As the wind freshened there came a sudden squall and the ship made a strange movement, listing to port. 

freshen ^{v. (of the wind) become strong and cool （指风）变得强而凉}

• The wind will freshen tonight. ^{今晚风会变大。}
• a freshening onshore breeze ^{一阵愈发强劲的陆上微风}
• The rain began to fall as the wind freshened. ^{随着风力增强，雨开始下了起来。}

非be 动词的存在句型 (existential sentences with verbs other than ‘ be’) 

there 常与 be 动词之外的不及物动词 (come, go, arrive, follow, rise, exist, appear, remain, live, lie, stand, happen, occur 等等) 构成存在句， 以突出句末的主语。

• There came to his mind her beautiful face. ^{她美丽的脸庞映入了他的脑海。}
• There remains nothing more to be done. ^{没有什么可做的了。}
• There followed an uncomfortable silence. ^{接着是一阵令人不安的沉默。}
• There rose in his imagination visions of a world empire. ^{在他的想象中升起了世界帝国的幻象。}
• Not long after this, there occurred a sudden revolution in public taste. ^{此后不久，公众品味突然发生了一场革命。}
• Fortunately for me, as I was wondering what to do next, there appeared on the horizon a man on horseback, riding in my direction.

nominalization of verbs ^{动词名词化}

• He made no other movement, but stood with his thumbs in his belt. ^{他没有再做其他动作，只是把拇指插在腰带里站着。}
• He became a colossus of the labour movement. ^{他成了劳工运动中的一位巨人。}

list ^{v.   (of a ship) lean over to one side（指船）倾侧}

• The ship lists to port. ^{船向左舷倾斜。}
• The damaged vessel was listing badly. ^{受损的船只严重倾斜。}
• After the collision, the boat began to list to one side. ^{碰撞后，船开始向一侧倾斜。}

The Ordnance officer ordered all the port cannon to be heaved to starboard to counteract the list but the steepening angle of the decks increased. 

ordnance ^{n. [U] large guns with wheels 大炮}

• The army ordered new ordnance for their defense. ^{军队订购了新的大炮用于防御。}
• The museum has a collection of historic ordnance. ^{博物馆收藏有历史悠久的大炮。}
• He is an Ordnance Officer, responsible for military supplies. ^{他是一名炮长，负责军事物资。}

heave ^{v.to push, pull, or lift a heavy object using a lot of effort 用力推、拖拽或提升重物}

• Alan heaved his suitcase onto his bed. ^{艾伦把手提箱用力提到了床上。}
• They had to heave the heavy box up the stairs. ^{他们不得不把那个沉重的箱子用力搬上楼。}
• With a great effort, she heaved the anchor. ^{她费了很大的力气才提起锚。}

counteract ^{v.to reduce or prevent the bad effect of something, by doing something that has the opposite effect 对抗，抵消}

• These exercises aim to counteract the effects of stress and tension. ^{这些练习旨在抵消压力和紧张的影响。}
• The government introduced measures to counteract inflation. ^{政府采取措施来抑制通货膨胀。}
• Drinking a lot of water can help to counteract dehydration. ^{多喝水有助于对抗脱水。}

steepen ^{v.to become or to make sth. become steeper (使)更陡峭}

• After a couple of miles, the slope steepened considerably. ^{几英里后，坡度大大增加。}
• The path began to steepen as we approached the mountain. ^{当我们靠近山时，小路开始变得更陡峭。}
• The company needs to steepen its growth trajectory. ^{公司需要加快其增长轨迹。}

Then the sound of rumbling thunder reached the watchers on the shore, as cargo, ballast, ammunition and 400 people went sliding and crashing down to the port side of the steeply listing ship.

rumble ^{v.make a deep heavy continuous sound 发出持续的低沉的声音}

• The machine rumbled as it started up. ^{机器启动时发出隆隆声。}
• thunder rumbling in the distance ^{远处传来隆隆的雷声}
• I'm so hungry my stomach's rumbling. ^{我太饿了，肚子咕咕叫。}

改变语序(altering word order) ^{突出句末或句首重点}

• Then the sound of rumbling thunder reached the watchers on the shore …  ⇐ Then the watchers on the shore heard the sound of rumbling thunder, … 
• We heard of the news that … ⇐ The news came to us that …
• We heard of the news that Beijing had won the right to host the 2008 Olympic Games.
• The news came to us that Beijing had won the right to host the 2008 Olympic Games.

cargo ^{n. [U and C] 英文解释：the goods that are being carried in a ship or plane（船或飞机上的）货物}

• The captain knew that another attempt would be made later, for the sunken ship he was trying to find had been carrying a precious cargo of gold bullion. 
• The ship was loaded with a large cargo of grain. ^{船上装载了大量谷物。}
• Air cargo is often used for urgent deliveries. ^{空运货物通常用于紧急交货。}

ballast ^{n. [U] heavy material that is carried by a ship to make it more steady in the water（船中用以保持平稳的）压舱物}

• The ship took on extra ballast to improve its stability. ^{这艘船增加了额外的压舱物以提高其稳定性。}
• Without proper ballast, the hot air balloon would be unstable. ^{如果没有适当的压舱物，热气球就会不稳定。}
• The train carriages were weighted down with ballast. ^{火车车厢用压舱物加重了。}

ammunition ^{n. [U] supply of bullets, bombs, grenades, etc fired from weapons or thrown 弹药}

• The soldiers ran out of ammunition during the battle. ^{士兵们在战斗中弹药耗尽了。}
• The factory produces various types of ammunition. ^{这家工厂生产各种类型的弹药。}
• They were well-supplied with weapons and ammunition. ^{他们有充足的武器和弹药。}

go doing ^{to move in a particular way  以某种方式移动 （做方式状语）}

• The plate went crashing to the floor. ^{盘子哗啦一声摔到地上。}
• The train went chugging up the hill. ^{火车突突地开上了山。}
• She went sobbing up the stairs. ^{她哭着跑上楼。}
• Chairs and tables went flying into the arcade.

The lower gun-ports were now below water and the inrush sealed the ship's fate. 

inrush ^{n. [C usually singular] an occasion when sth. such as water or air enters a place quickly（水或空气的）涌入}

• an inrush of air / water ^{空气/水的涌入}
• The inrush of fresh air filled the room. ^{新鲜空气涌入房间。}
• The sudden inrush of water caused the basement to flood. ^{突然涌入的水导致地下室被淹。}

seal one's fate / seal the fate of sb.  ^{to show or decide that sth. bad will definitely happen to someone  注定了…的厄运，使…在劫难逃}

• The discovery of new evidence sealed his fate. ^{新证据的发现注定了他在劫难逃。}
• The outbreak of war sealed the government's fate. ^{战争的爆发注定了政府的命运。}
• Further floods may have sealed the fate of the few remaining villages. ^{更多的洪水可能已经注定了剩下少数村庄的命运。}

In that first glorious hour, the mighty Vasa, which was intended to rule the Baltic, sank with all flags flying -- in the harbour of her birth.

birth ^{n.the time when something new starts to exist（新事物的）诞生}

• the birth of a nation ^{一个民族、国家的诞生}
• The film gave birth to a TV show of the same name. ^{这部电影催生了同名的电视剧。}
• The invention of the internet marked the birth of a new era. ^{互联网的发明标志着一个新时代的诞生。}