精選新GRE詞匯之神話類

　　精選新GRE詞匯之神話類

　　1. arachnid n. a member of the family Arachnida, which principally includes animals with four pairs of legs and no antennae, such as spiders, scorpions, mites, and ticks 蛛形綱動物(諸如蜘蛛、蝎子、螨、蜱) My interest in arachnids began when I used to watch spiders build their gorgeous webs in the corners of the porch. 我過去常常觀察蜘蛛在走廊的角落結(jié)網(wǎng)，其所結(jié)之網(wǎng)甚為奇妙，我對蛛形綱動物的興趣油然而生。

　　2. bacchanalian adj.(The Roman god of drama, wine and ecstasy, Bacchus (巴克斯) was the focus of a widespread celebration, the Bacchanalia, at which there was wine in abundance and celebrants were expected to cut loose from normal restraints and give in to all sorts of wild desires.) frenzied, orgiastic; drunken 發(fā)狂似的，狂飲鬧宴的;縱酒的 The bacchanalian partying on graduation night resulted in three wrecked cars, two lawsuits by unamused parents, and more new experiences than most of the participants could remember the next day. 畢業(yè)之夜的縱酒狂歡的聚會，導(dǎo)致3輛汽車被毀，家長因不悅提出的訴訟兩起，還有許多為大多數(shù)參加聚會的人第二天就記不得的新名堂。

　　3. behemoth n. (The behemoth is a mighty Biblical beast described in Job 40: 15-40) huge creature; something of monstrous size or power 巨獸;龐然大 物 Sportscasters nicknamed the linebacker “The Behemoth.” 體育節(jié)目廣播員給那個(橄欖球)中后衛(wèi)起了個“巨獸”的綽號。

　　4. blatant adj. (coined by Edmund Spenser) extremely obvious; loudly offensive 極明顯的;吵嚷的;刺眼的 Caught in a blatant lie, the scoundrel had only one regret: he wished he had lied more subtly. 那無賴的彌天大謊被當(dāng)場拆穿，此時他只有一個懊悔：懊悔沒有把謊話說得巧妙些。

　　5. bowdlerize v. (The word immortalizes an English editor, Dr. Thomas Bowdler, who produced a “family” edition (1818) of the works of Shakespeare by removing every word or passage that offended his sense of propriety.) to expurgate 刪節(jié)，刪改 After the film editors had bowdlerized the language in the script, the motion picture’s rating was changed from “R” to “PG”. 電影把劇本中的不妥部分刪除后，該影片就由R級 (restricted：指17歲以下青少年除有家長陪同不得觀看譯注)變?yōu)镻G級 (parental guidance (suggested)：宜在家長指導(dǎo)下觀看的譯注)。

　　6. boycott v. (The word comes from C.C. Boycott, land agent ostracized by his neighbors during the Land League agitation in Ireland in 1880.) to refrain from buying or using 拒絕購買(或使用);抵制 To put pressure on grape growers to stop using pesticides that harmed the farm workers’ health, Cesar Chavez called for consumers to boycott grapes. 為了給葡萄種植者施壓以迫使其停止使用危害農(nóng)場工人健康的殺蟲劑，西澤查維斯號召消費者拒絕購買葡萄。

　　7. braggadocio n. (Braggadochio is a boastful character in Edmund Spenser’s poem The Faerie Queen《仙后》.) boasting 自夸，吹牛 He was disliked because his manner was always full of braggadocio. 因為他總是自吹 自擂，狂妄自大，所以很受人討厭。 cf braggart n. boaster 自吹者，吹牛者 Modest by nature, she was no braggart, preferring to let her accomplishments speak for themselves. 她天性謙虛，從不自吹，喜歡以自己的成就來表明一切。