【生词预览】

aristocratic贵族的， excess过度，impudent无礼的

【笑话原文】

Impudent Questions

A little girl from the East Side was invited to a garden party given by a very aristocratic lady to a group of little East-Siders. The little girl, as she drank her tea and ate her plum-cake on a velvet lawn under a white-blooming cherry tree, said to her hostess,“Does your husband drink?”

“Why-er-no, not to excess,” was the astonished reply.

“How much does he make?”

“He doesn't work,” said the lady. “He is a capitalist.”

“You keep out of debt, I hope?”

“Of course, child. What on earth do you mean by all these impudent questions?”

“Impudent?” said the little girl. “Why, Ma'am, Mother told me to be sure and behave like a lady, and when ladies call at our rooms they always question Mother like that.”

【中文译文】

像夫人们一样的言行举止

一个住在城东贫民区的小女孩获得邀请，参加一位贵妇人为城东贫民区的孩子们举行的花园晚会。 在一棵开满了白色小花儿的樱桃树下，小女孩坐在柔软的草地上，一边品尝着她的茶和梅子蛋糕，一边对贵妇人说：你的丈夫酗酒吗？ 呃，呃，不，他喝得不多。夫人一脸惊诧。 他挣多少钱？ 他不工作，夫人回答说，他是个资本家。 我希望你们没有负债吧？ 当然没有，孩子。你问这么些无礼的问题到底是想说什么呢？ 无礼？小女孩说，怎么会呢，夫人？妈妈要我的举止一定要象夫人们一样，当她们到我们家做客的时候，她们总是那样问我妈妈的。

【词汇讲解】

1. lawn草坪。 They are lying on a grassy lawn.他们躺在绿草如茵的草坪上。

2. excess过度。 She has an excess of anger.她爱过度地生气。

3.capitalist资本家。 The capitalists amass great wealth by exploiting workers.资本家剥削工人而积累了巨额财富。

4.keep out of置身于…之外。

5. impudent无礼的。She’s tolerant toward those impudent colleagues. 她对那些无礼的同事采取容忍的态度。