Level 2 · Reading series
Lesson 35 · Night Eyes in the City
Audio track 35
Listen first
Listen once before opening the English passage.
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On my way home from basketball practice, I saw two bright eyes under a parked car. A cat was watching the street.
Its eyes looked like small lights. My father said many night animals have eyes that reflect light well. This helps them see in dark places.
The city is not completely dark. Streetlights, car lights, and shop windows all make small pools of light.
For us, they are just lights. For a night animal, they may be useful tools.
Check your understanding
After reading, state the main idea in one sentence and find a line that supports it.
Chinese translation
篮球训练后回家的路上，我看见一辆停着的汽车下面有两只亮亮的眼睛。一只猫正望着街道。
它的眼睛像两盏小灯。爸爸说，许多夜间活动的动物，眼睛都很容易反射光，这有助于它们在暗处看东西。
城市里也不是完全漆黑。路灯、车灯和商店的橱窗，都照亮了一小片地方。
对我们来说，那些只是灯光；对夜间活动的动物来说，它们可能是有用的帮手。
Key words and expressions
Key terms have Chinese explanations. Hover over dotted words in the English passage for word help and pronunciation when available.
- on my way home
- 在回家路上；故事发生在训练之后。
- parked car
- 停着的车；猫躲在车下。
- street
- 街道；猫正望向那里。
- reflect
- 反射；猫眼把照到的光反射出来。
- dark place
- 暗处；夜行动物需要在弱光下活动。
- completely
- 完全地；城市并非完全没有光。
- streetlight
- 路灯；城市夜间的光源之一。
- pool of light
- 一小片亮处；pool of light 是形象的说法。
- useful tool
- 有用的工具；灯光可能帮助动物活动。
- night animal
- 夜行动物；主要在夜间活动的动物。
Background notes (Chinese)
猫的眼睛并不会自己发光。夜里看到的亮光来自光线的反射。课文也引导读者注意城市夜间的不同光源，以及它们对夜行动物可能产生的影响。