The next man to approach me was selling expensive pens and watches.
the first, the second, the next, the last,the best, the only…后常跟不定式作定语
- When he landed near Dover, the first person to greet him was a local policeman.
- The only other ship to match her was the Thermopylae.
- The first of the two ships to reach Java after the race had begun was the Thermopylae, but on the Indian Ocean, the Cutty Sark took the lead.
- The last creature to compete with man was the mosquito. NCE4-45
I examined one of the pens closely.
closely = carefully 仔细地
It certainly looked genuine.
It certainly looked real. 与上面重复使用同样的形容词
At the base of the gold cap, the words 'made in the U.S.A.' had been neatly inscribed.
| at the base of...在…的底部 | Navy officers marched in lockstep to lay flowers at the base of the new monument.海军官员们一个一个紧挨着在新的墓碑底座上放下了鲜花。 |
|---|---|
| on the basis of ... 根据，在...的基础上 | Decisions were often made on the basis of false information. |
| gold n.金；黄金制品(强调颜色、贵重，有真金的成分) | golden adj.金制的；金色的（抽象的金、金色的） |
|---|---|
| gold ring / medal | golden sunshine / hair |
| Speech is silver, but silence is golden. 雄辩是银，沉默是金。 | |
neatly 工整地
- His handwriting is neat.
- He has a teacher's handwriting. 字迹工整
- His handwriting is illegible. 字迹潦草
- He has a doctor's handwriting.字迹潦草
| inscribe vt.题写；题献；铭记；雕 | engrave v.雕刻（文字，图案） |
|---|---|
| Below are inscribe and date.下面是落款和日期。 | It is difficult to engrave in marble.大理石很难雕刻。 |
The man said that the pen was worth £50, but as a special favour, he would let me have it for £30.
I shook my head and held up five fingers indicating that I was willing to pay £5.
shook one‘s head 摇头
- When I suggested that some villagers must have come in for a free drink, Mr. Thompson shook his head.
- I shook my head ... = I disagreed ... = I said no to him ...
hold up = extend 伸出
- Hold up your right hand. 举起你的右手。
indicate 表示，表明
Gesticulating wildly, the man acted as if he found my offer outrageous, but he eventually reduced the price to £10.
he found my offer outrageous / absurd / preposterous. 他觉得我提出的价格太离谱了。
eventually adv. 最终，结果
| at last 终于 | I arrived in London at last. |
|---|---|
| finally 最终 | They finally found a small gold coin which was almost worthless. |
| in the end 最后（句首、句末） | In the end, we stay at home and look after everything! |
Shrugging my shoulders, I began to walk away when, a moment later, he ran after me and thrust the pen into my hands.
shrug one's shoulders 耸肩（表示不感兴趣、怀疑、不知道什么情况）
- She answered with a shrug. 她耸耸肩作为回答。
when 然后
- I will be on vacation till the end of the month when I return to shanghai. 我将休假到月底然后回到上海。
run after = chase 追赶
- They manage to run off, and Dan and Rick chase after them. 他们设法跑开，丹和里克在后面追他们。
- Just as it was leaving, Mr. Taylor rushed out and ran after it throwing ashtrays and vases, ...
- Mrs. Sterling got so angry that she ran after them.
Though he kept throwing up his arms in despair, he readily accepted the £5 I gave him.
readily = willingly 乐意地、愿意地
No matter how hard I tried, it was impossible to fill this beautiful pen with ink and to this day it has never written a single word!
No matter how = However 无论如何
- However hard I tried, ...
- Judges, however wise or eminent, are human and can make mistakes.
this beautiful pen 反话（中看不中用）
to this day = so far 迄今为止（常用现在完成时）
- To this day, his many plays are performed there daily.直至今天，他的很多戏剧每天都在那里上演。
- The vicar has been asked to have the tree cut down, but so far he has refused.
- But so far, the public has expressed its gratitude to the students in letters to the Press.
a single 强调只有一个...
- I spent the whole day in my room, but I did not write a single card!
- He earned enormous sums of money and was paid as much as £ 100 for a single appearance.
- They had a single aim, a solitary goal—the top! NCE4-3
造句：No matter how well I fed her, it was impossible to persuade the beautiful hen to breed and to this day she has never laid a single egg!无论我多么好地喂养这只鸡，它就是不肯产卵，直到今 天它连一个蛋也没下过。