WORDS&PHRASES

There is no pat answer.

能被表示程度的副词或介词词组修饰的形容词]敷衍的；过于简单的

If you say that an answer or explanation is pat, you disapprove of it because it is too simple and sounds as if it has been prepared in advance. [disapproval]

There's no pat answer to that...

那个问题不是随随便便就能回答的。

Despite the film's merits I felt it was too pat.

尽管那部电影不乏亮点，但我还是觉得它过于敷衍了事。

Readers of a literary review expect its writers to start somewhat discursively.

Discursive

离题的;东拉西扯的;不着边际的

If a style of writing is discursive, it includes a lot of facts or opinions that are not necessarily relevant. [Formal]

..a livelier, more candid and more discursive treatment of the subject.

对该主题的更生动、更坦率、更发散性的论述

Don’t dwell on the reason.

沉湎于,唠叨,赘述(尤指令人不快的事)

If you dwell on something, especially something unpleasant, you think, speak, or write about it a lot or for quite a long time. [V on/upon n]

I'd rather not dwell on the past.

We are obsessed by the minutiae of the game and nagged for the rest of our lives by the memory of players we once saw play.

琐碎细节;细枝末节

The minutiae of something such as someone's job or life are the very small details of it. [usu the N of n] [Formal]

Much of his early work is concerned with the minutiae of rural life.

他早期的许多作品关注的是农村生活中一些鸡毛蒜皮的琐事。

And I make a point of driving past it every now and then.

to always do something or to take particular care to do something

She makes a point of keeping all her shopping receipts.

We can still visualize the outline, with its Roman numerals, which staked out the road we would faithfully trudge.

明确表明，清楚界定(立场、要求等)

If you stake out a position that you are stating or a claim that you are making, you are defending the boundaries or limits of the position or claim. [V P n (not pron)]

Those who want to take child abuse seriously today must stake out a humane child protection practice...

当前想要认真对待虐待儿童问题的人们必须明确保护儿童的人道主义行为的具体做法。

The time has come for Hindus to stake out their claim to their own homeland.

印度教徒对自己家园主张权利的时候到了。

But if you’re going to write good nonfiction you must wriggle out of the dread grip.

设法摆脱，逃避(应做的事情)

If you say that someone has wriggled out of doing something, you disapprove of the fact that they have managed to avoid doing it, although they should have done it. [V P P n/-ing] [disapproval]

The Government has tried to wriggle out of any responsibility for providing childcare for working parents.

政府试图推脱为在职父母提供儿童保育服务的责任。

Why didn’t you give more thought to how you were going to wind this thing up?(和下面的wrap up区分）

to end, or to make an activity end

I think it's about time we wound this meeting up.

We need to wind up now, we've only got five minutes.

Often it takes just a few sentences to wrap things up.

圆满完成，圆满结束(工作、协议等)

If you wrap up something such as a job or an agreement, you complete it in a satisfactory way. [V P n (not pron)] [V n P]

NATO defense ministers wrap up their meeting in Brussels today...

北约各国国防部长今天圆满结束了在布鲁塞尔的会议。

Seeing Sticht was keeping him from his golf game, and he hoped they could wrap it up quickly.

去看望斯蒂克特让他打不成高尔夫球，他希望他们能赶快看完走人。

SUMMARY

In Chapter 9, Zinsser firstly stresses the importance ofalead in an article. When writing a lead, the writer must consider their readers first, because they will decide the length and whether they keep reading. In terms of the content, a lead should provide some condensed details and a humorous or surprising last sentence which lure readers to proceed. To enrich leading materials, the writer must learn how to collect information in various forms. Also, the writer can start his article by telling a story, which issimple and effective. At the same time, the writer should also give equal attention to the ending part. The first thing is to jump out of the outline and fixed rules. To create a good end which impresses readers, the writer should stop at the right time. An ideal end consists the main idea of the piece and leave a surprise with readers. Making the story a full circle and using a quotation are good ways to conclude the article.