Week 1 day 2: solving the servant problem

目前电子书找到的有两个版本,都是第七版,但是之间有些许的不同,今天的文章两个版本之间选词有些许的不同。视频里阅读的是第二个。两个版本电子书我都上传了:几本英语词汇书 - #9 by Tristan

The worlds of science fiction abound with wonders. Yet modern technology progresses so
rapidly that what is today’s wild dream may be next year’s kitchen appliance. A British scientist
has prognosticated that within ten years every suburban abode will have its own robot servant.
One task this domesticated automaton will not have to contend with will be scouring the oven
because even today the newest ranges can be programmed to reduce their own baked-on grime
to easily disposed of ash.

The worlds of science-fiction abound with wonders. Yet modern technology progresses so
rapidly that what may be today’s wild dream may be next year ’s kitchen appliance. A British
scientist has prognosticated that within ten years every suburban matron will have her own
robot servant. One task this domesticated automaton will not have to contend with will be
scouring the oven because even today the newest ranges can be “programmed” to reduce their
own baked-on grime to easily disposed of ashes.

本篇朗读视频(B站):02.1100 Words you need to know - Week1 Day2 - Solving the servant problem_哔哩哔哩_bilibili
油管:1100 Words you need to know - Week1 Day2 | Solving the servant problem - YouTube

Abound

词性:vi.
音标:[əˈbaʊnd]
释义:充满,盛产

注意,和昨天学习的 replete with 是可以互换的,但是 abound with 在现代英语中使用的较少,诗歌中出现的较多。
When things abound, there are a lot of them. In spring, birds, flowers, rain, and frisbees abound.

This word has to do with an abundance of something. In cities like Buffalo, NY, snow abounds. In very hot weather, insects and suntan lotion abound. Dogs are happy at the park when squirrels abound — meaning there are a lot of squirrels. On the moon, rocks abound, but that’s about it.


Rumors abound in the streets about your powers.


Good sounds abound when the mouth is round.


Snacks abound!


Opportunity abounds here.


Where sin abounds,grace abounds more.

Prognosticate

词性:vi. vt.
音标: [prɑɡˈnɑstɪˌket]
释义:预测,预言

To prognosticate means to predict something or at least hint at what will happen in the future. When a lot of natural disasters start happening close together, you might prognosticate that the world is ending, a prediction that’s actually thousands of years old.

From the Latin prognosticāre, meaning “make a prediction,” the verb prognosticate means to foretell or predict what is coming. While a fortuneteller or palm reader might claim special powers for seeing into the future, you can prognosticate by looking at real evidence and making a reasonable conclusion about how events will unfold. Sometimes, though, what you prognosticate from a dream or a fortune-cookie message ends up happening too, which is less reasonable but pretty neat — unless the world really does end.

Domesticate

词性:vt.
音标: [dəˈmestɪkeɪt]
释义:驯化,驯养,引进,使习惯/喜欢家务,处于人类控制之下

To domesticate something is to tame a wild animal or plant so it can live with people. Dogs and cats are called domesticated animals because they live with us peacefully.

Nobody knows who first domesticated a wolf, but whoever it was a very important person. If people hadn’t started living with wolves, slowly domesticating them and teaching them to get along with people, wolves would never have evolved into today’s dogs. We usually talk about how to domesticate animals, but wild plants can be domesticated too.


I mean, look at you. You domesticated yourself for this girl.


You’re so domesticated.


I haven’t told him yet… but, Viv, I’m so ready to domesticate.

Scour

词性:v.
音标: [ˈskaʊər]
释义:冲洗,擦亮,很仔细地寻找

If you’re going to scour those dishes, you’ll need a sponge and some strong soap. To scour also means to examine something very, very closely. Looking for a job? Scour those classified ads!

When you scour something with your eyes, you examine or search it very closely. If you can’t find the math homework you finished on Saturday, you’ll have to spend some time on Sunday scouring your room until you find it. When you scour something with your hands, you scrub it very hard — often with a brush or pad — until the surface is spotless. For example, to remove the graffiti from the wall outside the restaurant, you’ll have to scour it by hand, probably for hours.


Scour every bookshop, every library. And I mean everywhere.


If there is a Ranger still alive, we will scour the countryside until we find him.


We should scour the town for clues.


You need to be scouring this website.


The scouring proved difficult, but I managed it.


You will scour this building clean.


All right, we’re gonna scour every vat, every tank, every cook surface.

短语学习:

a pig in a poke—an item you purchase without having seen; a disappointment
The mail order bicycle that my nephew bought turned out to be a pig in a poke, and he is
now trying to get his money back.


You kind of bought yourself a pig in a poke,didn’t ya, sam ?


You don’t expect me to buy a pig in a poke?

Abode

词性:n
音标:[əˈboʊd]
释义:公寓,住所

Your abode is where you live. The Queen of England’s abode may be far from humble, but it’s the home where she rests her weary crown at the end of each day.

Though it is often humble, as in, “Welcome to our humble abode,” an abode is just a formal way of describing your home. A British solicitor (lawyer) would also use the word abode to describe his office, and if he worked from his home the word would cover both his work and his residence. Interestingly, if you were to substitute the o in the middle of the word for a c, you’d have the first five letters of the alphabet — abcde.


Welcome to my humble abode.


Hey, Combo. Good to see you. Welcome to my humble abode.