8, Before returning home at night, he took a shower and changed back into his suit.

Before returning home...介词before和动名词搭配而成的时间状语，相当于before 引导的时间状语从句。 翻译做：在...之前，...

在表示动作先后发生，且动作是由同一个主体做出时，可以用状语代替状语从句，从而使句子结构很紧凑，意思联系更密切。

e.g. After getting home, he had a good rest. 回家之后，他好好休息了一下。

e.g. Before having dinner, he finished all his homework. 饭前，他完成了作业。

9, AlF's wife has never discovered that she married a dustman and she never will, for Alf has just found another job.

She never will = she will never discover the secret

在省略句式中， never要放在助动词之前。

e.g.

‘Will you go to see her?'

‘ I will never go to see her.' ‘No, I never will.'

10, He will be earning only half as much as he used to, but he feels that his rise in status is well worth the loss of money.

half as much as (he used to): 是 ... 的一半

half (a quarter, twice, three times ) as ...as...表示倍数

e.g. I won't marry a man who is twice as old as me.我不像嫁给比我大一倍的人。

e.g. We got three times as many people as we expected. 人数是我们预计的三倍。

e.g. This room is about three times as large as that one. 这屋子是那屋的三倍。

...as (形容词或副词原形)as... 是 ...几倍

比 ...多几倍：...times (形容词或副词比较级)than...

e.g. This road is four times longer than that one. =This road is five times as long as that one.

is well worth the loss of money

e.g. What he obtained is well worth the loss of time. 他所获得的很值得，损失点时间也没关系。新概念英语第二册

Well 是副词用来加强语气，修饰形容词worth

worth adj. 后面只能跟名词或动名词

e.g.His suggestion is worth considering. 他的建议值得考虑。

Special difficulties

英语中的许多动词不能以人作为宾语，只能代某物或某事。如果需要说明是某人就要用介词to.

e.g.

He explained the difficulty to me.

He told a story to me.= He told me a story.

两类词汇：

tell可以和双宾语搭配（指物的直接宾语，指人的间接宾语)

explain, say只能带一个（直接）宾语，在间接宾语前要介词to

e.g. She speaks English to her husband and Swedish to her children.

e.g. He admitted his guilt to the police.

e.g. Did you suggest this idea to him?

当直接宾语比较长或者是个从句时，通常放在间接宾语之后，但say除外

e.g. I explained to him the impossibility of granting his request.

e.g. He confessed to me that he had fallen asleep during the meeting.