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美語(yǔ)訓(xùn)練班086

所屬教程:美語(yǔ)訓(xùn)練班

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A: 歡迎大家來(lái)到這期的美語(yǔ)訓(xùn)練班! 我是楊琳!

B: 我是Mike! 楊琳,來(lái)告訴大家今天都要學(xué)什么?

A: 沒(méi)問(wèn)題! 今天我們要領(lǐng)略一下大城市的生活方式,看看怎么表達(dá)動(dòng)用關(guān)系,還要告訴你怎么說(shuō)吊胃口!

B: I used to think I was from the "Big city" growing up. Then I went to Beijing and realized how small my hometown really is!

A: I would say Columbus is a medium sized city. I love growing up in Beijing, there’re always so many things going on; you could never ever get bored in Beijing!

B: Yeah, Columbus may not be as big and exciting as Beijing, but there're still tons to do!

A: For example?

B: Well, I mean…you know, there’s…there’s…Oh we had three horses growing up!

A: 哈哈,actually there are advantages to growing up in small towns as well. 但是這個(gè)咱們等會(huì)再聊,現(xiàn)在,我們先趕快先來(lái)進(jìn)入第一個(gè)單元,Learn a word!

Learn A Word1646 questionable

今天我們要學(xué)的詞是 questionable, questionable is spelled q-u-e-s-t-i-o-n-a-b-l-e, questionable. Questionable 意思是有問(wèn)題的,尚未確定的。The quarterback hurt his knee in the first quarter. His return to the game is questionable. 美式足球四分位比賽第一節(jié)膝蓋受傷,能不能繼續(xù)比賽,現(xiàn)在還不能確定。

Jill Kelley, the woman who sparked former CIA director Petraeus' scandal, founded a questionable cancer charity with her doctor husband. 美國(guó)前中央情報(bào)局局長(zhǎng)彼得雷烏斯丑聞事件的導(dǎo)火索,一個(gè)叫吉爾.凱利的女人,跟自己做醫(yī)生的丈夫一起開辦了一個(gè)很有問(wèn)題的癌癥慈善機(jī)構(gòu)。好的,今天我們學(xué)習(xí)的詞是 questionable, questionable, questionable....

A: I find something very questionable these days.

B: What's that?

A: So, all the cookies in my second drawer will mysteriously disappear! Especially after you’ve been sitting here helping me write a script…

B: Well…hahaha….I mean…Anyways, are we still going salsa dancing this Friday? I should warn you, I have been practicing!

A: 你又撇開話題! 去salsa也行,不過(guò)最近要寫的稿子實(shí)在太多了,如果就光我自己寫的話,我可能寫不完耶….

B: Maybe I can help you out a bit, and then you should be able to go, right?

A: EXACTLY. Don’t worry, there’s not a lot to do. Just finish these three scripts and reply to all the fan emails. Oh, also, my yoga ball seems flat; could you inflate it for me as well? Oh, and then could you……..

B: (Cutting in) Yanglin…I’m not stupid! You are totally stringing me along!

A: Woops! 被你發(fā)現(xiàn)了!開個(gè)玩笑嘛!不過(guò)呢你剛才提到了一個(gè)很好的詞兒,string someone along, 咱們來(lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)今天的words and idioms, 看看這個(gè)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)怎么用!

Words and Idioms 800 String Someone Along

現(xiàn)在播送美國(guó)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)第八百講。我是楊晨。我是 Douglas Johnson。

我朋友 Jenny 的老板實(shí)在很糟糕。兩個(gè)月來(lái),他一直讓Jenny覺(jué)得自己有機(jī)會(huì)被提升為部門主管,所以就沒(méi)完沒(méi)了地加班,自我表現(xiàn)。其實(shí)我覺(jué)得,她老板根本就是在欺騙她,牽著她的鼻子走。在英語(yǔ)里,有一個(gè)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ),專門形容這種情況,叫 String someone along.

M: To string someone along. String is spelled s-t-r-i-n-g. String. Along is spelled a-l-o-n-g. Along. To string someone along.

String 是繩子的意思。To string someone along 是指為了讓別人替自己做事,而愚弄、蒙蔽他,或是吊他的胃口。剛才我們說(shuō)到的Jenny 的老板,就是用提升作為誘餌,讓Jenny加班加點(diǎn)地替他工作。

在生活中,我們經(jīng)常能遇到這種情況。在下面這個(gè)例子里,一名男子對(duì)他女友的真實(shí)想法摸不著頭腦。讓我們聽(tīng)聽(tīng)他是怎么說(shuō)的。

M: "It seems like she's happy, but whenever I bring up our future she always changes the subject. I just bought her this diamond necklace and she told me she loved me, but then she said she's busy this weekend. Do you think she's just "STRINGING ME ALONG?"

他說(shuō),[看上去她跟我在一起還是挺高興的。但是每次我一提到我們今后的打算,她就會(huì)轉(zhuǎn)移話題。我剛賣了一條鉆石項(xiàng)鏈送給她,她說(shuō)她愛(ài)我,但又說(shuō)這個(gè)周末沒(méi)時(shí)間。你覺(jué)得她是在吊我的胃口嗎?]

依我看,這個(gè)女孩不是真心的。我就聽(tīng)說(shuō)過(guò)好幾個(gè)這樣的女孩,完全是看上了男朋友的錢。有些甚至在取消婚約后,也不把訂婚戒指還給男方。好的,讓我們?cè)賮?lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)上面那段話。

M: "It seems like she's happy, but whenever I bring up our future she always changes the subject. I just bought her this diamond necklace and she told me she loved me, but then she said she's busy this weekend. Do you think she's just "STRINGING ME ALONG?"

女:這種男人就象是被拴在線上的木偶一樣,任人擺布。其實(shí)啊,To string someone along 這個(gè)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)的就是由此而來(lái)的,其歷史可以追溯到二十世紀(jì)早期。

我覺(jué)得干推銷員的,都是很厲害的人物,不知道你有沒(méi)有同感。他們憑著三寸不爛之舌,總能把商品推銷出去。不過(guò),下面這個(gè)例子里的推銷員卻是被客戶牽著鼻子走。讓我們聽(tīng)聽(tīng)看。

M: "I love getting all these free lunches and baseball tickets from this salesman. He really thinks I'm going to buy his computer system. I think I might STRING HIM ALONG just a little longer, so I can get tickets to the playoffs─then I'll say we've changed our mind."

客戶說(shuō),[我從這個(gè)推銷員那里得到了很多免費(fèi)的午餐,還有棒球比賽的球票,真是太棒了。他還以為我肯定會(huì)買他的電腦系統(tǒng)呢!我得再哄他一段時(shí)間,等拿到免費(fèi)的棒球季后賽球票后再告訴他,我們改變主意了。]

女:這人可真夠損的。吃了免費(fèi)的午餐,看了免費(fèi)的球賽,最后才告訴別人,你的東西我不買了。好,讓我們?cè)俾?tīng)一下上面的例句。

M: "I love getting all these free lunches and baseball tickets from this salesman. He really thinks I'm going to buy his computer system. I think I might STRING HIM ALONG just a little longer, so I can get tickets to the playoffs─then I'll say we've changed our mind."

美國(guó)人氣頗旺的真人秀《幸存者》,要求參賽者不僅要有一個(gè)好身體,還要有過(guò)人的情商和為人處世的技能,要會(huì)拉幫結(jié)派,挑撥離間,努力堅(jiān)持到最后,不被別人擠出去。當(dāng)然了,他們的策略之一就是要 string other people along, 牽著別人的鼻子走。不過(guò),參賽者蒙蔽對(duì)手的手段一定要高超,否則一不小心,也許自己就成了別人蒙蔽的對(duì)象。

這次[美國(guó)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)]就到此結(jié)束。我是楊晨,我是 Douglas Johnson。這次節(jié)目的制作人是胡小玲。謝謝各位的收聽(tīng)。

M: Until next time.

下次節(jié)目再見(jiàn)。

M: This has been Words and Idioms.

A: Mike, 我問(wèn)你一個(gè)問(wèn)題,你要老實(shí)回答。

B: I always tell the truth!

A: Have you ever strung a girl along? I bet you have!

B: Me? Of course not! A girl actually strung me along when I was in high school, I thought she really liked me but in fact she just wanted me to do her homework for her!

A: That's awful! 可憐的mike,肯定又心靈受傷了…

B: The result is now I am very careful not to string anybody along. You could probably say its part of my identity.

A: Hmm, I don't know about that, but I think eating non-stop is definitely part of your identity. (B: Hey!) 開玩笑開玩笑,不過(guò)既然說(shuō)到了identity,我們就來(lái)學(xué)學(xué)這個(gè)詞兒的用法!

Learn A Word1647 identity

今天我們要學(xué)的詞是 identity, identity is spelled i-d-e-n-t-i-t-y, identity. Identity 有個(gè)性,個(gè)體,個(gè)人身份的意思。identity theft 身份盜用。有統(tǒng)計(jì)數(shù)字顯示,As many as 9 million Americans have their identity stolen each year. 美國(guó)每年有多達(dá)900萬(wàn)人身份被盜。There are about 10,000 identity theft rings in the United States. 美國(guó)從事盜取身份的團(tuán)伙就有大約一萬(wàn)個(gè)。為了保證自己的經(jīng)濟(jì)安全,Roughly 40 million Americans purchased some sort of identity theft protection service in 2011. 2011年美國(guó)大約有四千萬(wàn)人購(gòu)買了某種形式的防范身份被盜的服務(wù)。好的,今天我們學(xué)習(xí)的詞是 identity, identity, identity....

A: 我記得我剛到美國(guó)的時(shí)候,就好像有些 identity crisis,身份危機(jī)。特別想跟美國(guó)朋友混在一起趕快融入美國(guó)社會(huì),可是有時(shí)候又覺(jué)得自己中國(guó)生中國(guó)長(zhǎng)大,怎么可能融入美國(guó)社會(huì)嘛!

B:Aww, but now you have a lot of friends from both sides, and you are working to introduce American culture to our Chinese audience. It’s a great use of your language and cultural skills!

A: Thank you Mike! You are never this sweet to me, 我都不知道說(shuō)什么了….I’m totally going to pull some strings and help you find a girlfriend!

B: Haha, I mean, who wouldn’t love this handsome face? (A: ugh…) Ok ok, you just mentioned a good phrase, “pull strings”! Let’s listen to another words and idioms

Words and Idioms #801 Pull Strings

現(xiàn)在播送美國(guó)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)第八百零一講。我是楊晨。我是 Douglas Johnson。

我的鄰居 Johnson 特別有女人緣,三天兩頭換女朋友。他不僅財(cái)大氣粗,而且手眼通天,只要他愿意,隨時(shí)都可以請(qǐng)人到城里最好的餐館去吃飯。即使是星期六晚上,而且是在沒(méi)有提前訂座的情況下,只要他的一個(gè)電話,就能把一切搞定。在英語(yǔ)里,我們說(shuō):

M: To pull strings. Pull is spelled p-u-l-l. Pull. To pull strings.

Pull 是拉的意思。String 是繩子的意思。To pull strings 連在一起,就是通過(guò)重要人物,在幕后操縱,在幕后牽線的意思。在下面這個(gè)例子里,一個(gè)學(xué)生私下里告訴自己的朋友,說(shuō)他的一個(gè)同學(xué)可能是走后門才被學(xué)校錄取的。讓我們聽(tīng)聽(tīng)他是怎么說(shuō)的。

M: "I think Will' father PULLED A FEW STRINGS to get him in here. Do you know his father' an old friend of the college President? It' so unfair. I mean Will' a nice guy, but he should have to work to get in like everybody else."

他說(shuō),[我覺(jué)得,威爾的爸爸肯定是走后門才讓他被錄取的。你知道嗎,他爸爸是學(xué)校校長(zhǎng)的老朋友。這太不公平了。威爾其實(shí)挺好的,但是他應(yīng)該跟我們大家一樣,通過(guò)努力被錄取進(jìn)來(lái)。]

走后門上大學(xué)確實(shí)不公平。不過(guò),世界上很多事情就是這樣。在英語(yǔ)里,有一種說(shuō)法叫 "It's not what you know, but who you know." 意思是說(shuō)“重要的不是你知道多少,而是你認(rèn)識(shí)什么人”。

你能猜到 to pull the strings 這個(gè)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)的來(lái)源嗎?沒(méi)錯(cuò),是從木偶來(lái)的。To pull the strings 這個(gè)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)出現(xiàn)于十九世紀(jì)下半葉,最初是指操縱木偶,因?yàn)椴倏v木偶的人可以讓木偶按照他的意志行事。好的,讓我們?cè)賮?lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)上面那段話。

M: "I think Will' father PULLED A FEW STRINGS to get him in here. Do you know his father' an old friend of the college President? It' so unfair. I mean Will' a nice guy, but he should have to work to get in like everybody else."

我侄女不久前申請(qǐng)一家大公司的工作,因?yàn)樯暾?qǐng)資料寄丟了,所以沒(méi)有趕上申請(qǐng)的最后期限。我的一個(gè)朋友正好在那家公司工作。He pulled a few strings. 最后讓我侄女有了一次面試的機(jī)會(huì)。

大家肯定還記得,去年美國(guó)的豪門千金帕麗斯•希爾頓因?yàn)榫坪篑{車、無(wú)照駕駛,發(fā)生車禍等罪名被判入獄的事情。不過(guò),下面例子中這個(gè)著名的演員,卻設(shè)法擺脫了牢獄之苦。讓我們聽(tīng)聽(tīng)看。

M: It doesn't surprise me at all. I'm sure he knows more than a few politicians. All he had to do was PULL SOME STRINGS and he got special treatment. That's the way it works.

這個(gè)人說(shuō),[他能躲過(guò)牢獄之苦并不讓我吃驚。我敢肯定,他一定認(rèn)識(shí)不少政界人物。只要他打通一下關(guān)節(jié),就等得到特殊的對(duì)待。不就是這么回事嘛!]

真希望哪天我遇到難事,也能有人 pull some strings for me.

大家要注意,使用這個(gè)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)的時(shí)候,通常都是說(shuō) pull some strings, 或者是 pull a few strings。好,讓我們?cè)俾?tīng)一下上面的例句。

M: It doesn't surprise me at all. I'm sure he knows more than a few politicians. All he had to do was PULL SOME STRINGS and he got special treatment. That's the way it works.

我同事的小女兒過(guò)生日,臨時(shí)找不到舉辦生日聚會(huì)的場(chǎng)地。最后還是她媽媽公司的老板 pulled a few strings, 不僅找到了合適的場(chǎng)地,而且還邀請(qǐng)到了最熱門的少年演唱組合來(lái)表演。

能有別人 pull a few strings for you 固然好,不過(guò)我倒是覺(jué)得,在大多數(shù)情況下,憑借自己的努力得到的東西,才更貨真價(jià)實(shí),也更值得珍惜。況且,很多時(shí)候,別人 pull a few strings for you 都是指望有回報(bào)的。英文里說(shuō),no free lunches. 天下沒(méi)有免費(fèi)的午餐。這種說(shuō)法肯定有它的道理。好的,這次[美國(guó)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)]就到此結(jié)束。我是楊晨,我是 Douglas Johnson。這次節(jié)目的制作人是胡小玲。謝謝各位的收聽(tīng)。

M: Until next time.

下次節(jié)目再見(jiàn)。

M: This has been Words and Idioms.

B: Well, I don't see what the big deal here is. I pulled some stings to find this job and look how well it has worked out! You got a great co-worker and I get to live in the big city!

A: (sarcastically) Great co-worker huh? Yeah 80% of the time I’m really glad you are my co-worker, the other 20%... (both laugh) 言歸正傳, So what’s your favorite part of living in the city?

B: (thinking while answering) the museums, the cultural events, and…oh oh, all the ethnic food! It's like being able to go on an around-the-world vacation without the expensive plane ticket!

A: 哈哈,就知道你要說(shuō)吃的!在今天的Business Etiquette里, Jack和Pete就在討論大城市生活的利與弊,我們趕快來(lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)吧!

禮節(jié)美語(yǔ)-- Big City Comparison I

MC: 美國(guó)總公司代表Pete來(lái)北京視察,由中國(guó)雇員Jack接待。

Jack: Good evening, Pete. I trust you had a nice siesta.

Pete: Yes. It was just what the doctor ordered.

J: I'd like you to meet Henry Johnson. Mr. Johnson has been working at our Beijing office for over a year now. I think you two are from the same city.

P: Hey there, Henry. Call me Pete. A New Yorker, eh?

Henry: Born and raised in Brooklyn. Good to meet you, Pete.

Jack 問(wèn) Pete 休息得怎么樣,siesta is spelled s-i-e-s-t-a, siesta 指午飯后的短暫休息。Pete 的回答,it was just what the doctor ordered. 說(shuō)一件事情 is just what the doctor ordered 意思是這正是最需要的。Jack 給 Pete 引見(jiàn) Henry, Henry 在北京辦事處工作。Pete和Henry都是紐約人,New Yorker. Henry 說(shuō)自己是 born and raised in Brooklyn 土生土長(zhǎng)的紐約布魯克林區(qū)的人。

P: Brooklyn...that's a great neighborhood. I'm originally from Queens but moved down to Manhattan a while back. So...you're an expat in China...how's life over here working out for you?

H: You know---I really love it. There are frustrations of course, such as traffic, pollution and the language barrier, but all in all, I give China a big thumbs up.

J: Before you two get carried away in conversation let's finalize our plans for the evening. I was thinking of dining at a well-known dumpling restaurant and then hitting a Karaoke bar for some fun!

Henry說(shuō),在中國(guó)生活,all in all, 總的說(shuō)來(lái)非常棒,I give China a big thumbs up. give something a thumbs up 意思是高度評(píng)價(jià)。Jack 建議晚上先吃餃子,然后去K歌。

P: Everything sounded good until I heard the word "Karaoke." If there's one thing you don't want to hear, it's me singing.

H: (Chuckle) I sound like a frog that's suffering from a bad cold! But Karaoke is so popular in Asia that I've been dragged to at least two dozen of them so far. I've even learned a Chinese song or two.

Pete 和 Henry 都不是K歌高手,不過(guò),Henry 入鄉(xiāng)隨俗,已經(jīng)被拽著去唱過(guò)很多次歌了,甚至學(xué)會(huì)了幾首中文歌曲。

J: Hey...no Karaoke...no problem! We're here to have fun and if singing isn't fun...then forget it! I assume you like beer.

P: Beer is quite possibly my very favorite liquid.

H: Chinese beer is actually pretty good. I've sampled all of them so I should know!

J: Great! So we'll have dinner and then we'll go down to the bar district. In Beijing there are literally thousands of bars.

P: Sounds like a plan.

Jack說(shuō),不去K歌沒(méi)關(guān)系,可以去酒吧。Henry則說(shuō),中國(guó)啤酒味道不錯(cuò),因?yàn)?I've sampled all of them. 他嘗過(guò)所有牌子的。最后大家一致決定,晚上去酒吧喝酒。

A: Henry已經(jīng)是個(gè)中國(guó)通,an expat in China。他向Pete介紹說(shuō),I give China a big thumbs up, 中國(guó)生活非常棒。Pete特別提出他不喜歡karaoke,卡拉ok,Henry提議去酒吧,he’s sampled all of them, 嘗過(guò)所有牌子的,知道哪個(gè)好,哪個(gè)不好。Seems like Henry really likes Beijing!

B: I mean, who’s not going to like Beijing? Great history, great people, great food! I enjoyed the entire time I stayed there.

A: 那當(dāng)然了!其實(shí)我覺(jué)得華盛頓跟北京的感覺(jué)很像,都是首都,都有很多文化,都有好多小偷!

B: Right...the crime rate in big cities is usually a lot higher. Which just so happens to be what Pete and Henry are talking about, let’s see what they have to say!

禮節(jié)美語(yǔ) Big City Comparison II

美國(guó)總公司代表Pete來(lái)北京視察,Jack和Henry陪他出去吃飯。Jack 說(shuō),

J: You two gentlemen wait here for a second and I'll go make reservations and pick up the car.

H: Alright. So Pete...first time in China?

P: Second. The first time we spent the whole visit at the factory in Guangzhou. Beijing is good...I like it.

H: Yeah, I'm not so fond of Guangzhou. Too crowded and hot. Beijing is more like New York, I guess.

P: Except New York has a population of eight million while Beijing has like 20 million.

Jack 去訂位拿車的功夫,Henry 跟 Pete 開始閑聊。兩個(gè)人都不太喜歡廣州,覺(jué)得北京跟自己的家鄉(xiāng)紐約很象,除了北京人口要遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)多出紐約以外。

H: Yeah...but you know...for having that many people, the city seems to flow quite well.

P: How bad is the crime rate?

H: It's reasonably low. Beijing has crime, of course, but compared to most other places...it's very safe. You could take a stroll at two o'clock in the morning without worrying.

P: Really! That's pretty amazing. You think it's safer here than back home?

Henry 說(shuō),考慮到北京的人口,整個(gè)城市管理得還是不錯(cuò)的。Crime rate is reasonably low. 犯罪率相對(duì)低,夜里兩點(diǎn)在大街上逛都不用擔(dān)心。Pete 覺(jué)得不可思議,問(wèn)北京是不是比 back home 美國(guó)還安全。

H: Actually, yes. Last time I was in Baltimore...I saw a mugging happen less than 10 feet away from me. One night I could hear gunshots from my hotel room!

P: New York has gotten a lot better over the last 10 years or so. These days I feel pretty safe if I know the neighborhood. But you're right---many places in the States are crazy.

Henry 說(shuō),他覺(jué)得北京確實(shí)比美國(guó)安全,上次回美國(guó)在巴爾的摩他親眼目睹攔路搶劫,mugging is spelled m-u-g-g-i-n-g, mugging 是攔路搶劫的意思,晚上在旅館還聽(tīng)到過(guò)槍聲。

P: But overall, the cities are safe for tourists and business people?

H: Right. Only once in a blue moon do we hear stories of foreigners becoming victims of crime. It's likely the worst thing that could happen to you is you lose your wallet to a pickpocket. Oh, Jack is back, Hungry?

P: Starving! Let's go eat!

總體上看,外國(guó)游客和商人在中國(guó)大城市里的安全還是有保障的。Henry 說(shuō),只有在很偶爾的情況下,才會(huì)聽(tīng)說(shuō)外國(guó)人成為犯罪的受害者。他這里說(shuō)的,once in a blue moon 是一種習(xí)慣用法,意思是很少見(jiàn)的。Henry 還說(shuō),做為外國(guó)人,你遇到的最倒霉的事,可能就是錢包給小偷偷走。小偷扒手英語(yǔ)是 pickpocket. p-i-c-k pick 后面加上 pocket, pickpocket 是小偷的意思。正說(shuō)著, Jack 回來(lái)了,三個(gè)人一起去吃飯。

B: Chinese cities seemed pretty safe when I was there last. Though part of that may have just been because I was a foreigner, so people just left me alone.

A: Either that or they took one look at the way you dressed and realized that you’re not worth mugging. (B: Ouch! A: Laughing) 好了同學(xué)們,這次節(jié)目時(shí)間就到這里了。

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