1. crag
noun
- a high steep rough mass of rock峭壁
e.g. a castle set on a crag above the village
2. sustenance
noun:
- the food and drink that people, animals and plants need to live and stay healthy生活必需品，食物，营养，养料
e.g. There's not much sustenance in a bowl of soup.
- the process of making something continue to exist维持，保持
e.g. Elections are essential for the sustenance of parliamentary democracy.
3. yoke
noun:
- a long piece of wood that is fastened across the necks of two animals, especially oxen, so that they can pull heavy loads轭，牛轭
- rough treatment or something that restricts your freedom and makes your life very difficult to bear奴役，束缚，枷锁
e.g. Young people often chafe under the yoke of parental control.
- a piece of wood that is shaped to fit across a person’s shoulders so that they can carry two equal loads轭形扁担
- a part of a dress, skirt, etc. that fits around the shoulders or hips and from which the rest of the cloth hangs裙腰
verb:
- to join two animals together with ayoke; to attach an animal to something with ayoke给动物上轭
e.g. A pair of oxen, yoked together, was used.
- to bring two people, countries, ideas, etc. together so that they are forced into a close relationship联合，结合
e.g. The Hong Kong dollar was yoked to the American dollar for many years.
4. backbone
noun:
- the row of small bones that are connected together down the middle of the back脊柱，脊梁骨
= spine
- the most important part of a system, an organization, etc. that gives it support and strength支柱，骨干，基础
e.g. Agriculture forms the backbone of the rural economy.
- the strength of character that you need to do something difficult毅力，骨气
e.g. He doesn't have the backbone to face the truth.
5. exodus
noun
- a situation in which many people leave a place at the same time 大批人同时离开，外出
e.g. The play was so awful that there was a general exodus from the theatre at the interval.
6. keen
adj:
- wanting to do something or wanting something to happen very much热切，热情
= eager
e.g. We are keen that our school should get involved too.
- liking somebody/something very much; very interested in somebody/something喜爱，有兴趣
e.g. She's not keen on being told what to do.
- quick to understand思维敏捷，机智的
- strong or deep强烈的，浓厚的
e.g. He took a keen interest in his grandson's education.
- involving people competing very hard with each other for something激烈的，紧张的
e.g. There is keen competition for places at the college.
- kept low in order to compete with other prices低廉的，有竞争力的
e.g. The company hopes its keen pricing policy will increase sales.
verb:
- to make a loud high sad sound, when somebody has died恸哭，哀号
7. narrative
noun:
- a description of events, especially in a novel描述，叙述
e.g. a gripping narrative of their journey up the Amazon
- the act, process or skill of telling a story讲故事，叙述，叙事技巧
e.g. The novel contains too much dialogue and not enough narrative.
8. glean
verb
- to obtain information, knowledge, etc., sometimes with difficulty and often from various different places努力收集，四处搜集
e.g. These figures have been gleaned from a number of studies.
9. magnitude
noun:
- the great size or importance of something; the degree to which something is large or important巨大，重大，重要性
e.g. We did not realize the magnitude of the problem.
- the degree to which a star is bright星的亮度
e.g. The star varies in brightness by about three magnitudes.
- the size of an earthquake震级
e.g. The quake reached a magnitude of 7.1 on the Richter scale.
10. chronology
noun
- the order in which a series of events happened; a list of these events in order年表
e.g. Historians seem to have confused the chronology of these events.
11. dogmatically
adv
adj:dogmatic
- being certain that your beliefs are right and that others should accept them, without paying attention to evidence or other opinions自以为是的，教条的
e.g. There is a danger of becoming too dogmatic about teaching methods.
12. havoc
noun
- a situation in which there is a lot of damage, destruction or confusion灾祸，浩劫
e.g. Continuing strikes are beginning to play havoc with the national economy.
13. antiquity
noun
- the ancient past, especially the times of the Greeks and Romans古代
e.g. a study of society from late antiquity to the fifteenth century
- the state of being very old or ancient
e.g. A number of the monuments are of considerable antiquity.
- an object from ancient times文物，古迹
e.g. Egyptian/Roman antiquities
14. incredulous
adj
- not willing or not able to believe something; showing an inability to believe something表示怀疑的，不愿相信的
e.g. an incredulous look
15. pun
noun
- the clever or humorous use of a word that has more than one meaning, or of words that have different meanings but sound the same双关语
e.g. We're banking on them lending us the money—no pun intended!
verb
- to make a pun使用双关语
16. cuneiform
noun
- an ancient system of writing used in Persia and Assyria（古代波斯和亚述的）楔形文字
17. skepticism
noun
- an attitude of doubting that claims or statements are true or that something will happen怀疑态度
e.g. Such claims should be regarded with a certain amount of skepticism.
18. hymn
noun
- a song of praise, especially one praising God and sung by Christians赞美诗，圣歌
e.g.The service began with a rousing hymn.
- if a film/movie, book, etc. is ahymn to something, it praises it very strongly歌颂
19. serf
noun
- a person who was forced to live and work on land that belonged to alandowner whom they had to obey农奴
20. hieroglyphic
noun
- pictures or symbols, representing a word, syllable or sound, especially as used in ancient Egyptian and other writing systems象形文字
e.g. a hieroglyphic inscription
21. cadastral
adj：
- Surveying. (of a map or survey) showing or including boundaries, property lines, etc.土地清册的
22. slay
verb：
- to kill somebody/something in a war or a fight杀死
e.g.St George slew the dragon.
- to murder somebody杀害，残害，谋杀
e.g. Two passengers were slain by the hijackers.
- to have a strong effect on somebody, especially to make them laugh深深打动，迷住
e.g. Those old movies still slay me!
过去式：slain
23. subvert
verb：
= undermine
- to try to destroy the authority of a political, religious, etc. system by attacking it secretly or indirectly颠覆，暗中破坏
- to challenge somebody’s ideas or expectations and make them consider the opposite使背叛，变节
e.g. The film subverts notions of male and female identity.
24. tenure
noun
- the period of time when somebody holds an important job, especially a political one; the act of holding an important job任期，任职
e.g. his four-year tenure as President
- the right to stay permanently in your job, especially as a teacher at a university终身职位，长期聘用
e.g. It's still extremely difficult to get tenure.
- the legal right to live in a house or use a piece of land房地产的保有权
e.g. When you rent a house here, you don’t have security of tenure.
25. granary
noun
- a building where grain is stored谷仓，粮仓
e.g. The barn now houses the museum cafe, and the granary is used for exhibitions.
26. asunder
adv
- into pieces; apart碎片，散
e.g. families rent/torn asunder by the revolution
27. quietude
noun:
- the state of being still and quiet平静，寂静
= calm
e.g. a moment of quietude
