‘You can’t blame them,’ said Dumbledore gently. ‘We’ve had precious little to celebrate for eleven years.’
‘I know that,’ said Professor McGonagall irritably. ‘But that’s no reason to lose our heads. People are being downright careless, out on the streets in broad daylight, not even dressed in Muggle clothes, swapping rumours.’
She threw a sharp, sideways glance at Dumbledore here, as though hoping he was going to tell her something, but he didn’t, so she went on: ‘A fine thing it would be if, on the very day You-Know-Who seems to have disappeared at last, the Muggles found out about us all. I suppose he really has gone, Dumbledore?’
‘It certainly seems so,’ said Dumbledore. ‘We have much to be thankful for. Would you care for a sherbet lemon?’
‘A what?’
‘A sherbet lemon. They’re a kind of Muggle sweet I’m rather fond of.’
‘No, thank you,’ said Professor McGonagall coldly, as though she didn’t think this was the moment for sherbet lemons. ‘As I say, even if You-Know-Who has gone –’
‘My dear Professor, surely a sensible person like yourself can call him by his name? All this “You-Know-Who” nonsense – for eleven years I have been trying to persuade people to call him by his proper name: Voldemort.’ Professor McGonagall flinched, but Dumbledore, who was unsticking two sherbet lemons, seemed not to notice. ‘It all gets so confusing if we keep saying “You-Know-Who”.’ I have never seen any reason to be frightened of saying Voldemort’s name.’
Rowling, J.K.. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone . Bloomsbury. Kindle Edition.
Knowledge Point
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"‘You can’t blame them,’ said Dumbledore gently. ‘We’ve had precious little to celebrate for eleven years.’"
⇒ precious [adverb] 极其，非常（同very）
⇒ 尝试翻译：“不要责怪他们”，Dumbledore和蔼地说。我们已经有11年没有好好庆祝了。 -
"‘I know that,’ said Professor McGonagall irritably. ‘But that’s no reason to lose our heads. People are being downright careless, out on the streets in broad daylight, not even dressed in Muggle clothes, swapping rumours.’ "
⇒ irritably [adverb] 易怒地；暴躁地
⇒ downright [adjective]
(especially of something bad) extremely or very great
⇒ swap [verb]
to give something and be given something else instead
⇒ rumour [noun]
an unofficial interesting story or piece of news that might be true or invented, and quickly spreads from person to person
⇒ lose one's heads 失去头脑；丧失理智
⇒ 尝试翻译：“我知道啊”，Professor McGonagall性急地说道。“但是没有理由搞到连命都丢掉。他们也太不小心了，大白天跑到街上，也不穿上Muggle的衣服，还在那里传递消息。” -
"She threw a sharp, sideways glance at Dumbledore here, as though hoping he was going to tell her something, but he didn’t, so she went on: ‘A fine thing it would be if, on the very day You-Know-Who seems to have disappeared at last, the Muggles found out about us all. I suppose he really has gone, Dumbledore?’"
⇒ sideways [adjective/adverb]
in a direction to the left or right, not forwards or backwards
⇒ as though/as if
in a way that seems to show something
⇒ “as though hoping he was going to tell her something”
as if和as though引导的从句所叙述的情况与事实相反时，从句的谓语动词多用虚拟语气。在虚拟语气结构中，用一般过去时态来表示现在的情形；用过去完成时来表示过去的动作或状态；用过去进行时表示正在进行的动作；用过去将来时表示将要发生的动作。
当as if和as though从句的主语和主句主语一致，且从句中含有系动词be的某种形式时该主语和系动词可以省略。
例如：John paused as if(he was)expecting Mary to speak．
⇒ “A fine thing it would be”包含了倒装，正确的语序是：“It would be a fine thing if......”。
“如果有一天神秘人真的消失了，Muggles弄清楚了有关我们的一切，那该有多好啊。” -
"We have much to be thankful for."
⇒ 尝试翻译：我们应该感到欣慰。 -
"Would you care for a sherbet lemon?"
⇒ care for sth 喜欢，钟爱某物
⇒ sherbet lemon
The U.K. versions of the book call it a Sherbet Lemon, while the U.S. versions call it a Lemon Drop. （英版和美版中此处的说法不一样。）
⇒ 参见图片【sherbet lemon】
sherbet lemon
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"‘A sherbet lemon. They’re a kind of Muggle sweet I’m rather fond of.’ "
⇒ 定语从句“I’m rather fond of”修饰“a kind of Muggle sweet”。 -
" ‘My dear Professor, surely a sensible person like yourself can call him by his name? All this “You-Know-Who” nonsense – for eleven years I have been trying to persuade people to call him by his proper name: Voldemort.’"
⇒ nonsense [noun]
an idea, something said or written, or behavior that is silly or stupid
⇒ 尝试翻译：“亲爱的教授，像你这样明智的人也会这样称呼他？所有‘神秘人’这样的无稽之谈——11年来，我一直试图说服人们称呼他的真名：伏地魔。” -
"Professor McGonagall flinched, but Dumbledore, who was unsticking two sherbet lemons, seemed not to notice."
⇒ flinch [verb] 猛地一颤；畏缩
to make a sudden, small movement because of pain or fear
⇒ who引导定语从句，描写Dumbledore正在把两颗sherbet lemons剥开
⇒ 句子主干：“Professor McGonagall flinched, but Dumbledore seemed not to notice.” -
‘It all gets so confusing if we keep saying “You-Know-Who”.’ I have never seen any reason to be frightened of saying Voldemort’s name.’
⇒ 尝试翻译：“如果我们继续说‘神秘人’会让人感到困惑。我从未发现任何说伏地魔的名字会感到害怕的理由。”
知识星球——读英语原著
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