n. a long speech by one person; a spoken part in a play or film for a single person 獨白

maddeningly

ad. annoyingly

tiresome

a. irritating or boring

mania

n. a desire so strong than it seems mad; an unusual or unreasonable fondness 狂熱；癖好

hint

n. a statement or action that gives a small or indirect suggestion

trivial

a. of little or no importance

harangue

n. a long, loud speech, esp. one which blames those listening to it

volubility

n. fondness for talking; talkativeness

deafen

vt. make deaf, esp. for a short time; stun with noise

vegetarianism

n. the practice or principle of eating only vegetable foods and refraining from eating meat, fish or other animal products

pamphlet

n. a small book with paper covers which deals usu. with some matter of public interest; booklet 小冊子

expense

n. cost in money, time, or effort

opera

n. a musical play

summon

vt. order(sb.) to come

applause

n. loud praise for a performer or performance, esp. by striking the hands together

needless

a. unnecessary

eminent

a. (of people) famous and admired

vocalist

n. singer

vocal

a. of the voice

rave

vi. talk wildly

suicidal

a. wishing to kill oneself, which leads or will lead to death or destruction

suicide n.

gloom

n. a feeling of unhappiness or despair

gloomy a.

darkly

ad. with a dark, gloomy, or menacing look or manner

Buddhist

a., n. having to do with Buddhism; a believer in Buddhism 佛教的；佛教徒

monk

n. a member of an all-male religious group who has made solemn promises, esp. not to marry and not to have any possessions, living in a monastery 僧侶

Buddhist monk 僧，和尚

grief

n. a feeling of extreme sadness

grief-stricken

a. filled with great sorrow

grieve v.

pet

n. an animal kept in the home as a companion

callous

a. without feeling for the suffering of other people; unkind

emperor

n. the ruler of an empire

shudder

vi. shake uncontrollably for a moment, esp. from fear, cold, or strong dislike; tremble

incapable

a. not having the power or ability to do sth. or show a quality

grovel

vi. be shamefully bumble or eager to please; ask or beg with too great humility 卑躬屈膝，奴顏婢膝

loftily

ad. proudly; haughtily

lofty

a. very high; towering; noble

benefactor

n. a person who gives friendly help, often in the form of money

mortally

ad. bitterly, extremely

mortal

a. causing death; certain to die someday

offend

vt. hurt the feeling of; upset

offensive

a.

recipient

n. a person who receives sth.

legal

a. of or using the law

rajah

n. an Indian ruler

prospective

a. expected or intended; likely to be or become

royalty

n. a part of the price of a book, paid to the writer on each copy sold; a payment made to the writer of a play or piece of music when it is performed 版稅

pressing

a. urgent

jail

n. prison

unscrupulous

a. not caring about honesty and fairness in getting what one wants; completely without principles

endless

a. having or seeming to have no end; never finishing

infidelity

n. an act of disloyalty; lack of faithfulness, esp. to husband or wife

admirer

n. a person who admires, esp. a man who is attracted to a particular woman

wealthy

a. rich, abundant

selfish

a. concerned about oneself without thinking of others

devotion

n. loyalty

lessen

v. make or become less

autobiography

n. the story of a person's life written by himself/herself

disagreeable

a. bad-tempered and unfriendly; unpleasant

stupendous

a. amazing, marvelous 巨大的，驚人的

musical

a. of or for music

genius

n. a person who has very great natural ability to think and create

unquestionably

ad. beyond dispute or doubt; certainly

rank

v. have or regard as having a certain rank or relative position

musico-dramatic

a. of or concerning both music and the drama

masterpiece

n. an outstanding work 杰作

headache

n. a pain in the head; a difficult or worrying problem

loot

vt. rob, plunder

trilogy

n. a group of three related books, plays, etc. connected by common subject matter, but each complete in itself （小說、戲劇等的）三部曲

faithless

a. not deserving trust; disloyal

compromise

vi. surrender one's principles, etc. dishonorably; reach an agreement by having each side give up certain demands 背棄；妥協

downright

ad. thoroughly; completely

grand

a. dignified, stately

forgive

v. stop being angry (at)

forgiveness

n. the act of forgiving or the willingness to forgive; pardon

scratch

v. dig, scrape, or injure with sth. sharp, such as fingernails, claws or a tool

shriek

vi. make a loud, shrill cry

miracle

n. sth. that is amazing and unusual 奇跡

Phrases & Expressions

in relation to

in connection with; with regard to; about

in one's eyes

in one's opinion

in support of

supporting

at sb.'s expense

with sb. paying the cost

needless to say

of course; as was to be expected

out of sorts

in an angry or unhappy mood; in a bad temper

under obligation (to do)

having the duty (to do)

good for

able to pay or contribute; useful or suitable for

lay one's hands on

find; gain possession of

run up

allow (sth. such as debt) to increase

on record

written down in a record