《哈利波特与魔法石》第3章-猫头鹰传书（1）

When September came he would be going off to secondary school and, for the first time in his life, he wouldn't be with Dudley. Dudley had been accepted at Uncle Vernon's old private school, Smeltings. Harry, on the other hand, was going to Stonewall High, the local public school. Dudley thought this was very funny.

"They stuff people's heads down the toilet the first day at Stonewall," he told Harry. "Want to come upstairs and practice?"

"No, thanks," said Harry. "The poor toilet's never had anything as horrible as your head down it -- it might be sick." Then he ran, before Dudley could work out what he'd said.

One day in July, Aunt Petunia took Dudley to London to buy his Smeltings uniform.That evening, Dudley paraded around the living room for the family in
his brand-new uniform.

"What's this?" he asked Aunt Petunia. 

"Your new school uniform," she said.

"Oh," he said, "I didn't realize it had to be so wet."

"Don't be stupid," snapped Aunt Petunia. "I'm dyeing some of Dudley's old things gray for you. It'll look just like everyone else's when I've finished."

He sat down at the table and tried not to think about how he was going to look on his first day at Stonewall High -- like he was wearing bits of old elephant skin, probably.

一，英美不同：

1. 私立中学：private school（美式）；independent school（英式）

2. 公立中学：public school（美式）；comprehensive（英式）

二，一词多义：

1. stuff：塞（动词）

2. sick：呕吐的

三，词根词缀：

1. comprehensive=com+prehens+ive

2. uniform=uni+form

四，熟记生词：

1. secondary school：中学

2. smelting：精炼

3. stonewall：阻碍

五，识记生词：

1. parade：炫耀

2. dye：染色