《苔丝》词汇: idiosyncrasy, levity, nicety, nebulosity, nimbus, vituperation, browbeat,
The staple conversation on the farms around was on the uselessness of saving money; and smockfrocked arithmeticians, leaning on their ploughs or hoes, would enter into calculations of great nicety to prove that parish relief was a fuller provision for a man in his old age than any which could result from savings out of their wages during a whole lifetime.
周围农庄上的主要谈话内容是存钱无用;穿着罩衫的算术家们,倚着他们的犁或锄头,开始进行非常精细的计算,以证明教区的救济对一个人的老年来说,比从他们一生的工资中储蓄出来的任何东西都要合算。(第十章)