. sublime

释义: exalted; noble; uplifting

例句: Mother Teresa has been honored for her sublime deeds.



3304. subliminal

释义: below the threshold

例句: We may not be aware of the subliminal influences that affect our thinking.



3305. submissive

释义: yielding; timid

例句: Crushed by his authoritarian father, Will had no defiance left in him; he was totally submissive in the face of authority.



3306. suborn

释义: persuade to act unlawfully (especially to commit perjury)

例句: In the Godfather, the mobsters used bribery and threats to suborn the witnesses against Don Michael Corleone.



3307. subpoena

释义: writ summoning a witness to appear

例句: The prosecutor's office was ready to serve a subpoena on the reluctant witness.



3308. subsequent

释义: following; later

例句: In subsequent lessons, we shall take up more difficult problems.



3309. subservient

释义: behaving like a slave; servile; obsequious

例句: He was proud and dignified; he refused to be subservient to anyone.



3310. subside

释义: settle down; descend; grow quiet

例句: The doctor assured us that the fever would eventually subside.



3311. subsidiary

释义: subordinate; secondary

例句: This information may be used as subsidiary evidence but is not sufficient by itself to prove your argument.



3312. subsidy

释义: direct financial aid by government, etc.

例句: Without this subsidy, American ship operators would not be able to compete in world markets.



3313. subsistence

释义: existence; means of support; livelihood

例句: In those days of inflated prices, my salary provided mere subsistence.



3314. substantiate

释义: verify; support

例句: I intend to substantiate my statement by producing witnesses.



3315. substantive

释义: essential; pertaining to the substance

例句: Although the delegates were aware of the importance of the problem, they could not agree on the substantive issues.



3316. subsume

释义: include; encompass

例句: Does the general theory of relativity contradict Newtonian physics, or is Newton's law of gravity subsumed into Einstein's larger scheme?



3317. subterfuge

释义: pretense; evasion

例句: As soon as we realized that you had won our support by a subterfuge we withdrew our endorsement of your candidacy.



3318. subtlety

释义: nicety; cunning; guile; delicacy

例句: The subtlety of his remarks was unnoticed by most of his audience.



3319. subversive

释义: tending to overthrow; destructive

例句: At first glance, the notion that Styrofoam cups may actually be more ecologically sound than paper cups strikes most environmentalists as subversive.



3320. succinct

释义: brief; terse; compact

例句: His remarks are always succinct and pointed.



3321. succor

释义: aid; assistance; relief

例句: We shall be ever grateful for the succor our country gave us when we were in need.



3322. succulent

释义: juicy; full of richness

例句: To some people, Florida citrus fruits are more succulent than those from California.



3323. succumb

释义: yield; give in; die

例句: I succumb to temptation whenever it comes my way.



3324. suffragist

释义: advocate of voting rights (for women)

例句: In recognition of her efforts to win the vote for women, Congress authorized coining a silver dollar honoring the suffragist Susan B. Anthony.



3325. suffuse

释义: spread over

例句: A blush suffused her cheeks when we teased her about her love affair.



3326. sully

释义: tarnish; soil

例句: He felt that it was beneath his dignity to sully his hands in such menial labor.



3327. sultry

释义: sweltering

例句: He could not adjust himself to the sultry climate of the tropics.



3328. summation

释义: act of finding the total, summary

例句: In his summation, the lawyer emphasized the testimony given by the two witnesses.



3329. sumptuous

释义: lavish; rich

例句: I cannot recall when I have had such a sumptuous Thanksgiving feast.



3330. sunder

释义: separate; part

例句: Northern and southern Ireland are politically and religiously sundered.



3331. sundry

释义: various; several

例句: My suspicions were aroused when I read sundry items in the newspapers about your behavior.



3332. superannuated

释义: retired or disqualified because of age

例句: The superannuated man was indignant because he felt that he could still perform a good day's work.



3333. supercilious

释义: contemptuous; haughty

例句: I prefer Jill's modesty to Jack's supercilious and arrogant attitude.



3334. supererogatory

释义: superfluous; more than needed or demanded

例句: We have more than enough witnesses to corroborate your statement; to present any more would be supererogatory.



3335. superficial

释义: trivial; shallow

例句: Since your report gave only a superficial analysis of the problem, I cannot give you more than a passing grade.



3336. superfluous

释义: excessive; overabundant, unnecessary

例句: Please try not to include so many superfluous details in your report; just give me the bare facts.



3337. superimpose

释义: place over something else

例句: Your attempt to superimpose another agency in this field will merely increase the bureaucratic nature of our government.



3338. supernumerary

释义: person or thing in excess of what is necessary; extra

例句: His first appearance on the stage was as a supernumerary in a Shakespearean tragedy.



3339. supersede

释义: cause to be set aside; replace

例句: This regulation will supersede all previous rules.



3340. supine

释义: lying on back

例句: The defeated pugilist lay supine on the canvas.



3341. supplant

释义: replace; usurp

例句: Corazon Aquino supplanted Ferdinand Marcos as president of the Philippines.



3342. supple

释义: flexible; pliant

例句: The angler found a supple limb and used it as a fishing rod.



3343. suppliant

释义: entreating; beseeching

例句: He could not resist the dog's suppliant whimpering, and he gave it some food.



3344. supplicate

释义: petition humbly; pray to grant a favor

例句: We supplicate Your Majesty to grant him amnesty.



3345. supposition

释义: hypothesis; surmise

例句: I based my decision to confide in him on the supposition that he would be discreet.



3346. supposititious

释义: assumed; counterfeit; hypothetical

例句: I find no similarity between your supposititious illustration and the problem we are facing.



3347. surfeit

释义: satiate; stuff; indulge to excess in anything

例句: Every Thanksgiving we are surfeited with an overabundance of holiday treats.



3348. surly

释义: rude; cross

例句: Because of his surly attitude, many people avoided his company.



3349. surmise

释义: guess

例句: I surmise that he will be late for this meeting.



3350. surmount

释义: overcome

例句: He had to surmount many obstacles in order to succeed.



3351. surpass

释义: exceed

例句: Her SAT scores surpassed out expectations.



3352. surreptitious

释义: secret

例句: News of their surreptitious meeting gradually leaked out.



3353. surrogate

释义: substitute

例句: For a fatherless child, a male teacher may become a father surrogate.



3354. surveillance

释义: watching; guarding

例句: The FBI kept the house under constant surveillance in the hope of capturing all the criminals at one time.



3355. susceptible

释义: impressionable; easily influenced; having little resistance, as to a disease

例句: He was a very susceptible young man, and so his parents worried that he might fall into bad company.



3356. sustain

释义: experience; support; nourish

例句: He sustained such a severe injury that the doctors feared he would be unable to work to sustain his growing family.



3357. sustenance

释义: means of support, food, nourishment

例句: In the tropics, the natives find sustenance easy to obtain because of all the fruit trees.



3358. suture

释义: stitches sewn to hold the cut edges of a wound or incision; material used in sewing

例句: We will remove the sutures as soon as the wound heals.



3359. swarthy

释义: dark; dusky

例句: Despite the stereotype, not all Italians are swarthy; many are fair and blond.



3360. swathe

释义: wrap around; bandage

例句: When I visited him in the hospital, I found him swathed in bandages.



3361. swelter

释义: be oppressed by heat

例句: I am going to buy an air conditioning unit for my apartment as I do not intend to swelter through another hot and humid summer.



3362. swerve

释义: deviate; turn aside sharply

例句: The car swerved wildly as the driver struggled to regain control of the wheel.



3363. swill

释义: drink greedily

例句: Singing, "Yo, ho, ho, and a bottle of rum," Long John Silver and his fellow pirates swilled their grog.



3364. swindler

释义: cheat

例句: She was gullible and trusting, an easy victim for the first swindler who came along.



3365. sybarite

释义: lover of luxury

例句: Rich people are not always sybarites; some of them have little taste for a life of luxury.



3366. sycophant

释义: servile flatterer

例句: The king enjoyed the servile compliments and attentions of the sycophants in his retinue.



3367. syllogism

释义: logical formula consisting of a major premise, a minor premise and a conclusion; deceptive or specious argument

例句: There must be a fallacy in this syllogism; I cannot accept its conclusion.



3368. sylvan

释义: pertaining to the woods; rustic

例句: His paintings of nymphs in sylvan backgrounds were criticized as oversentimental.



3369. symbiosis

释义: interdependent relationship (between groups, species), often mutually beneficial

例句: Both the crocodile bird and the crocodile derive benefit from their symbiosis; pecking away at food particles embedded in the crocodile's teeth, the bird derives nourishment; the crocodile, meanwhile, derives proper dental hygiene.



3370. symmetry

释义: arrangement of parts so that balance is obtained; congruity

例句: The addition of a second tower will give this edifice the symmetry that it now lacks.



3371. synchronous

释义: similary timed; simultaneous with

例句: We have many examples of scientists in different parts of the world who have made synchronous discoveries.



3372. synoptic

释义: providing a general overview; summary

例句: The professor turned to the latest issue of Dissertation Abstracts for a synoptic account of what was new in the field.



3373. synthesis

释义: combining parts into a whole

例句: Now that we have succeeded in isolating this drug, our next problem is to plan its synthesis in the laboratory.



3374. synthetic

释义: artificial; resulting from synthesis

例句: During the twentieth century, many synthetic products have replaced the natural products.



3375. sedative

释义: calming drug or influence

例句: It is dangerous to drive after taking the sedative; it brings drowsiness.



3376. stygian

释义: literary dark

例句: The stygian room reminded him of an empty space.