苏轼6

What was Wang's character? What werehis political reforms about and how was the country affected by him and his reforms?

This chapter focuses on Wang, especially the contrast of his words and his acts. He was regarded as a hypercrite,and his reforms ended up putting a lot of strain on the country.

China was to be plunged into a wave of new social experiments amid political storms whose concussions were felt to the very end of the...

plunge

[plʌndʒ][usually + adv/prep]

IMPROVER

■to (cause someone or something to) move or fall suddenly and often a long way forward, down or into something（使）投入；（使）插入；（使）刺入

•We ran down to the beach and plunged into the sea.我们跑向海滩，纵身跳入海中。

•The car went out of control and plunged over the cliff.轿车失去控制坠下悬崖。

•Cook the peas by plunging them into boiling water.把豌豆倒入沸水中煮。

•Niagara Falls plunges 55.5 metres.尼加拉大瀑布落差为55.5米。

•The fall in demand caused share prices to plunge.需求下降导致股价大幅下跌。

•Our income has plunged dramatically.我们的收入骤减。

[plʌndʒ] [usually + adv/prep]

Phrasal Verbs plunge in/plunge into sth

■to suddenly start doing something actively or enthusiastically突然开始积极地做

•Two months before his exams, he suddenly plunged into his studies.考试前的两个月，他突然开始埋头苦读。

•He took a deep breath and plunged into his speech.他深吸了一口气，开始热情洋溢地讲了起来。

[plʌndʒ]verb intransitive or transitive[usually + adv/prep]

Phrasal Verbs[often passive]plunge (sb/sth) into sth

■to suddenly experience a bad situation or unhappiness, or to make someone or something suddenly experience a bad situation or unhappiness（使）陷入；（使）经历

•The country was plunged into recession.该国突然陷入经济衰退。

•He was plunged into despair when his wife left him.他妻子离开他时，他一下子陷入绝望之中。

[plʌndʒ]nouncountable

■a sudden movement or fall forward, down or into something跳入；下跌；落下

•I really enjoyed my plunge(= jumping in and swimming)in the

pool.我很喜欢在游泳池里跳水游泳。

■a sudden and large fall in value or level暴跌，骤降

•We are expecting a plunge in profits this year.我们预计今年利润将大幅下降。

Here was a singular man beneath whose strange appearance lay talents and character the officials could not fathom.

Bide

bide your time

■to wait calmly for a good opportunity to do something静候时机

•She was biding her time until she could get her revenge.她正在等待时机，报仇雪恨。

slovenliness is the mark of genius and that the best assurance of immortality is the refusal to dress like a gentleman.

MARK

■an action which is understood to represent or show a characteristic of a person or thing or feeling（情感的）表示；（特征的）标志

•He took off his hat as a mark of respect for her dead husband.他脱帽以示对她死去的丈夫的敬意。

•It's the mark of a gentleman to stand up when someone enters the room.有人进屋时站起来是绅士之举。

•I'd like to give this bottle of wine as a mark of appreciation for all the work you've done for us.我谨以这瓶酒对您为我们所做的一切表示谢意。

沽名钓誉:用某种不正当的手段捞取名誉。