He dashed back across the road, hurried up to his office, snapped at his secretary not to disturb him, seized his telephone and had almost finished dialling his home number when he changed his mind. He put the receiver back down and stroked his moustache, thinking … no, he was being stupid. Potter wasn’t such an unusual name. He was sure there were lots of people called Potter who had a son called Harry. Come to think of it, he wasn’t even sure his nephew was called Harry. He’d never even seen the boy. It might have been Harvey. Or Harold. There was no point in worrying Mrs Dursley, she always got so upset at any mention of her sister. He didn’t blame her – if he’d had a sister like that … but all the same, those people in cloaks …
Rowling, J.K.. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone . Bloomsbury. Kindle Edition.
Summary
“Potter”这个名字让Mr Dursley一阵慌慌乱，他本想去告诉Mrs Dursley但觉得于事无补。他心想，是自己听错了。
Knowledge Point
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"He dashed back across the road, hurried up to his office, snapped at his secretary not to disturb him, seized his telephone and had almost finished dialling his home number when he changed his mind."
⇒ dash [verb]
a quick run
⇒ dash，rush这两个动词都有“冲，奔”之意。
dash指以最快的速度向前奔驰。
rush指因急躁或事物紧急而采取快速行动。
hurry指赶紧或匆忙地做某事或催促别人做某事，隐含草率或混乱意味。
⇒ to snap at sb
朝某人怒喝；向某人发脾气
⇒ take，clutch，seize这些动词都有“抓住，握紧”之意。
take是最普通用词，不带感情色彩。指用手抓、取某东西或控制某物。
clutch强调匆忙、紧急地抓、抓紧。（前文回顾）
seize指突然抓住某物，强调突然的猛烈动作。
clutch
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"He put the receiver back down and stroked his moustache, thinking … no, he was being stupid."
⇒ 这里的receiver就是上一句出现的television。
telephone receiver 电话听筒，收话器
⇒ "...he was being stupid."
这里该如何理解？
⇒ “be + being + adj.”可表两种意义：
1.强调某人在某个时候暂时性的神态或举止；
2.某人故意表现出来的神态或举止。如果指某人一贯性的状况，就应该去掉being。试比较：
You are clever. 你很聪明。（一贯性）
You are being clever. 你现在倒很聪明。(暂时性)
You are being clever. 你在耍小聪明。(主动性)
He is stupid. (他一贯都很傻)
He is being stupid. (他平时并不傻，但现在正在犯傻)
He is being stupid. (他在装傻)
练习：
I wasn't sure if he was really interested or if he _________ polite.
A. was just being
B. will just be
C. had just been
D. would just be -
"Potter wasn’t such an unusual name."
⇒ 直译：Potter不是一个不寻常的名字。（Potter不是什么稀罕名字。）
双重否定，such表示强调。
"He was sure there were lots of people called Potter who had a son called Harry."
⇒ 他确信有很多名叫Potter的人有个名叫Harry的儿子。
⇒ 宾语从句中包含一句（who引导的）定语从句。 -
"Come to think of it, he wasn’t even sure his nephew was called Harry. He’d never even seen the boy. It might have been Harvey. Or Harold."
⇒ "It might have been..."表推测。 -
"There was no point in worrying Mrs Dursley, she always got so upset at any mention of her sister."
⇒ mention [noun]
an occasion of someone or something is mentioned
mention [verb]
to refer to something or someone
⇒ "There was no point in doing" 有两个含义：
1、 If you try to do something, it's not going to work.
如果你试图去做某事，是行不通的。
例句：
There's no point in cramming the day before the test. If I don't know it by now, an extra day of studying isn't going to help.
此处，"There was no point in doing"可以使用"It's no use doing"来改写：
It's no use cramming the day before the test.
2、 If you try doing something, it will work but there won't be any benefit from it. That might be because you already have what you need, or because you'll get the same effects whether you do something or not.
如果你尝试做某事，它会起作用，但不会有任何好处。 这可能是因为你已经拥有了你需要的东西，或者因为无论你是否做某事，你都会得到同样的效果。
例句：
There's no point in studying for Professor Clint's exam. His tests are always so easy. -
"He didn’t blame her – if he’d had a sister like that … but all the same, those people in cloaks …"
⇒ 他并没有责怪她——如果他也有那样一个妹妹的话……
⇒ but all the same 尽管如此……
知识星球——读英语原著
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