Have you ever been less excited to go to school because of the rain? What about hearing the pitter-patter of rain in the middle of the afternoon and feeling the need to take a nap? It has been proven that rain can make us tired. Some people like the sound of rain so much that they listen to recordingsof it to help them fall asleep. But why does rain make us sleepy?
The first answer is simple—the lack of sunlight . The cloudy and dark conditions on rainy days can lead to the production of a sleep-related hormone called melatonin , which makes people feel drowsy. Another reason is pink noise. In comparison with white noise, which is equally distributedacross all frequencies , pink noise is a lower, gentler, and more soothing sound. Think of the plop, plop, plop of raindrops hitting windowsills . While the pink noise isn’t always there, the sounds can turn into lullabies when it rains. Apart from dark skies and pink noise, the humiditythat rain brings also plays a part. In humid conditions, the air becomes heavy with moisture. This means our lungs have to work harder to get oxygen from the air. The increased laborof breathing can be tiring, making us want to sleep.
Symptoms of hormone imbalance in women may be early signs of many things, such as pregnancy or the onset of menopause.
女性體內荷爾蒙不均衡的症狀可能是許多事的前兆，像是懷孕或是更年期的開始。
高中 Level 5
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melatonin
[ˌmeləˈtəʊnɪn]
n. 褪黑激素
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soothing
[ˋsuðɪŋ]
a. 撫慰的，使人寬心的
英檢中高
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raindrop
[ˋren͵drɑp]
n. 雨滴
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windowsill
[ˋwɪndo͵sɪl]
n. 窗臺
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lullaby
[ˋlʌlə͵baɪ]
n. . 搖籃曲
My grandma usually sang a lullaby before I went to
sleep when I was little.
小時候我奶奶在我睡前常會唱搖籃曲。
高中 Level 6
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oxygen
[ˋɑksədʒən]
n. 氧氣
Without oxygen, we would die.
沒有氧氣我們就會死掉。
高中 Level 4
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affective
[əˋfɛktɪv]
a. 情緒上（引起）的
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disorder
[dɪsˋɔrdɚ]
n. 無秩序，雜亂、(身體機能的)疾病,失調
vt. 使混亂
=
chaos
=
mess
How come your room is always in disorder?
你的房間為何老是很雜亂？
How come your room is always in chaos?
你的房間為何老是很雜亂？
How come your room is always a mess?
你的房間為何老是很雜亂？
The newborn baby completely disordered their lives.
新生兒完全打亂了他們的生活。
多益金色
英檢中級
高中 Level 4
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withdrawal
[wɪðˋdrɔəl]
n. 撤回，撤退；提款
Senator Kennedy's withdrawal of his bill came as a surprise to everyone.
甘迺迪參議員把法案撤回，令所有人大吃一驚。
多益金色
英檢中高
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therapy
[ˋθɛrəpɪ]
n. 療法
=
treatment
After suffering from emotional problems since he was a child, Don finally decided to get some therapy.
唐恩自小受情緒問題所苦，他最終決定接受治療。
多益藍色
英檢中級
高中 Level 5
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symptom
[ˋsɪmptəm]
n. 症狀
A high fever, a sore throat, and a runny nose are all symptoms of the flu.
發高燒、喉嚨痛以及流鼻水都是流行性感冒的症狀。
多益藍色
英檢中級
高中 Level 5
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bask
[bæsk]
vi. 晒太陽；取暖
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nap
[næp]
vi. 打瞌睡
n. 打盹，小睡
三態
nap / napped [næpt] / napped [næpt]
=
snap
Grandfather napped in the armchair while the TV was still on.
爺爺在單人座沙發上打起瞌睡，而電視還開著。
You look exhausted. Why don’t you take a nap?
你看來累極了。何不小睡一下？
高中 Level 3
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recording
[rɪˋkɔrdɪŋ]
n. 錄音；錄影
These recordings from test takers will be graded to decide whether they pass the test.
考生的這些錄音會被評分以決定他們是否通過測驗。
英檢中高
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drowsy
[ˋdraʊzɪ]
a. 昏昏欲睡的
=
sleepy
People often feel drowsy after eating lunch.
吃完午餐後，大家常會感到昏昏欲睡。
高中 Level 4
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distribute
[dɪˋstrɪbjʊt]
.vt. 分發，分配
=
deliver
The professor is distributing the examination
papers to the class.
該教授正在把考卷發給全班。
多益藍色
英檢中級
高中 Level 4
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frequency
[ˋfrikwənsɪ]
n. 頻率；頻繁
Dolphins are known to communicate via a high frequency sound they produce.
據了解，海豚會藉發出高頻率的聲音溝通。
The frequency of bank robberies in this area has declined.
該區銀行搶案的次數已降低。
高中 Level 4
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humidity
[hjuˋmɪdətɪ]
n. 溼氣，溼度
=
moisture
I hate summer because of the humidity.
我討厭夏天，因為溼氣太重。
高中 Level 4
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moisture
[ˋmɔɪstʃɚ]
n. 溼氣，水分
Moisture is taken out of the air by this machine, after which it turns into water. 溼氣被這臺機器從空氣裡抽出，之後便轉變成水。
英檢中級
高中 Level 3
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labor
[ˋlebɚ]
n. 勞動，勞力；分娩
vi. 勞動，工作
=
work
=
toil
Wages for unskilled labor are usually not very high.
非技術性勞力的薪資通常不會很高。
Kate was in labor for almost four hours before she gave birth to a healthy baby boy.
凱特分娩了將近四個小時才生下一個健康的男寶寶。
George labored late into the night in order to finish his report.
為了完成他的報告，喬治工作到很晚。
多益金色
英檢中級
高中 Level 4
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depression
[dɪˋprɛʃən]
n. 沮喪；憂鬱症；（經濟）蕭條，不景氣
=
sadness
=
despair
=
recession
After losing my job, I experienced feelings of depression.
失業後，我感到消沉。
Steve has been suffering from depression since his wife passed away.
自從太太過世後，史蒂夫便飽受憂鬱症的折磨。
Many businesses failed to live through the Great Depression of the 1930s.
許多企業未能捱過 30 年代的經濟大蕭條時期。
多益藍色
英檢中級
高中 Level 4
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exposure
[ɪkˋspoʒɚ]
n. 暴露，曝晒；接觸（與介詞 to 並用）
Too much exposure to sunlight can cause skin problems.
過度曝晒於陽光下可能引發皮膚問題。
Constant exposure to French is a must if you want to master the language.
多多接觸法文是想要精通這個語言的不二法門。
英檢中級
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relieve
[rɪˋliv]
vt. 減輕；緩和
=
soothe
Aspirin will relieve your headache.
阿斯匹靈會減輕你的頭痛。
The government will take steps to relieve unemployment.
政府將採取措施來緩和失業的現象。
多益金色
英檢中級
高中 Level 4
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warmth
[wɔrmθ]
n. 溫暖
Seeing Jane smile brings me warmth and makes my day.
看到珍的笑容會帶給我溫暖，讓我開心一整天。
高中 Level 3
Practical Phrases
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Seasonal Affective Disorder
季節性情緒失調
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bask in
沉浸在⋯⋯中
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in comparison to
相較於⋯⋯
The pace of life in the countryside is slow and easy in comparison to big cities. 相較於大城市，鄉下的生活步調緩慢又輕鬆。
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in comparison with...
與……相較
In comparison with my old one, my new motorcycle is really fast. 與我那臺舊摩托車比起來，新的跑得真是快。
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apart from...
除了……
= aside from
John occasionally goes hiking. Apart from that, he hardly has any hobbies.
約翰偶爾會健行。除此之外，他幾乎沒有什麼嗜好。
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bring on....
引起／造成⋯⋯
Reading with poor light may bring on a headache.
在照明設備不足下閱讀可能會造成頭痛。
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pour down
（雨）傾盆而下
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take a nap
小睡一會
= take a siesta
You look exhausted. Why don’t you take a nap?
你看來累極了。何不小睡一下？
