Vocabulary

● animated a. lively or active 活跃的；有活力的

e.g.

1. This question set off an animated discussion.

这个问题引起了热烈讨论。

2. It was strange to see these Prague streets, usually so animated, now completely empty and deserted. 看到通常很有生气的布拉格的街道现在变得空无一人，真是很怪。

● sniff

1) vi. (~ at) criticize sth., or suggest it is not good enough for you 对……嗤之以鼻；轻蔑地批评

e.g.

1. At first he sniffed at her foreign ways. 起初他对她的外国作风嗤之以鼻。

2. Her achievement is not to be sniffed at. 不可小看她的成绩。

2) vt. & vi breathe in noisily through your nose, for example because you have been crying以鼻吸气；嗅；闻

e.g. When Jenney had stopped crying she sniffed and dried her eyes.

珍妮停止了哭泣，吸了吸鼻子，擦干了眼泪。

● decidedly ad.

1) in a way that is impossible to doubt and easy to see 确实无疑地；显然

e.g.

1. He made all the other players on the field look decidedly ordinary.

他使场上所有其他运动员都黯然失色。

2. He looked decidedly uncomfortable.

他看上去确实很不舒服。

2) in a way that shows you are very certain about sth. 坚决地；果断地

e.g. “I think we should do it,” said Peter, decidedly.

“我想我们应该做，”彼得果断地说。

● motive n. [C] the reason that you do sth.; used in a negative way for showing that someone’s real reasons for doing sth. are not the ones that they tell other people 缘由；动机

e.g.

1. Greed was his only motive for stealing. 贪婪是他盗窃的唯一动机。

2. The police could not find a motive for the murder. 警察不能找到谋杀的动机。

3. How do you explain the motives behind his actions? 你怎么解释他的行为是出于什么动机？

Phrases

● to the effect that: used for showing that you are giving a general idea of what someone said instead of their actual words 大意是；大致是

e.g.

1. He made some comments to the effect that my essay was a little light on analysis.

他作了一些评论，大意是我的文章分析不够深刻。

2. He makes a declaration to the effect that he will soon resign.

他发表一项声明，大意是他很快就要辞职。