倫倫的小blog

stroke    /strok/

n. [the act of striking]

  note: 常用來指像書法中的一筆，而筆順就是 stroke order. 打網球的一擊也是用 a stroke. 划船、游泳中的其中一個動作，也是 a stroke.

n. 中風

  note: 在page 31中，apoplexy 是一個已經過時的醫學用字，也是指中風，我們現在都用stroke。

v.撫摩 [pass the hand gently over (a surface), usu again and again] 

   ex. She frequently strokes her cat's fur while she feels lonely and tired.

  note: 類似的字還有 caress (p.74)

stroll    /strol/

v.散步,漫步 [slow leisurely walk]

  ex. Every morning several old men stroll in the park, stretching their bodies and chatting to each other.

  ex. Many earlier Chinese poets often like to stroll in a quiet forest or on a mountain to make their mind clear.

  more related word: saunter p.420, ramble p.391, promenade p.379

strut    /strʌt/

v.大搖大擺地走 [to walk with a pompous and affected air]

  ex. WWE players always strut and arouse audience's emotions when they walk to the wresting stage.

  related word: swagger, prance

  ex. After he made a buzz beater and led the team win the final championship, he swaggered around the basketball court to receive the fans' applause.

stubborn    /ˋstʌbɚn/

adj.固執的 [unreasonably or perversely unyielding]

  ex. When I was a kid, I was very stubborn to believe Santa Claus exists, no matter who told me Santa Claus is imaginary.

  ex. This German physics professor is famous for his stubbornness, he would spare no time and effort to improve the precision of a measurement.

  ex. I run 10k three times a week, but the fat on my belly is still stubborn to lose.

 common synonym ( adj) :

 obstinate (p.329), pertinacious( p.355)

   ex. He says he is not obstinate but just follows the tradition. But I think his pertinacious mind is due to the fear of changing, and tradition cannot justify everything, after all we create a tradition and we also can reshape it.

studied

adj. [carefully considered]

  ex. The move of going  bankrupt initially seems a dangerous one, but actually it is a studied and shrewd plan to reduce the debt.

stuffy    /ˋstʌfɪ/

stuff-y

adj. [not having much fresh air]

  note: stuff 本身可以當作很多意思，其中有個很常用的字義就是指材料，特別是指被塞入什麼..之中的材料、比方說烹煮時可以把中藥食材塞入雞之中，就可以用stuff來形容。

所以當作形容詞的stuffy，意涵著被塞滿滿的不通風的意思，經常使用在某地方很熱很不通風，或是指鼻塞，a stuffy nose. 衍生字義可以指沒什麼新鮮感、老派的。

  ex. The TV shows tonight suck and  are very stuffy. I don't want to watch news-discussing shows talking about the new-born panda, actually I have been sick of its over exposure.

 ex. Excuse me, I get a cold and have a stuffy nose and a sore throat now. So my voice will not be very clear, and if you have questions about what I am saying just ask me.

  common synonym ( adj)  stale (p.446)

stultify    /ˋstʌltəˏfaɪ/

stult(stupid)-ify

v. [make you feel very bored and unable to think of new ideas]

  ex. While serving in the military obligation, most of my time is just to clean the environment, which really stultifies me because of its extreme boredom.

  ex. I feel bored and have no energy to continue this project. Fixing the bugs from other people really frustrates me and stultifies me.

stupid, 在很古早時，是指嚇傻時所呈現的呆樣。

stupor    /ˋstupɚ/

n. [a state in which you are unable to think, hear, etc. clearly, especially because you have drunk too much alcohol, taken drugs or had a shock]

  note: stupor 的字根 stup， 就如前一個字stultify 是一樣的。原本與嚇傻有關係。 而stupor指因為喝太多酒、吃藥而腦袋不能清晰的反應。

   ex. He is accused of attempting to make love with a mailbox of his neighbor. But he told policeman he was in a drunken stupor and cannot remember anything.

   ex. When she faces a difficult situation, like a breakup or failure in an exam,  she often drinks a lot of beer, crying badly and getting herself into a stupor.

stunning    /'stʌnɪŋ/

stun-ing

adj. [causing astonishment; extremely attractive or impressive; striking]

  note: stun 本身就是嚇的意思， 在很古早之前的字拼法是estoner，這邊就與astonishment有關了.

  常見的同義詞： excellent, brilliant, striking, spectacular, gorgeous

  ex. What a stunning beautiful bride, I can hardly believe she is my friend I've met over 10 years. In the wedding  she looks like a princess with astonishing grace and brilliant charm only from an angel.

 ex. The FSU football team has a stunning season, not only getting undefeated 13-0 but also winning the BCS final championship.

stunt    /stʌnt/

stun+t

n.引人注意的舉動 or 特技 [thing done to attract attention, or dangerous or difficult thing done as entertainment ]

  note: stunt，特技， 可以看成 stun + t 跟嚇傻有關，因為特技像是跳下101大樓，會使路人嚇傻。 stunt也算是一個常用的詞彙，比方說 stunt actor or stunt performer，指的就是特技演員，比方說 Jimmy Kimmel (一個talk show的主持)，找了一個 stunt performer，拍了一個小短片'Twerking FAIL'，然後變成個網路大熱門，連CNN各家媒體都有報導，結果最後Jimmy 公佈，這段影片根本是假的，讓這些媒體只會在youtube上找新聞而沒查證，顯的很丟臉，CNN還列入2013 十大 web hoax.

  ex. Jackie Chan is a famous stunt performer. He is one of the few actors to have performed all of his film stunts.

v.阻礙 [to hinder the normal growth, development]

  note: 動詞的字源與當名詞是不同的, 常見的同義詞還有 impede, hinder, hamper

  ex. Being lack of adequate food will stunt  teenagers' growth. 

sturdy    /ˈstɜːdɪ/

adj. [strong and not easily damaged]

 note: sturdy 通常用來形容物品，像是說桌子很耐操堅固，比較少用於人身上（只是比較少，但不是沒有）。

 ex. This special phone is designed for the military use. Although it is over 1kg, this phone is very sturdy and hard to be damaged, also with very a long battery lifetime.

 ex. This suitcase is pretty heavy and sturdy. And my little brother works out everyday to become a sturdy man to carry this suitcase.

stutter    /ˋstʌtɚ/

v. 口吃 [to have difficulty speaking because of being not able to stop from repeating the first sound of some words several times]

  ex. "W-W-What are you do-do-doing", She stuttered. She was so frightened when she was hit by a car.

  note: stammer (p.446)

n.口吃的人

stygian    /ˋstɪdʒɪən/

styx-gian

adj.  [dark and dismal as of the rivers Acheron and Styx in Hades]

  note: stygian 是個希臘神話來的字，平時不是很多用。Styx是一條河流，他是人間與冥土(underworld or Hades)的分界，所謂的Hades是指希臘神話中在地球表層下的世界，人死了就會往underworld前進。在河流上，Charon是渡船者，負責將死者的靈魂由Earth，通過Styx，到達underworld。有些地方的習俗會將個硬幣放在死者的嘴中，意思就是可以讓死者有錢付給Charon來渡船過去。