《哈利波特与魔法石》第3章-猫头鹰传书（10）

They didn't stop to eat or drink all day. By nightfall Dudley was howling. He'd never had such a bad day in his life. He was hungry, he'd missed five television programs he'd wanted to see, and he'd never gone so long without blowing up an alien on his computer. 

Uncle Vernon stopped at last outside a gloomy-looking hotel on the outskirts of a big city. Dudley and Harry shared a room with twin beds and damp, musty sheets. Dudley snored but Harry stayed awake, sitting on the windowsill, staring down at the lights of passing cars and wondering....

They ate stale cornflakes and cold tinned tomatoes on toast for breakfast the next day. They had just finished when the owner of the hotel came over to their table. "'Excuse me, but is one of you Mr. H. Potter? Only I got about one hundred of these at the front desk." She held up a letter so they could read the green ink address:

Mr. H. Potter
Room 17
Railview Hotel
Cokeworth

Harry made a grab for the letter but Uncle Vernon knocked his hand out of the way. The woman stared.

"I'll take them," said Uncle Vernon, standing up quickly and following her from the dining room.

Wouldn't it be better just to go home, dear?" Aunt Petunia suggested timidly, hours later, but Uncle Vernon didn't seem to hear her. Exactly what he was looking for, none of them knew. He drove them into the middle of a forest, got out, looked around, shook his head, got back in the car, and off they went again. The same thing happened in the middle of a plowed field, halfway across a suspension bridge, and at the top of a multilevel parking garage.

一，英美不同：

1. 新开垦的：plowed（美式）；ploughed（英式）

2. 多层的：multilevel（美式）；multi-storey（英式）

二，词根词缀：

1. ali：其他的

alien=ali+en 外国的；外星人

2. pens：

（1）挂 suspension=sus+pens+ion 

（2）称重 dispense=dis+pens+e 

（3）花费 expensive=ex+pens+ive

三，一义多词：

1. stare：因害怕、沉思而注视

2. gaze：因惊叹、崇拜而注视

3. peer：因看不清而仔细看

4. glare：因愤怒而注视

四，识记生词：

1. gloomy：阴郁的

2. damp：潮湿的

3. musty：发霉的

4. snore：打呼噜

5. stale：过期的

6. cornflake：玉米片

7. tinned：罐装的

8. timidly：胆小的