Story Brief

The Cyclone

Dorothy lived in the midst of the great Kansas prairies, with Uncle Henry, who was a farmer, and Aunt Em, who was the farmer’s wife. Their house was small, for the lumber to build it had to be carried by wagon many miles. There were four walls, a floor and a roof, which made one room; and this room contained a rusty looking cookstove, a cupboard for the dishes, a table, three or four chairs, and the beds. Uncle Henry and Aunt Em had a big bed in one corner, and Dorothy a little bed in another corner. There was no garret at all, and no cellar–except a small hole dug in the ground, called a cyclone cellar, where the family could go in case one of those great whirlwinds arose, mighty enough to crush any building in its path. It was reached by a trap door in the middle of the floor, from which a ladder led down into the small, dark hole.

… …

It was Toto that made Dorothy laugh, and saved her from growing as gray as her other surroundings. Toto was not gray; he was a little black dog, with long silky hair and small black eyes that twinkled merrily on either side of his funny, wee nose. Toto played all day long, and Dorothy played with him, and loved him dearly.

Today, however, they were not playing. Uncle Henry sat upon the doorstep and looked anxiously at the sky, which was even grayer than usual. Dorothy stood in the door with Toto in her arms, and looked at the sky too. Aunt Em was washing the dishes.

From the far north they heard a low wail of the wind, and Uncle Henry and Dorothy could see where the long grass bowed in waves before the coming storm. There now came a sharp whistling in the air from the south, and as they turned their eyes that way they saw ripples in the grass coming from that direction also.

Suddenly Uncle Henry stood up.  “There’s a cyclone coming, Em,”

… …

Then a strange thing happened.

The house whirled around two or three times and rose slowly through the air. Dorothy felt as if she were going up in a balloon.

Hour after hour passed away, and slowly Dorothy got over her fright; but she felt quite lonely, and the wind shrieked so loudly all about her that she nearly became deaf.

In spite of the swaying of the house and the wailing of the wind, Dorothy soon closed her eyes and fell fast asleep.

 

小木屋飞走了

有个小姑娘叫多萝西，她从小失去了父母，和叔叔亨利、婶婶爱姆住在一起。他们的家在堪萨斯的大草原上。

他们的房子很小，是个灰不溜秋的小木屋。里面只有一个炉灶，一只碗柜，一张桌子，三四把椅子，两张床，一张大的，一张小的。多萝西的小床在屋子的一个角落里。。。

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Explanation Now

Meaning of Words

词语	华文解释	英文解释
灰不溜秋	意思形容某物的颜色接近土的灰黑，看起来不鲜艳，黯淡无光，不起眼。 例句：他这个人不注重自己的外表，经常披着一件灰不溜秋的大衣就来上课。	grey
灰蒙蒙	指暗淡无光、模糊不清的样子。 例句：今天可能要下雨，整个上午天都是灰蒙蒙的。	grey
憔悴（qiáo cuì）	意思指黄瘦、瘦损、瘦弱无力，脸色难看的样子。 例句：自从她得了病，就一天比一天憔悴。	gaunt
尖锐	可以指物体的末端锋利、声音尖细而高，或表达意见情绪等敏锐而深刻。 例句：小雨突然看见围墙上有个黑影，立刻发出了尖锐的叫声。	sharp; shrill
呼啸	指（风）发出高而长的声音。 例句：风从草堆旁呼啸而过，发出尖利而漫长的声音。	wail
手忙脚乱	指慌乱，形容遇事慌张，不知如何是好。 例句：一听到妈妈的开门声，小明手忙脚乱的关掉电视、拿出课本。	act with confusion
飞沙走石	意思是沙土飞扬石块滚动，形容风势狂暴。 例句：突然刮起一阵大风，我往窗外看去，到处都是飞沙走石。	dust and stone fly as in storm
颠簸（diān bǒ）	意思是上下震动；不平稳，多指物体运动的上下抖动。 例句：这条路崎岖不平，汽车走起来非常颠簸。	bumpy
迹象	意思是指表现出来的不明显的现象。 例句：他已经开始退烧，身体也有恢复的迹象。	a sign; an indication
颤巍巍	意思是抖动摇晃的样子（多用来形容老年人或病人的某些动作）。 例句：老奶奶走起路来颤巍巍的。	shaky