Fifty pence worth of trouble

原文

Children always appreciate small gifts of money. Mum or dad, of course, provide a regular supply of pocket money, but uncles and ants are always a source of extra income. With some children, small sums go a long way. If fifty pence pieces are not exchanged for sweets, they rattle for months inside money boxes. Only very thrifty children manage to fill up a money box. For most of them, fifty pence is a small price to pay for a nice big bar of chocolate.

My nephew, George, has a money box but it is always empty. Very few of the fifty pence pieces and pound coins I have given him have found their way there. I gave him fifty pence yesterday and advised him to save it. Instead he bought himself fifty pence worth of trouble. On his way to the sweet shop, he dropped his fifty pence and it bounced along the pavement and then disappeared down a drain. George took off his jacket, rolled up his sleeves and pushed is right arm through the drain cover. He could not find his fifty pence piece anywhere, and what is more, he could no get his arm out. A crowd of people gathered round him and a lady rubbed his arm with soap and butter, but George was firmly stuck. The fire brigade was called and two fire fighter freed George using a special type of grease. George was not too upset by his experience because the lady who owns the sweet shop heard about his troubles and rewarded him with large box of chocolates.

译文

孩子们总是很感激小额的金钱礼物。当然，父母提供固定的零用钱，而叔叔阿姨总是额外收入的来源。有些孩子，小笔钱能用很久；如果50便士硬币不拿去换糖果，它们就会在储钱罐里叮当作响数月。只有非常节俭的孩子才能把储钱罐装满。对他们大多数人来说，50便士不过是买一大块巧克力的小小代价。

我的侄子乔治有一个储钱罐，但它总是空的。我给他的50便士硬币和1英镑硬币很少有存进去的。昨天我给了他50便士，并劝他存起来。结果他却给自己买了价值50便士的麻烦。在去糖果店的路上，他掉了那枚50便士硬币，它沿着人行道弹跳，然后消失在下水道里。乔治脱掉夹克，卷起袖子，把右臂伸进下水道盖。他找不到那枚50便士硬币，而且更糟糕的是，他无法把胳膊抽出来。一群人围拢过来，一位女士用肥皂和黄油揉他的胳膊，但乔治牢牢卡住了。消防队被叫来，两名消防员用一种特殊的油脂解救了乔治。乔治对这次经历并不太沮丧，因为糖果店的老板娘听说了他的麻烦事，奖励了他一大盒巧克力。

词汇表

appreciate

动词

英:/əˈpriːʃieɪt/

美:/əˈpriːʃieɪt/

定义

1. 欣赏/感激 - To value or recognize the worth of something, often with gratitude.

例子: Children always appreciate small gifts of money.

例子: I appreciate your advice on saving money.

2. 理解/认识到 - To understand or realize the full implications of something.

例子: He appreciates the importance of saving for the future.

例子: She appreciates how quickly money can disappear.

近义词

value: 强调内在价值或重要性，较中性，而 appreciate 更带情感色彩。

cherish: 更侧重情感依恋和珍视，常用于人和事物，而 appreciate 更广泛适用于抽象概念。

admire: 焦点在赞美或敬佩，常用于品质或成就，而 appreciate 包括感激的层面。

反义词:

disregard, dislike, undervalue

用法

常用于表达感激或理解，常与介词 'for' 或 'as' 搭配，如 'appreciate for help'；在非正式语境中常见，尤其在家庭或日常对话中。

形式:

过去式: appreciated, 现在分词: appreciating, 名词形式: appreciation

深入解析：关键句型 "If + present simple, [main clause]"

定义

这个句型是第一条件句的典型结构，用于描述真实或可能的条件及其结果。基本形式为：If + present simple tense（现在简单时）+ 逗号 + [main clause]（主句，通常用will或其他动词）。例如，在文章中如 "If fifty pence pieces are not exchanged for sweets, they rattle for months inside money boxes." 权威教材如《新概念英语》或《剑桥英语语法》定义它为表达现实条件句，强调如果条件成立，结果就会发生，突出因果关系。

用法

此句型常用于日常生活预测或建议场景，例如谈论习惯、警告或一般事实。在语法体系中，它属于条件句类型，位于条件从句和主句的框架内。规则包括：从句用present simple表示条件，主句可使用will + infinitive或其他时态表示结果（如一般现在时）。它链接相关语法知识，如与一般现在时结合，构建因果逻辑；跨语法点联系，它与时间状语从句（如when）类似，帮助学生从简单句过渡到复杂句。使用场景包括日常对话、建议或故事叙述，如文章中用于描述孩子的行为习惯。

注意事项

学生易犯的错误包括混淆时态，例如用过去时替换present simple在从句中（如说 "If I went..." 而非 "If I go..."，这会变成第二条件句）；另一个偏误是遗漏逗号或错误连接主从句，导致句子不完整。纠正建议：练习区分不同条件句类型，通过记忆公式If + present simple, will + verb，并在写作中检查时态一致性。另外，注意在否定句中正确使用not（如 "If not exchanged"），避免双重否定或逻辑混乱。

练习

一个额外的例子："If you save your money, you can buy something nice later." 学生可以尝试修改为自己的情境，如 "If I study hard, I will pass the exam." 通过这个练习，学生能应用句型，替换主句和从句内容，并在口头表达中强化结构。

额外内容

背景知识：这个句型源于英语的条件表达，常见于英美口语中，对比分析，它与法语的条件句类似，但英语更注重时态精确。补充信息：掌握此句型后，学生可扩展到其他条件句，如第二条件句（If + past simple），丰富叙述能力，如文章中的故事元素。

深入解析：关键句型 "Very few of the [noun] have [verb]"

定义

这个句型用于表达数量稀少或例外情况，结构为：Very few of the + [noun]（名词）+ have + [verb]（动词）。如文章中的 "Very few of the fifty pence pieces and pound coins I have given him have found their way there." 权威教材如《新概念英语》定义它为量化表达，强调所有者或对象的少量部分具有某种特征，突出否定或限制含义。

用法

此句型常用于描述稀有事件、统计或个人经历，在语法体系中属于限定词与动词短语的结合。规则包括：Very few 作为限定词修饰可数名词的复数形式，后跟 have + 过去分词（现在完成时），表示动作已发生但结果有限。它链接相关语法知识，如与现在完成时（have + past participle）结合，强调持续影响；跨语法点联系，它与 other quantifiers（如 many, some）相关，帮助学生在句子中处理数量表达。使用场景包括叙述故事、抱怨或观察，如文章中用于描述孩子的储蓄习惯。

注意事项

学生易犯的错误包括误用Very few 与 Few 的区别（如将 "Very few" 替换为 "Few" 改变强调程度）；另一个偏误是时态不一致，例如用一般过去时代替现在完成时（如说 "had found" 而非 "have found"，导致时间混乱）。纠正建议：通过练习量化表达的列表（Very few, A few, Many），并在上下文中检查动词时态，确保与整体叙述匹配。另外，避免在正式写作中过度简化，导致句子含糊。

练习

一个额外的例子："Very few of the students in my class have visited that museum." 学生可以尝试扩展为 "Very few of the books I bought have been read." 这有助于应用句型，替换名词和动词，并在对话中练习表达稀少情况。

额外内容

背景知识：这个句型反映英语中对数量的精确描述，起源于古英语的修饰语。对比分析，与中文的类似表达不同，英语更依赖限定词如 Very few 来调整语气。补充信息：学习此句型能提升学生在写作中的精确性，并与文章主题结合，鼓励讨论金钱管理。