The family of eight was living in straitened circumstances .
八口之家日子过得很拮据。
1.贫困的
1.动词straiten的过去式和过去分词形式
1.made difficult by financial problems
1.the past tense and past participle of straiten
1.He is often called to consult on how to "green up" projects, and his advice, in these straitened times, is often admirably bold.
他经常被咨询如何让项目“绿起来”，他的建议在这样一个困难时期可谓相当大胆。
2.Even in the straitened years of post-war reconstruction, he was soon selling millions of books a year.
即便是在战后重建的贫困时期，《丁丁历险记》依然可以每年很快售出数百万册书。
3.So he returned his straitened means to his pocket, and gave up the idea of trying to buy the boys.
于是他又把这几件可怜的宝贝玩意装进口袋，打消了用这些来收买那些男孩子的念头。
4.The step of his strength shall be straitened, and his own counsel shall cast him down headlong.
他强健的脚步要踌躇不前，他的计谋必使自己颠仆。
5.The steps of his strength shall be straitened, and his own counsel shall cast him down.
他坚强的脚步必见狭窄。自己的计谋必将他绊倒。
6.Politicians are not keen to see a big rise in the cost of the monarchy, especially in these straitened times.
政治家们不希望看到君主政体的成本上涨，尤其是在这贫困时期。
7.Profligacy: extravagance is not an asset in these straitened times. You want a cost-conscious, abstemious colleague who leads by example.
肆意挥霍：大手大脚在资金紧缺的当下可不是个优点。你需要一位能以身作则地注意成本控制、有节制的合作伙伴。
8.It is almost an "item of faith" among development economists that the poor act rationally, however straitened their circumstances.
无论多么穷困潦倒，穷人做事都很理性，这几乎成了发展经济学家所持的信念。
9.Besides, these straitened times have reminded him of the need to address contacts and clients in a more direct and compelling way.
除此之外，聊天的过于便携与迅速，也促使人们以更直接更有趣味性的方式签署合同，或与客户商谈。
10.His sturdy, gloomy and world-weary countenance, and his soft-spoken manner, were ideally suited to these straitened times.
他那坚决，忧郁和有些厌世的面容，和他的温和说话的风格，非常适合目前经济困难的时期。