surpass v.凌驾

同excel, outdo, exceed

Tommy studied so hard that he surpassed all the other students in his class.

汤米非常用功，因此成绩比班上的其他同学都好。

thrall¹ n.奴隶

同slave, serf, bondsman

The peasant farmers were the thralls² of the lord of the castle.

这些农夫是这个城堡的主人的奴隶。

timid adj.胆怯的

同fearful, cowardly, shy

The tiny kitten was very timid, and too afraid to approach us.

这只小猫非常胆小，不敢靠近我们。

unassuming adj.谦虚的

同modest, retiring, reversed, humble³

Don't be fooled by his unassuming manner; he is really a very proud man.别被他谦虚的态度骗了，其实他是个很骄傲的人。

valiant⁴ adj.勇敢的

同dauntless, brave, courageous⁵, gallant⁶, valorous

The doctor's valiant efforts finally saved the child's life.

医生无畏的努力终于挽救了孩子的生命。

wan⁷ adj.苍白的

同pale, pallid⁸, colorless, bloodless, ashen⁹

Tony looked so wan and tired that I knew something must be wrong.

托尼看起来是如此的苍白与疲惫，我知道一定出事了。

yoke¹⁰ n.轭；束缚

同bond, chain, link, tie, union

The farmer put a yoke on the oxen's necks and began to plow¹¹ his fields.农夫把轭套在牛的脖子上，开始耕田。

Exercise: Fill in the blanks.

1. The _____ spread of the disease caused panic among the people of the country.

2. Although she was _____ to go, Tina came to the Assassin concert with me.

3. There were many _____ in organizing the business conference, but we finally succeeded.

4. Allan, who is anything but _____, often strikes up conversations with complete strangers.

5. Although she is a very accomplished¹² pianist, she has a very _____ personality.

解答：1. Rampant¹³ 2. Reluctant 3. Setbacks 4. Timid 5. unassuming