比拟式分拟人和拟物两种。把物拟作人叫拟人，把人拟作物叫拟物。
1．拟人
如：Wax Apple （莲雾）
Customer: Why are the wax apples so expensive?
Salesclerk : Lo, how red they are!
Customer: Their faces must become red since they are so exorbitant (高价的).
顾客：莲雾咋这么贵呀？
店员：你看它多红呀？
顾客：这么贵，它能不脸红吗？
迷你小贴士——词义辨析
exorbitant ：（索价）过高的，不合理的。文雅词。
costly：昂贵的，代价高的。
expensive：常用词。
dear：与expensive同义，英式，只作表语。
Labor Union (工会)
Once Biology Department went on a tour, a few girls gave all the things to a good-tempered boy student. The boy could not stand finally, saying tactfully:" It is said that the worker ant moves the weight as 5 times as itself, why so?"" They undeniably（不争地，无疑地） have no the labor union!" The leader of a group , a chairman of labor union, remarked.
一次生物系出游，几个女生把东西都给了一个好脾气的男生，男生最后吃不消了，委婉地说：“一个工蚁搬的量竟然是它体重的5倍，知道是什么原因吗？”“它们肯定是没有工会！”领队的工会主席说。
迷你小贴士——词义辨析
coalition：各政党为了特殊目的组成的联盟。
confederacy：同盟，州联邦。强调在中央政府领导下的正式组织。
confederation：与confederacy同，强调两个以上政府间的联邦。
federation：联合总会，联盟。侧重代表中央一部分权限的组织，或国家、州间的组织。
alliance：同盟国，联盟。侧重两国间订立的同盟，对双方都有利的联盟，联姻。
league：联盟，同盟。民间的、半官方的、国际间的组织。常用词。
union：联合，联盟。在政治上侧重永久性。
association ：协会，学会，社团。
Lack Calcium （缺钙）
Biology professor was giving a lead-in (=introductory remarks：引言，开场白) before lecture, he said:" Someone did a free test for me once in the Daguanyuan market, saying that I was deficient in the calcium seriously." Classmates all smiled on seeing that scrawny(消瘦的) face of professor. Added the professor: “ I asked the operator that what else do I had except for calcium? That man also smiled. "After that , the professor prepared to write on the blackboard " Function of the Calcium" . No sooner had (紧时句型，只有过去时，倒装) he written than the chalk broken, however. He continued making fun: “ Just chalk lacks of calcium.
生物教授讲正课前在做引子，他说：“有人在大观园商场给我免费做了一次测试，说我严重缺钙。”同学们一看教授那清瘦的面孔都笑了。教授接着说：“我问那位卖药的测试员，‘你看我除了钙还有什么？’那位测试员也笑了。”之后，教授准备在黑板上写下“钙的功能”四个字。可粉笔一写就断，他又调侃说：“粉笔才缺钙！”
迷你小贴士——词义辨析
scrawny：消瘦的，营养不良的。
wiry：瘦而有力的。
skinny：皮包骨头的，通俗词。
meager：皮包骨头的。正式。
lean：瘦的，无脂肪的。
thin：常用词。
Taking Care of Countryman （照顾老乡）
My wife ,along with me, went to my birthplace during summer vacation. Because the village teemed（大量，很多）with mosquitoes , my wife was badly stung by the mosquitoes . However I was safe and sound. Wife asked: "Why do not the mosquitoes bite you ?"I elucidated(解释):
" We all are the countrymen here, the mosquitoes take care of me."
夏天妻子随我回了一趟我的老家。农村蚊子很多，妻子被叮得惨不忍睹，我却安然无恙。妻子问：“蚊子为什么不咬你？”我解释说：“我们都是老乡，蚊子照顾我。”
迷你小贴士——词义辨析
teem：大量有，很多小东西在一个空间内狂乱活动。
swarm：密集，很多小东西在有限空间内急速活动。
abound：富于，充满。表示丰厚的、品质好的。
overflow：溢出，满出。
Foreign Language （外语）
Mother rat , as well as his children , is (主谓一致)playing game. Suddenly a big spotted cat comes near , so the rats flee for lives hurriedly. The little rats are too young to run quickly to be caught by the cat in no time. Just at that moment the mother rat stops to turn round to howl （狼、狗的嚎叫，怒号）at the cat regardless of personal safety:" Bark, bark ."Sounds like a cur（恶狗，坏种）. The spotted cat gets muddled（使混乱）, taking to the wilds(落荒而逃).
Mother rat summons(带有权威性的召集)together the children seized with terror, saying in sincere words and earnest wishes（语重心长）:" You see how important it is to master a second language!"
老鼠妈妈正带着孩子们玩耍，突然过来一只大花猫，老鼠们于是赶紧逃命。小老鼠们跑不快，眼看就要被猫逮住。这时，老鼠妈妈停了下来，转过脸奋不顾身地向猫咆哮：“汪，汪。”听起来有如一只恶狗。花猫懵了，落荒而逃。
老鼠妈妈召集起惊魂未定的孩子，语重心长地说：“看，学一门外语多重要！”
迷你小贴士——词义辨析
summons：正式，带有权威性的召集。
Beckon：招手示意。
Call：常用词 。
Put It Even （摆平）
Preparing for writing-brush, ink, rice- paper and inkstone , I planned to practice the calligraphy（书法）. I discovered the desk uneven, then put a 5-cent coin beneath one of its four legs. However, it was not leveled up. My little daughter reminded :" It still wants the money."
备好笔墨纸砚，打算练练书法。我发现桌子不平，就在一桌子腿下垫了5分硬币，试了试仍有一点不平。小女提醒我 说：“它可能嫌钱少。”
迷你小贴士——词根突破
口诀：词根graph=gram，表示“写、画与论述”。
calligraphy= call-（美丽）+i+ graph（写）+y →calligraphy
monograph ：专著。mono-（单一，一种）+graph-（论述）→monograph
telegraph ：电报。tele -（电波，远）+graph-（文字）→telegraph
biography：传记bio-（生命）+graph-（写）→biography
autograph：手稿，亲笔签名。auto-（自己）+ graph-（写）→autograph
autobiography：自传。auto-（自己）+ biography （传记）→autobiography
geography：地理。geo-（大地）+graph-（论述）→geography
diagram ：图解，图表。dia-（对穿）+gram-（画线）→ diagram
program：节目单，计划。pro-（在前面）+gram-（写）→ program
Tortoise （乌龟）
A farmer bought 100 tortoises, preparing to breed them in pond. After home, he found there were only 99 tortoises left, however. Then he looked for everywhere, but found nothing. So it was reading short message as walking on the zebra crossing unmannerly (没有礼貌地).
一个农民买了一百只乌龟，准备在池塘里养殖。回到家后，却只剩下99只。四处寻找，也找不到。原来它在斑马线上边走边傻吃吃地看短信呢。
迷你小贴士——词根突破
Where Is South? (哪是南？)
Owing to the voltage (电压，伏特数) too low in summer , the breeze fan often doesn’t turn, shrieking “crackling” in the air. Three-year-old Linda scurries(小跑) over to scold it: “Idiot, don’t you know how to revolve(旋转) southwards?”
夏天电压不足，微风扇时常转不起来，吊在上面“喀喀”直叫。三岁的林达跑过来熊它：“笨蛋，还不知道往南转吗？”
迷你小贴士——词义辨析
revolve：绕转，以别的东西为中心旋转。
rotate：自转，围绕自己的轴心旋转。
roll：在别的物体上滚动。 (接下页)