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大家是否还记得福尔摩斯的招牌表情?比如,在他听完扑朔迷离的案件之后会做什么?华生医生是这样形容的:“At that time, Holmes had kept his distance, thinking in a brown study but never leaping to his feet.”“Thinking in a brown study”? 难道福尔摩斯必须呆在“四壁涂成褐色的书房”里才能完成缜密推理吗?
其实,“in a brown study”是个固定搭配,指“in a state of deep thought”,即“沉思”的意思。