Gender Readings. Top Ten. Ренц Т.Г - 19 стр.

      totally ignored: took no notice at all of.
      accents: marks in the music showing how it should be played.
      staggering: astonishing (because such strong emotion makes one’s
legs feel weak).
      Lament: a sad song.
      beating time: moving one’s hand to mark the rhythm of the
music. The beat is the time given by the conductor, who beats time by
the movements of his baton or his hand.
      drear: poetic form of “dreary”.
      fleetly: a poetic word meaning “quickly”.
      What could have possessed him: What madness had seized him.
      It came out of nothing: There was no reason for it.
      natty: a colloquial word for “smart”.
      gloom: sadness, mournful sound.
      the headmaster’s wife: Basil is evidently a schoolmaster.
      It doesn’t do: It isn’t wise, It isn’t a good thing.
      wailed: sang sadly.
      ones: i. e. leaves.
      boa: a scarf made of feathers, which ladies used to wear round
their neck.
      spots of rain, willows whispering: The weather and the trees
seem to be sad, in harmony with Miss Meadows’ present mood.
      cared: loved her.
      face meet Face as a verb generally suggests meeting something
unpleasant.
      fussily: the meaning of this word depends on the context in
which it is used. Here it suggests that the little girl was behaving in
a self-conscious way, feeling important as she interrupted the big
girls’ lesson.
      the mistresses’ room: the teachers’ room.
      her lace lie: i. e. piece of lace worn round her neck.
      very kindly: the headmistress spoke kindly because she had a
telegram for Miss Meadows. Many people send telegrams only to
announce urgent news of illness or death.
      no more than fondly: the headmistress was perhaps a little an-
noyed at Miss Meadows’ eagerness to take the telegram from her.
      sped: went quickly (from “speed”). A literary word.
      over: across the platform.


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