读《新概念英语》| Do it yourself（三）
第46篇精读
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新概念精读系列分享设置每日小打卡共学圈（加入方式见文末）
语篇导读：这是一篇夹叙夹议的记叙文。随着出版了海量教人自己动手的书籍，加上商店提供的咨询和零件，人们对自己动手的热情高涨，但并非人人都是能工巧匠。妻子常常以为丈夫聪明能干，而丈夫拉不下面子，误以为自己能行。文章举例论证，“我”折腾了很久都没有修好割草机，最后野草丛生，割草机也生锈了。 今天精读第46篇文章第3段
①Last spring my wife suggested that I call in a man to look at our lawn mower.②It had broken down the previous summer, and though I promised to repair it, I had never got round to it.③I would not hear of the suggestion and said that I would fix it myself.④One Saturday afternoon, I hauled the machine into the garden and had a close look at it.⑤As far as I could see, it needed only a minor adjustment: a turn of a screw here, a little tightening up there, a drop of oil and it would be as good as new.⑥Inevitably the repair job was not quite so simple.⑦The mower firmly refused to mow, so I decided to dismantle it.⑧The garden was soon littered with chunks of metal which had once made up a lawn mower.⑨But I was extremely pleased with myself.⑩I had traced the cause of the trouble.⑪One of links in the chain that drives the wheels had snapped. ⑫After buying a new chain I was faced with the insurmountable task of putting the confusing jigsaw puzzletogether again.⑬I was not surprised to find that the machine still refused to work after I had reassembled it, for the simple reason that I was left with several curiously shaped bits of metal which did not seem to fit anywhere.⑭I gave up in despair. The weeks passed and the grass grew.⑮When my wife nagged me to do something about it, I told her that either I would have to buy a new mower or let the grass grow.⑯Needless to say our house is now surrounded by a jungle.⑰Buried somewhere in deep grass there is a rusting lawn mower which I have promised to repair one day.
语篇导读：本段主要举例论证，讲述作者答应妻子修好割草机，但是经过一番折腾后还是没能成功修好的例子。①②③妻子建议作者找师傅过来修理割草机，但是作者承诺自己会修好；④⑤⑥⑦⑧⑨⑩⑪⑫⑬⑭作者修理割草机的过程；⑮⑯⑰妻子唠叨，最后杂草丛生，割草机也生锈了。
词汇小学堂
- rust /rʌst/：When a metal object rusts, it becomes covered in rust and often loses its strength. 生锈，如：Copper nails are better than iron nails because the iron rusts.本文用的是现在分词rusting作形容词
- call in：把……请来，把……找来，如：Call in a doctor at once.立即请位医生来。
- lawn mower：割草机
- break down：If a machine or a vehicle breaks down, it stops working. (机器、车辆等) 出故障，如：Their car broke down. 他们的车抛锚了。
- get round to…：腾出时间来做，抽出时间（做……）：I've never got round to calling her in the past week. 在过去一周中我没找出时间给她打电话。
- I would not hear…：本句中的would表示意愿，即“我不愿意听……”
- and said that I would fix it myself：本句中的and用来表示结果，“我”不愿意听取意见，以自己可以搞定回应妻子的建议。
- adjustment /ə'dʒʌs(t)m(ə)nt/：a small change made to sth in order to correct or improve it 调整；调节，如：I've made a few adjustments to the design. 我已对设计作了几处调整。文中的“a turn of…”作adjustment的同位语，说明调整的内容。
- screw /skruː/：a thin pointed piece of metal that you push and turn in order to fasten pieces of metal or wood together螺丝，螺（丝）钉
- as good as：如同……一样好，表示同级之间的比较
- dismantle /dɪs'mænt(ə)l/：to take a machine or piece of equipment apart so that it is in separate pieces拆开，拆卸〔机器或设备〕，如：Chris dismantled the bike in five minutes. 克里斯五分钟内就把自行车拆掉了。
- The mower firmly refused to mow：本句用物体mower作refuse的主语，是拟人用法，赋予文字生命力。
- litter…with…:用……胡乱堆满……，如：The beach is littered with cigarette and beer cans.沙滩上丢满了香烟盒和啤酒罐。
- chunk/tʃʌŋk/：Chunksof something are thick, solid pieces of it. 厚块，如：They had to be careful of floating chunks of ice. 他们不得不小心漂浮着的厚冰块。
- snap/snæp/:~ (sth) (off) to break sth suddenly with a sharp noise; to be broken in this way （使喀嚓）断裂，绷断，如：The wind had snapped the tree in two. 风把树喀嚓一声刮断了。
- insurmountable /,ɪnsə'maʊntəb(ə)l/：( of difficulties, problems, etc. 困难、问题等 ) that cannot be dealt with successfully无法克服的；难以解决的；不可逾越的，如：The crisis doesn't seem like an insurmountable problem. 这场危机不像是无法克服的。
- jigsaw puzzle：拼板玩具
- nag /næg/：唠叨不休，搭配：nag sb. to do sth.=nag sb. into(doing) sth.唠唠叨叨责怪/数落某人或叫其做某事，如：My husband is a nagger . He is nagging all the time. 我丈夫是个爱唠叨的家伙，他一天到晚数落个不停。
语法小学堂
suggest后面的宾语从句用法
- 表示提出建议，suggest意为“建议”，后面的从句要用虚拟语气，即“should+动词原形”，should常常会被省略， 如本文例子：Last spring my wife suggested that I call in a man to look at our lawn mower. 今年春天，妻子让我请人检查一下我家的割草机。
- 表示陈述事实，suggest意为“暗示”、“表明”等等，后面的从句按正常时态，如：His smile suggested that he was happy.他的微笑表明他乐开了花。
长难句小学堂
Iwas not surprised to find that the machinestill refused to work after I hadreassembled it, for the simple reason that I was left with several curiously shaped bitsof metal which did not seem to fit anywhere.
- tofind that…:本句that引导宾语从句；after I had reassembled it：after是从属连词，引导时间状语从句；thesimple reason that…：that引导同位语从句，解释说明reason的内容；bitsof metal which…：which作关系代词，引导定语从句。
- leave…with…：把……托付/交给/留给……
summarywriting
用不多于80个单词描述作者如何费力去修理割草机（摘自新概念英语教师用书新版3）
The author looked at his machine and reckoned that only a minor adjustment was needed. After adjusting a few things, the mower still refused to work, so he dismantled it and traced the cause of the trouble: there was a broken link in the drive chain. After buying a new chain and ressembling the mower, it still did not work. However, he was not really surprised because there were bits left that did not fit anywhere so he gave up.
参考译文
今年春天，妻子让我请人检查一下我家的割草机。那台割草机去年夏天就坏了，尽管我答应修，但一直没抽出时间，我不愿听妻子的建议，说我自己会修。一个星期六的下午，我把割草机拉到了花园里，仔细检查了一番。在我看来，只需稍加调整即可。这儿紧紧螺丝，那儿固定一下，再加几滴油，就会像新的一样了。事实上，修理工作远不是那么简单。修完后割草机还是纹丝不动。于是，我决定把它拆开。一会儿工夫，割草机便被拆成一个个金属零件，乱七八糟地堆在花园里。但我却非常高兴，因为我找到了毛病所在。驱动轮子的链条断了一节。我买来一根新链条后，面临的就是如何把这些令人眼花缭乱的拼板重新组装起来。等我装完后，那台割草机仍然一动不动，对此我倒并不感到吃惊。原因很简单，因为还剩下几个形状奇特的零件似乎哪里也装不上去。我无可奈何，只好罢休。几个星期过去了，草长了起来。妻子喋喋不休让我想点办法。我告诉她，要么买一台新割草机，要么让草长下去。不用说，我家现在已被丛林包围。深草丛中的某个地方有一台正在生锈的割草机，那就是我曾答应某日要修理的割草机。
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