Strings at the Shore (B)

fancy /ˈfænsi/

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fancy (noun) fantasies, whim, ‘what strikes your fancy?’ bạn thích gì

cảm hứng bất chợt, ý thích bất chợt; noun; Hu Tao suddenly had a ... for learning how to play the zither. She dragged Paimon to a music shop before Paimon could even finish her breakfast. By sunset, Hu Tao had bought an instrument, three music books, and absolutely no idea how to play any of them. Yae Miko found the whole situation so amusing that she offered to give Hu Tao a lesson.

penmanship /ˈpenmənʃɪp/

nét chữ, chữ viết; noun; Furina spent nearly an hour preparing a handwritten invitation for the others, taking great pride in her elegant .... She added swirls to almost every letter and decorated the corners with tiny flowers. Paimon stared at the invitation and quietly asked whether anyone could actually read it. Furina looked offended, while Arlecchino silently translated the entire thing in a few seconds.

defer to sb/sth

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defer (verb) hoãn lại The department deferred the decision for six months.

chiều theo, làm theo ý kiến hoặc quyết định của ai/cái gì; phrasal verb; The group could not agree on where to have dinner, so they decided to … Yae Miko's suggestion. She chose a quiet restaurant overlooking the river, and everyone immediately agreed. Even Furina, who had objected to every previous idea, admitted that the place was beautiful. Paimon later complained that … Yae had also meant agreeing to vegetables.

help yourself/sb to sth

tự lấy, tự dùng đồ ăn hoặc đồ uống; phrase; Arlecchino opened the basket and told everyone to ... whatever they wanted. Paimon needed no further encouragement and immediately grabbed two sandwiches. Hu Tao followed her example and reached for a pastry. Furina politely took only one, then returned three minutes later to get another when she thought nobody was looking.

reservation /ˌrezəˈveɪʃn/

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reservation: sự đặt chỗ, misgiving, doubt.

sự e dè, nghi ngờ, do dự; noun; Furina accepted Yae Miko's invitation without …, which surprised everyone at the table. Usually, she had at least ten questions before agreeing to anything remotely unusual. This time, however, she simply smiled and said she trusted Yae. Paimon whispered that this sounded suspiciously like the beginning of a romantic story, causing Furina to nearly choke on her tea.

unblemished /ʌnˈblemɪʃt/

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blemish (v) làm bẩn

không tì vết, hoàn toàn nguyên vẹn; adjective; The white dress Furina had chosen for the festival was completely ... when she first arrived. She spent the entire afternoon carefully avoiding puddles, children, and anything remotely dusty. Unfortunately, Hu Tao appeared with a plate of strawberry cake at exactly the wrong moment. Five minutes later, one tiny pink stain had ruined Furina's perfect record.

cast /kɑːst/

bó bột; noun; Raiden Shogun arrived at the tea house with a neatly wrapped ... around her wrist. Everyone immediately gathered around her, asking what had happened. She calmly explained that she had slipped while trying to carry too many boxes of mochi. Yae Miko stared at her for a moment before asking whether an Archon could really lose a battle to a box of sweets. Raiden quietly refused to answer.

line /laɪn/

nếp nhăn; noun; Yae Miko noticed a faint ... near Furina's eyes whenever she smiled. Furina immediately became alarmed and demanded to know whether she was "aging tragically." Yae assured her that one tiny wrinkle did not matter. Hu Tao cheerfully added that it simply meant Furina had been laughing too much. Furina decided that this was somehow both comforting and deeply insulting.

rusty as an old hinge

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rusty: rỉ sét, tệ hơn trước
hinge (n) bản lề (ở cửa khi đóng mở)

tệ, không còn tốt như trước vì lâu không sử dụng; phrase; Hu Tao picked up the old flute she had not touched in years and confidently announced that she still remembered how to play. Her first attempt sounded ... . Paimon covered her ears while Yae Miko tried very hard not to laugh. Hu Tao eventually admitted that perhaps she needed a little practice before performing in public. Arlecchino, to everyone's surprise, gave her a sincere round of applause anyway.

waking /ˈweɪkɪŋ/

khoảng thời gian khi không ngủ; adjective; Paimon somehow managed to spend almost all her ... hours looking for snacks. She searched kitchens, market stalls, picnic baskets, and even Arlecchino's office. Hu Tao joked that Paimon had developed a sixth sense for food. Paimon proudly disagreed and said it was actually a seventh sense.

note by note

từng nốt nhạc một; phrase; Furina played the melody ... during the quiet evening rehearsal. At first, her hands trembled slightly, and she had to stop several times. Raiden sat nearby and listened patiently without saying a word. By the end of the song, even Paimon had gone unusually quiet, as though she were afraid to break the mood.

strum /strʌm/

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strum (v) gảy đàn

cú gảy đàn, động tác gảy đàn; noun; Hu Tao gave the strings a dramatic ... and waited for a beautiful chord to fill the room. Instead, the instrument made a strange buzzing sound. Paimon immediately burst out laughing, while Furina tried to explain that perhaps the instrument was "emotionally complicated." Yae Miko took the zither from Hu Tao and showed her how to hold it properly.

dull /dʌl/

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dull (v): giảm đau (dull the pain), khiến ai đó uể oải (He felt dulled)

kém sức sống đi, trở nên mờ nhạt; verb; The years had ...ed the bright red paint on the old festival lanterns. Furina wanted to throw them away, but Hu Tao insisted that they could still be repaired. Together, they cleaned the lanterns and painted them again. When they were finally hung outside that evening, even Raiden admitted that the old street looked beautiful.

muted /ˈmjuːtɪd/

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mute (v) giảm âm, tắt âm.

mờ nhạt, dịu, không rực rỡ (về màu sắc hoặc ánh sáng); adjective; The room was decorated in ... shades of blue, cream, and lavender. The soft colors made the small tea house feel warm and peaceful, especially after sunset. Furina quietly admitted that she liked the atmosphere even though she usually preferred something much more dramatic. Hu Tao smiled and said that even Furina occasionally needed a quieter color palette.

have your fill (of sth/sb)

chán ngấy, đã quá đủ với điều gì/ai đó; phrase; After spending the entire afternoon listening to Furina complain about her new costume, Paimon had ... her dramatic opinions. She finally covered her ears and announced that she needed five minutes of silence. Furina looked offended, but Yae Miko was already laughing. By dinner, however, Paimon had completely forgiven her and was asking for another story.

have your fill (of food/drink)

ăn uống thỏa thích, dùng đủ no/thỏa thích; phrase; The six friends sat down to a huge evening feast prepared by Arlecchino. Paimon ... of grilled fish, dumplings, fruit, and sweet rice cakes until she could barely move. Hu Tao warned her that she would regret it later. Paimon ignored the warning and asked whether there was dessert.

on the house

miễn phí, do nhà hàng/quán chi trả; idiom; The owner smiled when the group was ready to leave and announced that the final round of tea was … . Paimon immediately looked suspicious and asked whether there was some hidden condition. The owner laughed and said he simply appreciated the lively company. Hu Tao raised her cup and declared that free tea was one of the finest forms of diplomacy.

in equal measure

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extent. in no small measure | in some, equal, etc. measure to a large extent or degree; to some, etc. extent or degree

với mức độ như nhau; idiom; Hu Tao seemed to enjoy the festival … with both chaos and genuine affection. She spent the afternoon teasing Furina while quietly making sure everyone had something to eat. Furina complained about her constantly, but she also kept smiling whenever Hu Tao came near. Yae Miko noticed this and decided not to comment, since the two girls would probably become embarrassed.

not the least bit

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not at all = not the least bit.

không một chút nào; phrase; Arlecchino was … impressed when Paimon announced that she had "organized" the picnic. She had forgotten the plates, the cups, the blankets, and almost all the food. Paimon defended herself by saying that she had remembered the important part: choosing a beautiful location. Arlecchino sighed, then quietly unpacked everything she had brought as backup.

stumble /ˈstʌmbl/

vấp, mắc lỗi khi chơi nhạc; verb; Furina was halfway through her piano performance when she suddenly ...d over a difficult sequence of notes. The room went silent for a second, and she looked horrified. Then Hu Tao deliberately played the same wrong note from the audience, making everyone laugh. Furina relaxed, smiled, and started again, this time without worrying about being perfect.