On Saturday morning Elizabeth and Mr. Collins met for breakfast a few minutes before the others appeared; and he took the opportunity of paying the partingcivilitieswhich he deemed indispensably necessary.
"I know not, Miss Elizabeth, " said he, "whether Mrs. Collins has yet expressed her sense of your kindness in coming to us; but I am very certain you will not leave the house without receiving her thanks for it. The favor of your company has been much felt, I assure you. We know how little there is to tempt anyone to ourhumbleabode. Our plain manner of living, our small rooms and few domestics, and the little we see of the world, must make Hunsford extremely dull to a young lady like yourself; but I hope you will believe us grateful for the condescension, and that we have done everything in our power topreventyourspendingyour time unpleasantly. "
Elizabeth was eager with her thanks and assurances of happiness. She had spent six weeks with great enjoyment; and the pleasure of being with Charlotte, and the kind attentions she had received, must make HER feel theobliged.
1.civilityn.礼貌; 端庄They greeted us with civility. 他们很有礼貌地迎接了我们。
2.humble adj.谦逊的,卑下的Many famous people are surprisingly humble.许多知名人士都出奇地谦恭。【词源解说】13世纪中进入英语,直接源自古法语的humble;最初源自古典拉丁语的humilis,意为低的,卑下的。
3.prevent sb (from) doing sth. 防止某人做某事Nobody can prevent us getting married.谁也阻止不了我们结婚。
4.obligedadj.感激的We are obliged to you for dinner. 我们感谢你请我们吃饭。