Unit 50

tangible / tangential

tangible adj. 可感知的，实实在在的 (able to be touched or felt) /ˈtanjəb(ə)l/

• Kristen enjoyed making sculptures because it enabled her to produce tangible artworks that could be felt as well as seen.

tangential adj. 实在的，具体的 (easily diverging from a course) / tænˈdʒɛn(t)ʃəl/

• The racer took a short cut in hopes that the tangential course would help him reach the finish line faster than his opponents.

conservative / converse

conservative adj. 保守的 (believing in the value of established and traditional practices in politics and society; relating to or supporting political conservatism) / kənˈsərvədiv/

• Republicans, who tend to be more conservative, are often concerned with stringent moral codes and so-called family values.

converse adj. 相反的 (opposite or reverse) / kənˈvərs/

• Francis and Heather argued because the former wanted to go to the movie, then go to dinner, while the latter preferred the converse.

needle / doodle / peddle

needle n. 针 (a small, very thin object that is used in sewing and that has a sharp point at one end and a hole for thread) /ˈnēdl/

• Sleeping Beauty fell asleep for 100 years after accidentally pricking her finger on a sewing needle.

doodle v. 涂鸦 (to draw something without thinking about what you are doing) /ˈdo͞odl/

• Marianne had the habit of mindlessly doodling drawings of flowers in the margins of her notebooks.

peddle v. 叫卖，兜售 (to sell something, usually in small amounts and often by traveling to different places) /ˈpedl/

• During the 20th century, traveling salesman used to drive across the U.S. peddling everything from calendars to life insurance.

fiddle / riddle

fiddle n. 欺诈，骗钱行为 (a dishonest way of getting money) /ˈfɪdl/

• Graeme's uncle never had a legitimate job because he preferred to make his money on the fiddle, through shady deals that would never stand up to legal scrutiny.

riddle n. 难题，谜题 (a mystifying, misleading, or puzzling question posed as a problem to be solved or guessed) /ˈrɪdl/

• The Sphinx would let no one enter the city of Thebes unless they could correctly solve the riddle he posed.