美语训练班第051-060课

美语训练班第051课

A: 大家好! Welcome to American English Mosaic! 我是杨琳！

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，赶快来说说咱们今天都要学些什么!

A: 没问题! 今天，咱们要去看看养宠物需要做什么准备，去八卦一下同事的表白结果，学学怎么抱怨生活一成不变，还要告诉大家用美语怎么说“啤酒肚”和“山寨”。

B: 山寨? 这是什么意思? 咱们是要去山里旅游吗?

A: 哈哈哈，不是不是! 等会听了节目你就明白了! 咱们先赶快来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word

今天我们要学的词是reap. Reap is spelled r-e-a-p, reap. Reap 动词，是收获，获得的意思。白宫最近公布了美国总统奥巴马夫妇今年支付的联邦个人所得税税额。奥巴马夫妇两人2011年的收入比2010年减少了一百万美元，因为 In 2010, the president reaped greater profits from sales of his best-selling books. 2010年时，奥巴马从他的畅销书销售中赚了很多钱。美国政府对苹果公司和五个电子书发行公司提起反垄断诉讼，Market observers say America’s largest bookseller Amazon will reap benefit from the suit.市场观察人士说，美国最大的书商亚马逊网站将从这场官司中渔翁得利。好的，今天我们学习的词是 reap, reap, reap.

A: Maybe I should write a book, then I can reap the profit of my book sales! 要是我也写本书，是不是也能赚很多钱呀!

B: But what are you going to write about? Our lives are not as exciting as Obama’s…

A: 哎，也是! 有时候我真觉得，上班下班吃饭睡觉，每天生活好无聊啊!一成不变的! 要我说，咱们都应该放个大假，出去旅游!

B： I love traveling! We should definitely start by planning something this weekend! 你刚才说到一成不变，在今天的Popular American里就说到了这个词儿! 咱们一起来听一听!

Popular American

现在播送《流行美语》。 Larry和李华星期六晚上待在家里，觉得有些无聊，他们会用到两个常用语：Stuck in a rut 和 someone’s cup of tea.

LH: Larry, 好无聊啊! 你说干点什么好啊？

Larry: Huh? Uh, yea… that’s nice, Lihua.

LH: 什么好好好? Larry! 你又在打电脑游戏啦？哎呀，不要玩儿了!

Larry: Hey! I was about to clear that level!

LH: 你每天晚上除了玩线上游戏就什么都不干了! 我们就不能出去转转，找点好玩的事情做吗？

Larry: You’re right, Lihua. We haven’t really done anything new recently. I guess we’ve been stuck in a rut.

LH: In a rut? 什么意思？

Larry: Being stuck in a rut means to be stuck in a boring routine.

LH: To be stuck in a rut就是生活一成不变。那么，这个rut是什么意思呢？

Larry: A rut is what happens when a wheel rolls over the same place over and over again. Eventually, the wheel will dig a line, or a rut, in the ground.

LH: 我明白了，rut是车轮不断压过同一个地方后留下的印迹。我想，这就比喻一成不变的常规吧。Larry, 我们最近的确有些stuck in a rut，感觉有点平淡无味，你说这是怎么回事呢？

Larry: I’m not sure, Lihua, but we have been together for over a year now. It’s relatively normal for couples to find themselves stuck in a rut after being together for awhile.

LH: 啊？你觉得是因为咱们在一起时间不算短了，所以生活就变得平平淡淡了？我觉得根本不是这样，We’re stuck in a rot because of that stupid computer game! 都怪你天天打线上游戏，不陪我!

Larry: I’ll admit I like to play my games, but you remember what happened last weekend, right?

LH: 上个周末？怎么啦？

Larry: I wanted to take you out for a nice dinner, but you said you were too tired. We ended up staying home and watching TV all night!

LH: 还说请我吃顿好的？Larry, 你每次请我吃饭都是汉堡和薯条，连吃饭内容都一成不变，难怪我们会stuck in a rut!

Larry: Hmm… we need to find some new things to do that we both like. Otherwise, we might be stuck in this rut forever!

LH: 可不是嘛! 咱们好久没有去打网球啦! 不如去打两场吧!

Larry: Aw, you know tennis isn’t my cup of tea, Lihua. And besides, it’s been so hot out lately…

LH: Your cup of tea? 打网球还要喝茶？你不怕热吗？

Larry: I would drink water, of course! I said “playing tennis is not my cup of tea”…in other words, I don’t really enjoy tennis.

LH: 哦，你说 playing tennis is not your cup of tea, 意思就是说你不喜欢打网球。那你的cup of tea 到底是什么呀？

Larry: I like swimming! How about we start going to the pool? It’s always refreshing to take a dip in the pool on a hot day!

LH: 去游泳？可是，游泳不是我的cup of tea。我怕晒黑! Oh, I know! Why don’t you take me to the ballet? 我们去看芭蕾舞表演吧!

Larry: The ballet? Uh, that’s not my cup of tea, either. I never understood what’s going on! It just looks like a bunch of people jumping around on stage, if you ask me.

LH: 你这人一点都不浪漫!

Larry: Being romantic was never my cup of tea, Lihua. Remember when I sent you flowers for your birthday?

LH: 记得!我生日你送玫瑰花给我，结果我花粉过敏，打了一天喷嚏!

Larry: Heheh. See? No wonder we’re in a rut. I’m horrible at being romantic, and we can never agree on anything new to do. Tell you what-let me think about it some more while I finish this last boss in my video game…

LH: 不行! 你别想溜! Get us out of this rut, Larry! 要不你就别想玩儿电脑了!

Larry: Hmmm….

LH: 什么呀？你在想什么坏主意？

Larry: You want us to do something together, right? Our group could use another warrior…

LH: 你想让我和你一起打线上游戏？我可不会! You know video games are not my cup of tea!

Larry:Well, I guess I’ll go make myself a real cup of tea and go stare out the window for fun…

各位听众，今天李华从 Larry 那儿学到两个常用语，一个是to be stuck in a rut, 表示枯燥，一成不变；另一个是someone’s cup of tea, 意思是某人有兴趣干的事。这次《流行美语》播送完了，谢谢收听，下次节目再见。

B: Whenever I feel like I’m stuck in a rut, I take a long vacation and go traveling for awhile!

A: 我也很喜欢旅行! Traveling is my cup of tea as well! 不过也得看去哪，上次我去了一个专门酿造啤酒的小镇，可是我不太爱喝酒，所以大家都喝的津津有味，可我却觉得一般!

B: I love beer. But drinking too much beer can make you fat.

A: That’s true! 在今天的美语怎么说里，我们就要来看看啤酒肚用美语怎么说!

How to say it in American English

Donny 在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是Jimmy要问的：啤酒肚。

Donny: Jimmy, 天真热! Let’s go drink some cold beer!

Jimmy: 啊？冰啤酒啊，我女朋友不让。

Donny: Why?

Jimmy: 她说我有啤酒肚。But look at my belly, is it really that bad?

Donny: 呃……I have to say she has a point. You’ve got a beer belly for sure.

Jimmy: Beer belly？ beer 啤酒，加上 belly, 肚子，beer belly 啤酒肚。这个词真好记。

Donny: Yeah. It’s easy to remember.

Jimmy: 那不说 beer belly, 还有其它说法吗？

Donny: Let’s see….you can call it a “keg.” k-e-g, keg. A keg is a barrel to store beer.

Jimmy: keg 是啤酒桶？你是说我这肚子活生生就是一啤酒桶？

Donny: Don’t worry. You can go from keg to six-pack abs if you exercise and eat healthy.

Jimmy: six-pack abs? 我知道 a-b-s, abs 指腹肌， six-pack 不是半打啤酒么？

Donny: Six-pack abs are the muscles at your midsection. 一边三块，一共六块。

Jimmy: 哦，我明白了，six-pack abs 就是“六块腹肌”。天啊!从啤酒肚变成六块肌，得做多少仰卧起坐啊!

Donny: I know it’s hard, but a lot of people say sit-ups really help them lose their beer bellies. You want your girl to be happy, right?

Jimmy: 好，为女朋友高兴，我这就回家做 sit-ups，仰卧起坐！

Donny: Enjoy your workout! But first tell me what you’ve learned today.

Jimmy: 第一“啤酒肚”叫 beer belly, 或者 keg；

第二，六块腹肌，叫 six-pack abs；

第三，仰卧起坐叫 sit-up，s-i-t, sit; u-p, up. sit-up!

A: 原来啤酒肚就是beer belly! Yeah I agree, men with beer bellies are really unattractive…

B: Haha, actually I have a great quick solution for those guys with beer bellies! Get a dog! Then you’ll need to take it for walks at least twice a day- it will force you to be active!

A: 确实是这样! 我妈妈最近也在考虑要不要养一只小狗，让生活方式更健康一些! 说起这个，今天的美语三级跳里就要来讨论养宠物的事儿，咱们赶快来听一听!

GoEnglish

Cats and Dogs: beginner

大家好！今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“宠物”单元的初级课程。

Tom 和 Mindy 刚搬进新家，打算养只宠物。可是Tom喜欢狗，Mindy喜欢猫，俩人一时决定不了到底养什么。

Professor: Say Winnie, are you a dog person or a cat person?

老实说，养猫养狗太费事儿，我都不喜欢!

Tom: I love this new house, Mindy! I can’t wait until we get a dog.

Mindy: A dog? I don’t like dogs. We’re going to get a cat, Tom.

Tom: Cats are so boring. You can’t even teach them any tricks.

Mindy: Dogs are worse. They’re barking all the time.

Mindy 说，她不喜欢狗是因为狗太吵，总是bark–叫唤。对了，professor Bowman，中国人说狗“汪、汪”地叫，美国人怎么说狗叫呢？

Professors: In America, people say “ruff-ruff”.

哈哈，还真挺像的! Tom 说养狗好，因为狗能学tricks–把戏和本领，能逗主人开心。

Professor: That’s right. Winnie, there is an English expression about dogs and tricks. It is: You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.

我知道! You can’t teach an old dog new tricks 表面意思是“老狗学不了新把戏”，其实就是指积习难改，固守陈规的人很难接受新鲜事物。

Tom: Mindy, dogs are much more loyal than cats.

Mindy: Maybe, but dogs are a lot more work. You have to take them for a walk every day, and sometimes they bite.

Tom: Don’t worry, we’ll get a nice one. Dogs are man’s best friend.

Mindy: Well if we get a dog you are going to need a friend because I’ll be really mad!

Professor: So Winnie, why does Tom think dogs are better than cats?

他觉得狗比猫更loyal–忠诚。不过Mindy 觉得养狗太麻烦，每天都要出门遛狗，弄不好狗还会bite–咬人。

Professor: That’s right. Have you ever heard the phrase “His bark is worse than his bite”? It means someone is not as bad as he sounds. For example, “The teacher said he would give the student bad grades for not doing her homework. But his bark was worse than his bite, and he didn’t actually do it.”

哦，老师虽然口头上说要惩罚不完成作业的同学，但却没有真的那么做。所以His bark is worse than his bite就是指“刀子嘴，豆腐心”，虽然说了狠话，但不会真的去做。

Mindy: Tom, why don’t we get one cat and one dog?

Tom: Oh no, we can’t do that. They won’t get along at all, so we have to choose one or the other.

Mindy: That’s true. Cats and dogs are always fighting.

Tom: Come on ….. Let’s go to the pound right now and adopt a dog.

Professor: Winnie, why does Tom say that they can’t get one dog and one cat?

他说，猫和狗don’t get along–不能和睦相处，到一块儿就打。

Prof: Yes. If two people are always arguing, you can say that they “fight like cats and dogs.”

哦，原来形容两个总是吵架的人时，也可以说他们”fight like cats and dogs”，真有意思! 不过听起来Tom是铁了心要养狗，他提出马上去”pound”, 动物收养所，adopt a dog–领养一只狗。

Tom: Mindy, if we get a dog, I promise I will do all the work.

Mindy: Hmmm ….. you promise to walk the dog and feed it every day?

Tom: Yes. And I’ll buy all the things for the dog, like its collar and its leash.

Mindy: Uh ….well alright. We can get a dog. But if it doesn’t behave, I’m going to keep it on a short leash!

Tom保证承包养狗的所有工作，包括喂食和遛狗，还说会买遛狗用的leash–皮绳和collar–项圈儿。但Mindy说 she’s going to keep the dog on a short leash, 这是什么意思呢？

Professor: It means to maintain close control over someone’s activities.

哦，keep someone on a short leash 就好比用皮绳紧紧牵着狗，也就是说要密切控制某人的一举一动。我看啊，如果Tom领来的狗狗不听话，Mindy 也会keep Tom on a short leash!

Professor: Let’s listen next time to find out.

A: Tom认为狗可以do tricks做把戏，而且more loyal, 更忠诚，现在就想马上go to the pound and adopt a dog 去动物收养所领养一只狗!

B: Well…things like this can lead to real fights between couples. Tom and Mind should sit down and talk about how important pets are to them.

A: That’s true! 好啦，宠物话题咱们暂时告一段落，在下面的business etiquette里，Dan终于要鼓起勇气约Julie出去了!

B: Did Julie say yes? Let’s listen and find out!

礼节美语 A Crush on a Co-Worker II

Dan偷偷喜欢女同事Julie. King给他打气，鼓励他约Julie出去。Dan问：

Dan: So what should I say?

King: Tell the truth! Say, “Hi Julie, I was wondering if you’d be interested in going out this Saturday? I know a great sushi place.”

D: Just like that? Don’t you think I’ll scare her?

K: Both you and Julie are adults, and that’s the way adults communicate with each other. If you’re worried about being too direct, you should make it a group event and invite her along.

D: The whole process just seems so scary.

K: You know what’s really scary? The idea that two people might be perfect for each other, but they’re too afraid to talk to each other…now that’s a frightening thought. What a waste!

D: That’s a good point.

King建议Dan直截了当，约Julie出去吃饭，但如果Dan不想过于直接的话，可以 make it a group event and invite her along 组织一次集体活动，邀请Julie一起去。King 还鼓励Dan说，如果两个人原本珠联璧合 perfect for each other, 但却因为彼此不敢主动去跟对方搭讪而擦肩而过，那才是最可怕的。What a waste! 太可惜了。King 接着说，

K: What’s the worst thing that could happen?

D: She rejects me.

K: And is that so bad?

D: No, I guess not. How do you meet your wife anyway?

K: I walked up to her on a subway car and said, “Hi, I’m King. What’s your name?” Three years later we were married.

D: Wow! All right…I’m going to do it. I’m going to ask her out.

K: Well, here’s your chance. She’s started walking this way. Go for it!

如果Dan约Julie出去，最糟糕的结果也不过是遭到拒绝。King现身说法，说当年他就是在地铁上遇到自己太太的，他走上前去自我介绍，三年后两人就结婚了。Dan 终于鼓起勇气，决定要约Julie出去，正说着，Julie走了过来，Here is his chance. 他的机会来了。我们一起听Dan是怎么说的。

D: Hey, Julie.

J: Hi Dan. How are you doing?

D: I’m good, thanks! Say, a couple of us are thinking about having dinner and maybe going to a Karaoke bar this Saturday night. Are you free to join us?

J: Sure! I’d love to. What time should I meet you?

D: How about 7:30?

J: Great! I’ll see you then. Have a nice day, Dan! Bye!

D: You too! See you on Saturday!

K: See? That wasn’t so hard, was it?

D: That was amazing! I’m totally on cloud nine right now! Thanks, dude!

K: No problem, and I hope it woks out for the two of you.

D: It’s really true: “Nothing ventured, nothing gained!”

K: You got it!

Dan跟Julie说，办公室几个人星期六晚上打算一起出去吃饭，吃完饭去唱卡拉OK，问Julie想不想一起去，Julie欣然接受。Dan 说，I’m totally on cloud nine. 我实在是太高兴了。King说，I hope it works out for the two of you. 意思是祝 Dan 和 Julie 好运，能交往愉快。

A: See, being straightforward is the best way to approach girls! Dan成功约到Julie啦!

B: I agree. Two people might be perfect for each other, but if they’re too afraid to express their feelings, they’ll never get together! That’s really sad!

A: 其实有时候吧，要是不好意思说，你也可以送个东西什么的!

B: But what if you’re short on money?

A: You don’t need expensive things! 随便什么都行，不然买个山寨的我觉得也没什么，重要是表达心意嘛!

B: 哈哈， I don’t know about that! But since you mention 山寨, let’s learn how to say this in American English!

Jessica 在北京学中文，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是于苗要问的：山寨

YM: Jessica, 你看我这块儿手表怎么样？

Jessica：LV 的! Nice! Did you win the lottery?

YM:中彩票？我哪有那么好的运气！这表是山寨的！

Jessica: Ah? What do you mean?

YM: 山寨，就是，啊not a real LV，a fake one

Jessica: Oh, I see! The watch is a knockoff! k-n-o-c-k-o-f-f, knockoff.

YM: 哦~~~原来山寨版的假名牌儿就是 knockoff.

Jessica: Right. 朋友都告诉我 Xiushui Market is the place to go for designer knockoffs.

YM: 没错，好多人都特爱去秀水买假名牌！对了，我带上这假LV，觉得自己特有明星范儿，别人也说我是山寨版的章子怡，那我就是 knockoff Zhang Ziyi 喽?

Jessica: No, in that case, you say you’re a Zhang Ziyi lookalike!

YM: lookalike, look后面跟alike，就是山寨明星脸! 哦，Jessica, 我早就想告诉你， You’re a Lady GaGa lookalike.

Jessica:Thanks! I’m flattered!

YM: 对了，待会儿我要去看话剧，叫作“阿凡提¨达”

Jessica: 阿凡达? Avatar, the movie?

YM: 不是，这个话剧要模仿Avatar，搞笑的，是山寨版的阿凡达。

Jessica: Oh! You mean a spoof. That means you will imitate the movie’s style, but in a humorous or sarcastic way.

YM: 原来这种有点恶搞的山寨版艺术作品叫 spoof.

Jessica: That’s right! s-p-o-o-f, spoof.

YM: 我来总结一下啊，山寨版的假名牌是knockoff; 山寨明星脸是lookalike; 山寨的艺术作品是spoof。

A: 原来山寨叫 knockoff, 听我表姐说，现在北京大街上人人都背山寨的 LV. LV knockoffs are everywhere on the street!

B: 我就不明白为什么要跟别人背一样的! I’d rather have something that’s unique and one of a kind.

A: 我也这么想! 好的，同学们，这次节目时间就到这里。如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: Also, let us know what you think of our show! Like how you love me and how much you hate yanglin!

A: 嘿!

B: Remember to tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

美语训练班第052课

A: Welcome to American English Mosaic! 欢迎大家来到这期的美语训练班! 我是杨琳！

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，快来给大家介绍一下节目内容吧!

A:好! 今天，咱们去打打高尔夫，看看怎么训练小狗，搭个顺风车，还要告诉大家怎么用美语说“爆冷门”和“分手”。

B: 训练小狗? I love training my dog, it’s so much fun!

A: Can he shake? That’s my favorite! 不过首先，咱们还是进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word

今天我们要学的词是hitch a ride. Hitch is spelled h-i-t-c-h, and ride r-i-d-e, hitch a ride. Hitch a ride 的意思是搭便车，叫顺风车。Can I hitch a ride with you? 意思就是，我能顺路搭你的车么？He was hoping to hitch a ride to the stadium. 他打算找个顺路的人捎他去体育馆。美国航天飞机“发现号”退役后来到了首都华盛顿附近的史秘森博物馆，Thousands in Washington D.C. watched the space shuttle Discovery hitch a ride on top of a Boeing 747 and fly slowly over the city. 在华盛顿，数千人观看“发现号””搭乘顺风车”–也就是让一架波音747客机背着–缓慢地飞过城市的上空。好的，今天我们学习的词是hitch a ride， hitch a ride， hitch a ride…

B: Did you watch the space shuttle Discovery as it hitched a ride on top of the Boeing 747, 杨琳?

A: No I missed it! 你看到了吗?

A: Yeah! I went to the Mall and saw it fly right over! It was so exciting! 发现号参与了好多航天任务! The U.S. has come a long way in our development of space technology.来听听下面的words and idioms 你就明白了!

Words and Idioms

现在播送第 962讲。我是杨琳。

M：我是 Steve Baragona.

侄子邀请我们夫妇俩去看他的乐队演出。我真不敢相信他现在这么棒! 我记得几年前他还在我姐姐的车库里练习，听起来简直就是噪音，可他们如今已经能在全国巡回演出了！我真替他高兴，这也让我想到一句习惯用语，那就是:

M：Come a long way. Long is spelled l-o-n-g, and way; w-a-y. Come a long way.

Come a long way 的意思与这些词字面的意思不太一样，它的意思是“突飞猛进”。就像我侄子的乐队，they have made considerable progress from when they first started playing together. They’ve COME A LONG WAY. 他们的水平比刚开始组乐队时进步了一大块，取得了飞越。下面例子里的主人公参加高中同学会，看到了很多高中同学，包括他的老朋友James。我们来看看他们的聚会有什么惊喜:

M: “I went to my high school reunion last weekend. That’s where I saw my old buddy James. Twenty years ago he was short, overweight and rather shy. Now he’s tall, thin and very outgoing. He even runs his own company. He says his life has gotten a lot better. It’s clear to me he’s COME A LONG WAY.”

[这段话是说: 我上个周末去参加高中聚会，见到了老朋友James. 他可是大变样! 20年前他又矮又胖，而且很容易害羞。可现在他又瘦又高，非常外向，还自己开了公司! 他说自己的生活改善了很多。很显然，他取得了很大的进步和成功。]

提起突飞猛进，我觉得最值得一提的就是科技发展。现在的科技每时每刻都在进步，iPhone, iPad, iTouch….快的让我们觉得赶不上! Technology has come a long way compared to 10 years ago. 现在的科技与10年前相比，简直是突飞猛进。好，回到James身上，我们再来听听刚才那段话:

遇到一个要求严格的上司是好事，不过有时候也会让你头疼。下面的例子里，我们来听听要求严格的消防队长对自己的队员说了什么：

M: “You all did pretty well in the practice drills we ran. You made significant progress working quickly and working as a team. That doesn’t mean you should be satisfied with your achievement. The reality is that more is expected of you. If you’re serious about earning the full respect of this community, you’ll need to COME A LONG WAY from how you performed today.”

[这段话是说: 你们演习时表现不错，进步很快，有很强的团队精神。但这不是说你们能就此满足。我对你们的期望远不止这些。基于今天的表现，如果想赢得整个社区的尊重，你们还有很长的路要走。 ]

这名消防队长的要求真严格! 我邻居就是一名消防员，而且是一名女消防员! 你知道吗? Years ago women weren’t even allowed to be firefighters, they’ve come a long way. 多年前是不允许女性当消防员的，这方面进步很大。好的，我们再来听听刚才那段话:

今天我们学习的习惯用语是COME A LONG WAY，意思是“突飞猛进”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Steve Baragona。谢谢各位的收听。
A: 原来 to come a long way是突飞猛进的意思。Kat 你发现没有，My hosting style has come a long way…

B: 你又臭美了…. but of course, I should congratulate you on your progress. I know it must be hard– not everyone can have such obvious hosting talents from birth. From the moment I opened my eyes, I was a born entertainer!

A: 啊呀，Kat, 你还真是不谦虚啊! 言归正传，我有个好消息要告诉你! 还记得我朋友Roger么，你觉得特帅的那个!

B: Yeah! What about him?

A: 他跟他女朋友分手啦! 我们大家都觉得他们其实不合适，现在他们分手了，Kat…你的机会来啦!

B: 哈哈，Let the evil planning begin! He will be mine! MWAHAHAHA! But since you mention 分手，let’s see how to say it in American English!

JESSICA 在北京学汉语，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是Lulu 要问的：分手。

JESSICA: Lulu! Too bad you have to fly to Shanghai for your friend’s wedding next month. 我本来想约你一起去听演唱会呢！

LL: 嗨，别提了，要结婚的那俩个人，分手啦! Say Bye-Bye啦!

JESSICA: What? Did they break up?

LL: 分手就是 break up？ b-r-e-a-k, break. u-p up. 没错，分手啦! 这俩人特神，婚期定了，喜贴发了。结果，上礼拜那个女生给我来电话说，她和那男生分手了! 是不是该说 She broke up with her boyfriend？

JESSICA: Yes. Break up with someone 就是跟某人分手。不过，Lulu, What happened? Why did they break up?

LL: 听说是那个男生劈腿!

JESSICA: What’s 劈腿？

LL: 就是…他还跟别的女生好。He has another girlfriend.

JESSICA: Really? He cheated on the girl he was gonna marry?

LL: 等会儿，我知道 cheat 是“欺骗”，你说的 cheat on her，就是背着她和别人好，“劈腿”的意思，对不对？

JESSICA: That’s right!

LL: 所以啊，你说，都快结婚了，却发现 Her boyfriend cheated on her, 这女生能不跟他一刀两断吗？！

JESSICA: There you go! Cut their ties! If I were her, I would not give that guy another chance either!

LL: Cut their ties？ T-i-e-s, ties 就是联系。Cut their ties 就是彻底断绝关系，一刀两断喽？

JESSICA: 没错! Now let’s see what you’ve learned today!

LL: 第一，情侣分手是 break up；

第二，劈腿，对伴侣不忠，是 cheat on someone；

第三，说俩人一刀两断叫 cut their ties!

这次的“美语怎么说”就到这里了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给 JESSICA, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

B: So why did your friend Roger and his girlfriend break up? Did he cheat or something?

A: 没有! 我听说好像是因为他们的爱好特别不同，Roger loves being outdoors, while his girlfriend just wanted to stay in all the time.

B: Now that might be a problem! Couples need to have a common hobby or find social activities that they both enjoy.

A: Or they can take care of a pet together! 不过在下面的Go English里，Tom和Mindy正在为怎么训练他们的小狗争执不下，咱们听听吧!

Cats and Dogs: Intermediate

大家好！今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“宠物”单元的中级课程。

Tom说服了Mindy，俩人养了一只狗，可是这狗很不听话，经常惹麻烦，所以，Tom和Mindy打算训练训练它。

Professor: Right Winnie. Some dogs are so bad, they need to be trained by a professional.

Mindy: Gosh Tom, why did I ever agree to get this dog? It’s so badly behaved!

Tom: It’s OK, honey. We just have to train him. In a couple of weeks he’s going to be totally obedient.

Mindy: In a couple of weeks? Tom, he will have totally destroyed our new house by then!

Tom: I know he’s a little wild right now. But trust me, before you know it, he’s going to obey every one of my commands.

Professor Bowman, Tom 还挺乐观的，他向Mindy保证，自己肯定能把狗训乖，让它很快就obey every one of his commands，对主人言听计从。

Professor: What do you think? Will Tom be able to make the new dog obedient before it destroys their new house?

这可不好说。不过，刚入住的新家如果被狗弄得乱七八糟，哪个主人不心疼啊？

Tom: OK, the first thing I need to teach him is how to shake hands.

Mindy: That’s the first trick he needs to learn? Tom, he isn’t even house broken, and this morning he ripped apart all the pillows on the couch!

Tom: So…. you think I should teach him something else first? Like how to sit?

Mindy: Yes, Tom. That would be a good start. Then you can teach him how to heel.

如果换成我，第一件事就是要让狗”house broken”，也就是说，在经过训练后，能够到指定地点大小便，从而保持家里的整洁。

Professor: That’s true. Teaching your dog how to shake hands isn’t the number one priority.

Professor, Mindy 说的”teach the dog how to heel”是什么意思呢？

Professor: It means to make the dog obey you. You can also say that you bring a person to heel. For example, “At first the boss couldn’t control her employees. But after she threatened to start firing people, they all came to heel.”

我明白了，come to heel就是听话，服从的意思。

Mindy: Tom, the dog is never going to obey you unless you punish him. When he misbehaves, you have to spank him.

Tom: You want me to hit our beloved dog, who is a member of our family? How can you be so cruel?

Mindy: Tom, that dog isn’t going to be a member of our family much longer unless he learns to behave.

Tom: Well, I prefer to reward him for doing something good instead of punishing him for doing something bad.

Mindy好像已经失去耐心了。她说，如果这只狗还不听话，就不能继续住在这里了。

Professor: Right. But Mindy and Tom have different ways of training the dog, right?

是啊，Mindy说，如果狗不听话，就要spank，打屁股，可是Tom说这种惩罚太残忍。

Professor: So what does Tom say they should do?

Tom认为应该采取鼓励的方法，也就是说，如果狗狗表现得好，就reward–奖励它。

Mindy: Tom, this dog is really out of control. Maybe we should take him to the veterinarian to see if he has some health problem.

Tom: He doesn’t need to go to the vet. He needs to go to a doctor who can cure him psychologically.

Mindy: Oh no Tom, you’re not talking about a ……

Tom: Yes, Mindy. We have to take him to a pet psychologist.

Tom 要带狗去看pet psychologist—宠物心理医生？美国真有这种医生么?

Professor: I guess so.可是宠物又不会开口说话，这些心理医生怎么能知道宠物的想法呢？八成是骗人的! 对了，Professor, veterinarian，v-e-t-e-r-i-n-a-r-i-an 是兽医的意思，是不是和vet， v-e-t，是一回事?

Professor: Yes. The whole word is veterinarian, but most people in America just call them vets.

嗯，我倒很想见识见识这个宠物心理医生，看看他是不是真能读懂狗狗的心声!

Professor: Well, we’ll have to listen next time to find out!

A: 所以说，教会宠物如何”house broken”特别重要。It’s the top priority!

B: It’s SO important- I wish I could have had some help house-breaking my ex-boyfriend…

A: What? What do you mean?

B: I had to teach him how to not behave like a caveman…for example, I had to educate him about the importance of doing dishes, picking up his dirty socks and washing his clothes. If I had had some help, maybe we could have worked out!

A: 哈哈哈! 训练男友! 没错! 我现在也在对我男友进行野人改造训练!

B: You are doing the right thing, 杨琳! 好了好了，咱们来换个话题，在下面的business etiquette里，咱们要去学一个高级运动，Golf!

礼节美语 Taking up Golf I

Mark在公司门口看见同事Robert.

Mark: Hey Robert…going on vacation? Looks like you’re planning on doing some golfing.

Robert: Yes, I will be playing golf, but I’m not going on vacation. I’m meeting up our New York office’s senior management team. We’ll be playing a few rounds and going over the merger plans.

M: Really? So when did you take up the sport?

R: Around two years ago I began to realize that if I could get on the golf course with other senior executives, it could open a lot of doors for me. At first I didn’t really enjoy it, but now I’m almost a golf fanatic.

Robert要跟纽约办公室的高层主管打高尔夫 play a few rounds，同时讨论并购的事。
Mark 问他是什么时候开始打高尔夫球的，这里用的动词是 take up, to take up sth. 意思是开始做某件事情。Robert说，他两年前开始觉得，打高尔夫 could open a lot of doors for me. 可以帮助自己打开很多大门，得到更多机会。Robert说，他刚开始打的时候也不太喜欢，但现在已经快变成 golf fanatic 了。fanatic is spelled f-a-n-a-t-i-c, fanatic 是指对某件事疯狂的人，比如，a jazz fanatic 爵士乐迷，a basketball fanatic 篮球迷。Mark 听后说：

M: I see. So you meet a lot of business executives on the course, huh?

R: Yeah, definitely. It’s a good way to network.

M: Isn’t golf really expensive?

R: To be perfectly honest, golf is a bit of a status symbol…and yes…it can be an expensive game. There are green fees, caddy fees and charges for renting the golf cart.

M: But the business opportunities are worth it.

R: Absolutely. I read somewhere that a high percentage of senior business executives play golf.

M: It sounds like it’s almost mandatory to learn golf if you want to climb the corporate ladder.

Robert说自己在高尔夫球场上能遇到很多商业界高层主管。这里说的 on the course 指的就是 golf course. It’s a good way to network. 打高尔夫球是认识人，积累人脉的好办法，network在这里是动词，意思是建立人际关系。打高尔夫球确实需要钱，要交 green fees球场费；caddy fees球童费，cart rental fees 租车费，但是能认识更多的人，得到更多机会，还是值得的。Mark说，看来，如果想在企业里升迁 climb the corporate ladder 就必须学打高尔夫球。

R: Networking is a big plus….but I think another reason executives enjoy the golf course is that it gives them an excuse to get out in the fresh air and connect with nature.

M: I can understand that. If you turn off your cell phone or Blackberry you can hear birds chirping and enjoy a fresh breeze. It’s a nice break from a hectic office.

R: It is a good way to recharge, but you’re right: golf primarily is a social sport. You get a chance to talk and get to know people on a different level on the golf course than you do in the boardroom.

公司高层愿意出去打高尔夫球，除了建立人脉以外，也是为了能离开 hectic office 忙碌的办公室，投入大自然的怀抱，It’s a good way to recharge. 是个充电的好办法。Robert 觉得，高尔夫主要还是一种 social sport 社交型运动，让你在董事会议事厅以外，换个环境，换个层面，在高尔夫球场上去彼此了解。

B: I tried golf once, but I’m not a huge fan. I think it’s just SO S-L-O-W.. and plus it’s relatively expensive compared to other sports!

A: Maybe you should try again when you are older! You are too young to see the beauty of golf! 好啦，说完高尔夫，咱们再去了解一个体育用语，爆冷门!

Jessica 在北京学汉语，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是Jimmy要问的：爆冷门

Jimmy: Jessica, 昨天看学校的足球比赛了吗？爆了个大冷门儿，法学院居然输给了商学院，哎，这大冷门怎么说啊？

Jessica：冷门？

Jimmy：哦，对啊，就是铁定会输的队，最后居然打赢了。

Jessica: Oh, in English we call that an upset.

Jimmy: Upset? 那不是不高兴的意思吗？

Jessica: That’s true. 做形容词的时候，重音在后面，是 upset (emphasis on the second syllable), 指不高兴，但是做名词，重音在前面，upset (emphasis on the first syllable), it means an unexpected win.

Jimmy: 哦，我明白了，中文里的爆冷门，在英文里就是 upset. 那原来大家都以为法学院会赢，这种赛前被看好的球队美语里叫什么？

Jessica: Easy. That team’s called the favorite.

Jimmy: 这么说，The law school team was the favorite to win the game. 法学院足球队本来是被看好的热门球队。

Jessica: That’s right. You can also refer to the team that was expected to lose as the underdog.

Jimmy: Underdog. under后面加上dog, underdog 就是在比赛里实力比较差的一方。这么说，我们中文系的排球队，不论跟谁比赛，都是 underdog.

Jessica: Jimmy！Isn’t your girlfriend Rachel the team captain?

Jimmy: 唉，别提了…That’s why I always cheer for the underdog…

Jessica: hehe…..言归正传，What did you learn today？

Jimmy: 第一，爆冷门叫 upset,重音在前面; 第二，赛前被看好的一方叫 favorite，第三，赛前不被看好的一方叫 underdog.

Jessica: 不错，我也学了个词儿–upset 叫作“冷门”。

次的“美语怎么说”就到这里结束了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给Jessica, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

A: 我也来给大家举个例子。In our kongfu competition, I was the favorite, and Kat was considered the underdog…

B: 大家不要忘记，the competition was a huge upset! I WON!

A: 哈哈哈，oops! 我怎么忘了比赛结果啦! (笑) 好啦，这次节目时间就到这里。同学们，如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: Tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: See you next time!

美语训练班第053课

A: 大家好! 欢迎来到这期的美语训练班! 我是杨琳！

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，今天咱们学什么呢?

A:今天，咱们要看看宠物心理医生靠不靠谱，分析一下打高尔夫的好处，走神放空一下，还要告诉大家怎么用美语说“跑腿”和“放鸽子”。

B: 我保证，我们的节目绝对不会放大家鸽子！

A: 哈哈，那是当然！好了，闲话少说，我们先赶快来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word # 1494

今天我们要学的词是immune. Immune is spelled i-m-m-u-n-e, immune. Immune的意思是免疫的，比如，immune system就是指免疫系统， immune disease 则是免疫系统疾病。Immune还可以指”免除的”,”不受影响的”. Apple’s OS X, which has long been considered immune to viruses, was recently hit by a malicious software called Flashback. 苹果电脑的OS X操作系统一向被认为百毒不侵，可是最近，该系统遭到一种名叫Flashback的恶意软件的袭击。The IMF says Africa’s economy is expanding, but it is not immune to global slowdown. 国际货币基金组织说，非洲经济整体有所发展，但并不能完全不受全球经济放缓的影响。好的，今天我们学习的词是
immune，immune，immune…

A: 听见没有，You have to upgrade your Macbook! Mac is no longer immune to viruses. Kat, kat, kat! 你想什么呢？

B：Oh…Oh what? I’m sorry what?

A: 瞧你这走神的！认真点！我正在说给macbook下补丁呢！

B：对对, I spaced out there for a second! 不过正好，下面的Popular American里面，我们就要来学学走神要怎么说！

Popular American

各位听众，现在播送《流行美语》。Larry和李华明天要考试，今天一起复习，但李华一直没法专心。她今天会学到两个常用语：zone out和now you’re cooking with gas。

LL: So Reaganomics were the economic policies of U.S. President Ronald Reagan—Li Hua? Are you listening?

LH: (Pause) 嗯？发生什么事了？

LL: Li Hua! How can you zone out when your final is tomorrow?

LH: Zone out? 你在说什么啊Larry?

LL: To zone out means to lose concentration and to not notice what’s happening around you.

LH: 喔，你是说我分心吗？

LL: Yes. A ‘zone’ is an area. If you ‘zone out’, you mentally drift away from the place you are currently at, and go off into empty, dreamy space.

LH: 所以zone是指一个区域, zone out 就是走神。

LL: Yup. So stop zoning out! We still have a lot of studying to do!

LH: 好吧。那你告诉我，什么是supply-side economics？

LL: Supply-side economics argues that economic growth can be most effectively created by lowering barriers for people to produce goods and services (supply)–

LH: 比如说降低所得税。

LL: Hey! Now you’re cooking with gas!

LH: Cooking–cooking with what?

LL: Now you’re cooking with gas! It means now you understand what I’m talking about.

LH: 啊。Now you’re cooking with gas 是指我终于跟上了，了解你在说什么。是啊，我还是懂一点点的。不过now you’re cooking with gas和了解一件事情怎么能扯得上关系呢？

LL: This comes with a little bit of history. In the 1930’s cooking became more convenient as the kitchen evolved from the old coal/wood range into the wood/gas combination. So when we say ‘now you’re cooking with gas’, it means you’ve crossed the barrier and progressed!

LH: 真有意思。原来是1930年代煮饭从依靠炭和木头进化成依靠天然气，生活方便了许多。所以说now you’re cooking with gas就代表我进步了。

LL: Yes, that is correct. Wow you’re really cooking with gas now! Learning so fast.

LH: 哈哈对呀。我现在精神好多了。还是学习英文俚语比较有趣。

LL: But we have to keep going with Economics, or else we’re both going to fail the exam tomorrow.

LH: 是啊。But if we keep talking about boring Economics, I’m going to zone out again!

LL: Hmm what should we do then…

LH: 要不这样！你先教我zone out 和now you’re cooking with gas 的用法，让我变得有精神之后，我们再继续看经济学，怎么样？

LL: I guess that could work. Hmm….you seem to be able to use these two phrases already. Do you have any questions?

LH: 当然有。如果分心是zone out, 那很专注的时候就是I’m really zoned in, right?

LL: That’s interesting. But no one says it that way. A lot of phrases are only used in one direction. Therefore, you can only say zone out, but there is no such thing as zone in.

LH: 啊，原来如此。分心是zone out, 但注意力集中时不能反过来说zone in.

LL: Right. What about “now you’re cooking with gas?” Can you give me an example using that phrase?

LH: Even though I was zoning out at the beginning of this review session, I began to cook with gas.

LL: Hmm. The phrase ‘now you’re cooking with gas’ is usually used together as one, so no words are changed. Therefore, we don’t say that someone begins to cook with gas.

LH: 好麻烦。所以说，Now you’re cooking with gas. 得要整句一字不露地用。通常是一个人对另一个人说，Now you’re cooking with gas. 而不是用来形容第三者的。

LL: That’s right. Now you’re really cooking with gas! Do you think we can go back to Economics?

LH: 啊！我要回家了。今晚是美国偶像American Idol的决赛。拜拜！

LL: Wait! Li Hua!

今天李华从Larry那儿学到两个常用语，一个是zone out, 是走神，发呆的意思；另一个是now you’re cooking with gas. 指一个人开始进入情况了。这次《流行美语》播送完了，谢谢收听，下次节目再见。

A: Kat, 我可要批评你了，How could you zone out in the middle of the show?

B: I’m really sorry! I was thinking about all the things I want to say to my supervisor! 他今天早晨又让我去帮他买咖啡！我又不是给他跑腿的小时工！

A: 原来是这样！也许你可以跟他谈谈，说不定他根本就没觉得这是个事儿呢！

B：If he asks me to buy coffee again, I will throw it in his face! Yeah, yeah! I will do that! 不过大家先拿我当个模版，咱们来看看跑腿儿用美语怎么说！

Donny 在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是方方要问的：跟班打杂的。

Donny: Hey, Fang Fang, what’s up? Do you like your new job?

FF: 啊，还行吧。就是初来乍到，专业一点都用不上，尽打杂了。

Donny: 打杂？What do you do everyday?

FF: 无非就是复印文件，取东西，接电话什么的。哎？美国人怎么形容这种工作啊？

Donny: Oh! Someone who does small and unimportant tasks at work is called a go-for. g-o-f-o-r, go-for.

FF: 哦! 这么说，go-for 就是公司里的小弟小妹! go-for 的主要工作就是跑腿儿。那“跑腿”又怎么说呢？

Donny: We say they “run errands for others.” Run is spelled r-u-n, errands is spelled e-r-r-a-n-d-s. The word “errand” means a short trip that’s taken to finish a necessary task.

FF: Errand 差事，复数加s, errands, 所以 run errands for others 就是替别人“跑腿”的意思。

Donny: That’s right. I guess you don’t really like running errands for your boss, right?

FF: 是啊，我想做有意义的工作，可老板总让我干些没用的活儿。

Donny: She gives you a lot of busy work, I’m assuming? The phrase “busy work” refers to tasks that keep people busy but are not very useful.

FF: 哦! 原来，busy work 就是花时间，但没意义的工作。老板给我 busy work，并不是因为这些工作重要，而是因为她不愿意看我闲着!

Donny: That’s right! Fangfang, a lot of people start as go-fors and work their way up. I’m sure you’ll do just fine. Now let’s see what you’ve learned today!

FF: 公司里跑腿打杂的小弟小妹叫 go-for；

跑腿是 run errands for others；

消磨时间，但是没意义的工作是 busy work.

这次的“美语怎么说”就到这里结束了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给 Donny, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

B: See, I’m such a go-for at work! I hate that they make me do all this busy work!

A: 怎么可能！你可是我们的优秀主持人！上次还有听众说最喜欢Kat的幽默风格呢！

B: haha, you know how to cheer me up, girl! Thanks! 好了，咱们接下来说点好玩的，Today Tom is taking his dog to a pet psychologist!

A：宠物心理医生？这真的靠谱吗？咱们赶快去听一听！

Cats and Dogs: Advanced

大家好！今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“宠物”单元的高级课程。

Tom和Mindy养的狗不听话，今天带它去看 pet psychologist—宠物心理医生。

Tom: Thank you so much for seeing us today, Doctor. Our dog is having some mental problems and needs a professional evaluation.

Psychologist: Of course. I understand that you are very concerned about your dog’s mental health. What’s the problem?

Tom: Well you see, he is always running around wild, tearing the furniture up and breaking things.

Psychologist: Is that it?

Tom: Well… he also doesn’t listen when I give him commands, and he tries to eat the food off of the table. He is really wreaking havoc in our house.

Psychologist: I see …

Professor Bowman, 你说Tom是不是有点小题大作了？他说的这些“症状”，比如乱跑，撕咬东西，吃桌上东西什么的，不是所有小狗都会做的么？

Professor: Yeah. It probably needs a professional dog trainer more than it needs a pet psychologist.

对了，Tom说the dog is “wreaking havoc.” 这是什么意思？

Professor: To wreak havoc means to ruin or damage. For another example, I could say that the really powerful typhoon wreaked havoc on the coastal cities.

原来wreak havoc 就是毁坏，造成很大破坏的意思。

Tom: What do you think, Doctor? Is he depressed? He probably needs to be on some strong anti-depressants, right?

Psychologist: Well, it’s perfectly normal for a young puppy to have this kind of temperament. How often do you take him out to get some exercise?

Tom: Not that often. You see, I promised my wife that I would always take him for walks. But I started getting really tired of running after him all the time, so I stopped.

Psychologist: It’s pretty important that he gets lots of exercise to use up his energy. He shouldn’t be cooped up in the house all day.

我就知道Tom很难做到每天出去遛狗! 瞧，连医生都说，Tom的狗精力过盛。

Professor: Right. The dog shouldn’t be cooped up in the house all day.

Cooped up? 就是指被关起来么？

Professor: Exactly. You can use it in lots of different ways. For example, it’s important you have someone to talk to when you’re sad so that you don’t keep your emotions cooped up inside yourself.

哦，就是说难过的时候不要把感情憋在心里，应该找人聊聊天，发泄一下。对了，这个心理医生还说到一个词，“temperament”，这是什么意思？

Professor: The word temperament means character or personality. For example, it’s important for doctors to have a calm temperament so they can handle the stress of their job.

哦，就是性情。那even temperament是性格随和，好脾气喽？

Professor: That’s right.

Psychologist: Tom, I really wouldn’t worry about it. As he grows up he will mellow out.

Tom: I hope so, because I have such high hopes for him! Even though, my parents never loved me and never thought I could achieve anything, I’m going to make sure this dog is a winner!

Psychologist: I see …. so you’re treating your dog the way you wish your parents had treated you?

Tom: Exactly! And when we win first prize at all the dog shows, I’ll show all those people who made fun of me when I was a kid.

Psychologist: Right. Well Tom, I’m happy to say your dog is totally healthy. You, on the other hand, need some serious professional help!

Professor: So Winnie, what is the psychologist’s conclusion?

他说，狗没病，人有病! 需要看心理医生的是Tom自己! 对了，professor, 他说 the dog will “mellow out”，是什么意思？

Professor: Someone is mellow if he is very relaxed, calm and not worried about things.

所以医生是说Tom的狗随着年龄的增加，脾气会越来越好。Tom还说，等他的狗在宠物比赛中得了冠军，他会show all the people who made fun of him as a kid. 他要向这些嘲笑过他的人show什么呢？

P: Winnie, if you prove that you were right and another person is wrong, you can say you “showed” that person. For example, I never thought Andy was very smart. But when he got into Harvard, he really showed me.

噢，就是让别人服气，见识自己的厉害! 原来Tom养狗是这个目的，他还真得去看看心理医生!

A: 原来Tom养狗的初衷是he wants to show all the people who made fun of him as a kid! 诊断出炉：小狗没问题，是Tom该去看心理医生了！

B: Gosh.. uh.. Tom’s a pretty weird guy, huh? I think most people want to have pets because they love them, not because they want to show off to other people.

A: 大千世界无奇不有呗！

B: 说的对。Alright, enough about pets. Now let’s go learn some tips for climbing up the corporate ladder—today’s tip is playing golf!

礼节美语—BE-240 Taking up Golf II

Robert两年前开始打高尔夫球，在球场上积累了不少商业界的人脉。同事Mark问他：

Mark: But how can you play with people who’ve been golfing for 20 years? Isn’t it embarrassing?

R: Golf has a system called “handicapping” and the system does its best to level out the differences in skill. It’s quite common for a novice to play alongside a more experienced golfer.

M: That’s interesting. I read an article once that says you can tell a lot about a person’s management style by how they play golf. Do you agree with that?

R: Actually, yes. Say for example you hit your ball into a sand trap…the way you react to that demonstrates a great deal about your character.

Robert告诉Mark, 打高尔夫球有所谓的 handicapping system 差点系统，能 level out the differences in skill 平衡不同选手的水平，让水平相对较差的新手novice能play alongside a more experienced golfer. 跟经验丰富的老手一起打球。在这里，新手novice还可以用rookie来代替。Robert说，从球风还能看出一个人的管理风格。

M: So the executives on the golf course are all sort of sizing each other up?

R: Absolutely. So what about you? Do you play any sports?

M: I was on the ping-pong team in high school. Ping-pong suits my temperament. It requires high concentration and quick decision-making skills. Unfortunately, ping-pong is not a game of choice for most business executives.

R: Yeah…I don’t think CEOs like to get too sweaty. Are you interested in trying your hand at golf?

M: I thing I might be. Do I have to purchase a set of golf clubs to begin with?

既然从球风，能看出一个人的经营管理风格，那球场上的公司主管们自然都会 size each other up 相互打量，彼此观察。Robert 问Mark 喜欢什么运动项目，Mark说自己上高中的时候曾经打过乒乓球，因为 It suits my temperament. 乒乓球适合我的性情。temperament is spelled t-e-m-p-e-r-a-m-e-n-t, temperament 是性格，性情的意思，可惜的是，乒乓球不是商界高层喜爱的运动， not a game of choice. Robert表示同意，因为公司CEO们可不愿意get too sweaty 出一身臭汗。Robert 问Mark 愿不愿意 try his hand at golf 试着学打高尔夫球。to try one’s hand at something 是尝试的意思。Mark问Robert要不要事先准备一套球杆。Robert回答说：

R: Not in the beginning. I’ll tell you what, let’s go out to the club and hit a few balls next Saturday morning. Who knows? You might get addicted.

M: And like you said, playing golf is a good chance to expand my business networks.

R: It certain is. Well, I’ve got to take off. How does 7:30 next Saturday morning work for you?

M: Sounds great! Thanks, Robert.

R: Not at all. I’ll see you next week.

Robert告诉Mark, 先不用置备球杆，可以先去球场打几个球试试手。Who knows? You might get addicted. 意思是说不定你一下子就会上瘾呢。两人分手前，约好下星期六早上7点半一起去打球。

A: 原来那些商业主管会在打高尔夫的时候size each other up 彼此观察呢！连运动的时候都不能闲着，这些老板们也是真累。

B: That’s the price you have to pay if you want to be successful in business!

A: 哎呦，看来我真不是当有钱人的材料喽！

B: 哈哈，别泄气嘛杨琳！ You can be successful in your own field!

A：借你吉言喽！好了，上面Robert和Mark约好要去打高尔夫，下面我们要来教教大家如果其中一个人爽约要怎么说！

Jessica 在北京学汉语，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是庄明要问的：放鸽子

Jessica：哟，庄明，你干嘛气冲冲的？

ZM: 今天真倒霉! 我刚让人放鸽子了!

Jessica: 鸽子？Pigeon? I don’t get it.

ZM: 放鸽子，就是你和别人约好，结果对方却没来! 诶？美语里这个该怎么说？

Jessica: Oh! You mean you arranged to meet someone, but the person was a no-show!

ZM: No-show? 把 no 和 s-h-o-w “show” 放在一起，no-show，就是“没来，爽约”。

Jessica: Yes! But Zhuang Ming, who was this no-show? Your boyfriend?

ZM: 嗯….怎么说呢。我约好去见一个从来没见过面的男生，是别人介绍的，就算是相亲吧!

Jessica: 噢，我明白了! You went on a blind date!

ZM: blind 后面加上 date–约会，blind date，就是相亲吗?

Jessica: Yes! if your friend set you up with someone you’ve never met before, that’s called a blind date. Blind dates usually end up bad.

ZM: 可不是么! 就说我今天这个相亲对象吧，直接放我鸽子，害我白等。

Jessica: In this case, Zhuang Ming, you say “I got stood up”! 我被人放了鸽子。

ZM: stood up 不是“站起来”的意思么？我可没一直站着傻等啊!

Jessica: No. If you “stand someone up”, you fail to show up at a date.

ZM: 哦! 不去约会，放别人鸽子，就可以说 stand someone up。而我是被放鸽子，所以你说我–got stood up!

Jessica: That’s right! 我也常被放鸽子! Last month, I had a date with a really cute guy, but he stood me up! 唉，也别生气了，还是说说你今天都学了什么吧!

ZM: 第一，“爽约，没来”，可以说 no-show;

第二，放别人鸽子，可以说 stand someone up;

第三，“相亲”可以说 blind date!

这次的 “美语怎么说” 就到这里了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给Jessica, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

A: 原来相亲是Blind date! What’re your thoughts on blind dates, Kat?

B: 我不介意认识新朋友，you can start with friendship and see where things go!

A: Kat, 其实我朋友Matthew一直想认识你! Let me set you guys up!

B: Haha, again, I don’t mind another friend!

A: It’s a date! 好的同学们，这次的节目时间就到这里。如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者你有任何问题和评价，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com

B: Don’t forget to tune in next time for American English Mosaic! Bye bye!

A: See you later!

美语训练班第054课

A: Hello! 欢迎大家来到这期的美语训练班! 我是杨琳！

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，今天咱们学什么呢?

A:好! 今天，咱们跟科技发烧友去买最新的电子产品，听听世界各地不同的文化，学学怎么坦白从宽，还要告诉大家怎么用美语说“毛骨悚然”。

B: 毛骨悚然?? 你是说动物吗? Who you are calling an animal?

A: 哈哈哈! 不是不是! 等会你听了节目就明白了! 不过现在，咱们先赶快来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word Mince words

今天我们要学的词是mince words. Mince is spelled m-i-n-c-e; and words w-o-r-d-s; mince words. Mince 是切碎，to mince words 就是把话说得婉转。这个短语通常用在否定句里，not to mince words 就是说话直接，不兜圈子。A frank person never minces words. 一个坦诚的人从来都是想什么说什么。Tell me what you think, and don’t mince your words. 告诉我你的真实想法，直说，别兜圈子。弗朗索瓦.奥朗德击败现任总统萨科齐，当选法国总统。此前，The two candidates minced no words and traded insults in their only TV debate of the election campaign. 他们两人在总统选战的唯一一场电视辩论上唇枪舌剑，毫不留情地互相攻击。好的，今天我们学习的词是 mince words, mince words, mince words.

A: So Kat, 你觉得我朋友Matthew怎么样? 我听说你们俩昨天去约会了!

A: Well…he’s ok, you know, he seems nice…. dinner was fine….

A: What? Don’t mince words, Kat! Tell me what you really think of him!

B: Ok ok…I will come clean. Matthew is unbelievably boring. All he talked about the entire night was sports, sports, and MORE sports. I think I might have actually fallen asleep at one or two points during the night (snoring sound….)

A: Uh oh….原来是这样…无聊的男生确实很可怕…不过你刚才说到了一个词儿 come clean! 让我们来听听这个短语的用法!

Words and Idioms

现在播送<美国习惯用语>第 963讲。我是杨琳。

M：我是 Doug Johnson.

女：上个周末，我给园艺俱乐部烤了一盘曲奇饼干。把它们晾凉的时候，我出去买了趟东西。但等我回来的时候，发现有六块曲奇饼干不翼而飞了。我爸妈和弟弟都都一口否认说自己没吃。可等到晚饭时，弟弟终于觉得愧疚，告诉我饼干是他吃的，让我哭笑不得。这让我想到一句习惯用语，那就是：

M: Come clean. Come is spelled c-o-m-e; and clean; c-l-e-a-n. Come clean.

女：大家都知道，clean 意思是“干净的”。Come clean 字面意思是“变得干净”，实际上它是“坦白承认，说出一切”的意思。我弟弟就是这样，这谎再也撒不下去了，He had to COME CLEAN. 不得不坦白交待了偷吃饼干的事情。在下面的例子里，这位妈妈最开始不愿意告诉女儿一件事儿，但后来她改变了想法，和盘托出。我们来听一听：

M: “Mom came out of the doctor’s office like everything was fine. Later, I overheard her on the phone talking about going to the hospital. When she realized I’d been listening, she CAME CLEAN. She admitted that she was going to need heart surgery, and didn’t want me to worry.”

这段话是说：“妈妈从诊所出来的时候看起来跟平常没什么两样。可是后来，我听到她在电话上说什么她要去住院。她发现我听到了，就索性把一切都坦白地告诉了我。她说她需要进行心脏手术，但是不想让我担心。”

女：父母都一样，出了什么健康问题都不告诉子女，生怕子女担心。我上次就因为类似的事情跟我爸好好谈了一次。我问他，如果我要做手术不告诉他，结果出了问题，他会怎样想？所以说，不管遇到什么为难的事，不管是经济方面的，健康上的，还是吃了官司，都不能隐瞒家人。It’s always best to COME CLEAN. 你都应该坦白说出来。好的，我们再来听听刚才那段话：

说起 come clean 坦白，很容易让人想到犯罪和案件的审理。下面例子里就提到了一起案件，案件嫌疑人正在接受调查人员的讯问。让我们来听听看:

M: “The interrogator had doubts that the suspect would talk. But now that she understands she risks going to jail for many years, she’s COMING CLEAN. She’s confessing everything: how she planned the burglary and got her friends to help her carry it out. ”

这段话是说：“审问人员开始并不知道嫌疑人会不会交代。但是如今，她明白，不老实交代就可能会面临多年监禁，所以她把一切都说了，从她怎样策划这次入室抢劫，到她的朋友如何帮助她实施，交代得一清二楚。]

女: 她这是正确决定。如果现在不坦白，之后被查出来，被判处的刑罚会重得多。就我来说，我觉得我想犯罪都没那个本事！我根本不知道怎么骗人，更别说帮别人骗人了！I’m the type of person who COMES CLEAN rather quickly. 我如果做错了什么事情，我肯定很快就招了。好的，我们再来听听刚才那段话：

今天我们学习的习惯用语是COME CLEAN，意思是“彻底坦白”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Doug Johnson。谢谢各位的收听。

B: See, my dream date would definitely involve something more exciting!

A: 嗯，比如呢?

B: I would love to go for a hike in the woods, or go rock climbing, or…oh yes, sky diving! Now that would be something worth staying awake for!

A: 啊？空中跳伞? 我的妈呀，要我我可不，我肯定会被吓死的!

B: 哈哈，每个人不一样嘛! 不过你刚才提到了害怕，咱们来看看美语里有什么样的时髦用法!

Donny 在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是吴琼要问的：毛骨悚然。

Donny: 吴琼，昨天的电影好不好看？

吴琼: 别提了，讲吸血鬼的，吓死我了。怎么说来着，I was scared to death!

Donny: I told you you would be scared to death and you didn’t believe me.

吴琼: 早知道听你的就对了。特别是女主角被变成吸血鬼那段，简直毛骨悚然，吓得我汗毛都立起来了! 对了，美语里有类似的说法吗？

Donny: Yeah. We say the scene made my hair stand on end.

吴琼: hair, 是毛发，stand on end 立起来。连在一起，to make one’s hair stand on end 吓得人毛发都立起来了。所以要说那一幕吓得我汗毛都立起来了，就可以讲 the scene made my hair stand on end.

Donny: Right. Speaking of blood-sucking vampires, there is another way of saying you are scared to death. You can say it made my blood run cold.

吴琼: blood 是血，cold 是寒冷。to make one’s blood run cold 让血都变冷了，也就是中文里说的吓得我浑身冰凉吧？

Donny: Exactly. I am taking my girlfriend Rachel to see the movie tonight.

吴琼: 什么？Rachel 不是特别胆小吗？The movie will make her hair stand on end.

Donny: I know…. When she is scared to death, I will be there to comfort her. She will think I am her knight in shining armor.

吴琼: 啊，你想让 Rachel 觉得你是 her knight in shining armor 身穿闪亮盔甲的骑士？保护她的英雄？我看你啊，八成是别有用心。

Donny: (haha) 言归正传，还是说说你今天都学了什么吧!

吴琼: 第一，吓死了是 scared to death；

第二，吓得毛发倒立是 to make one’s hair stand on end；

第三：吓得浑身冰凉是 to make one’s blood run cold.

MC：这次的“美语怎么说”就到这里结束了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给 Donny, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

A: 这集对我真有用! I would be scared to death if I went sky diving! Even thrillers and horror movies scare me so bad that I can’t fall sleep!

B: That’s why I say everyone is different. Thrillers are definitely my favorite type of movie. 我就是特喜欢那种不知道下一刻会发生什么的感觉! For me, the idea of being forced to watch a romantic comedy is TERRIFYING.

A: Aha! 所以说，真的每个人都不一样! 世界上有很多不同的文化，大家喜欢，信仰的东西都不一样。在今天的Go English里，咱们就要一起去看看世界各地的不同文化!

B: Let’s listen!

Culture: Beginner

今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“社会文化”单元的初级课程。

Jane和Will初次约会，想多了解对方，他们谈到了彼此的宗教信仰。Jane的父母来自中国，她是个佛教徒，Will则在美国长大，信基督教。

Professor: That’s right, Winnie. When you talk about religion, it’s important not to offend other people.

没错，在美国，宗教信仰是私人事务，也是个敏感话题，所以谈到这个问题的时候要礼貌、小心，不然可能会 offend other people– 得罪别人。

Will: So Jane, what religion are you?

Jane: I guess I’m a Buddhist because both my parents are Buddhist. But I’m not really practicing.

Will: I see. So you don’t pray very often?

Jane: No. The only time I pray is during the holidays with my parents.

MC: 哇，Will 怎么一上来就问人家的宗教，这个约会开场白还真少见。

Professor: Right. And what does Jane say?

Jane说，因为她父母都是佛教徒，所以她自己应该也算是个佛教徒，不过她并不真的practice。 Professor, practice a religion 就是虔诚地信奉某个宗教，按宗教教义来生活的意思吧？

Professor: Exactly. For example, a practicing Jew would go to the synagogue every Friday to pray.

哦，a practicing Jew–一名虔诚信奉犹太教的教徒会每星期五去synagogue–犹太教堂祷告。这样坚持不懈也很不容易哦!

Professor: Well, many people think that praying helps them spiritually.

Jane: What about you, Will? What religion do you believe in?

Will: I’m a Christian. Most of my family are Christians too, but my brother converted to Islam.

Jane: Oh really? Why did he do that?

Will: He married a Muslim woman. She wanted them to share the same faith, so he converted.

Will的家人大多是基督教徒，不过他哥哥convert to Islam. Professor, 这是什么意思呢？

Professor: When you change to a different religion, you can say you converted to a different religion.

哦，convert，c-o-n-v-e-r-t 就是改变宗教信仰。Will的哥哥以前也是基督徒，但因为交了个女朋友是Muslim–穆斯林，所以也改信Islam–伊斯兰教了。

Professor: Yes, Winnie. Have you noticed there are two different words used to describe Islam? The religion is called Islam. The people who believe in Islam are called Muslims.

对，伊斯兰教是Islam, 而伊斯兰教徒则是Muslims, 也就是“穆斯林”。

Will: Are your parents devout Buddhists? Do they go to the temple often?

Jane: Yes, they go there to pray a lot. Do you go to church often?

Will: I go to church every Sunday.

Jane: Isn’t it hard waking up so early on the weekend?

Will: Sometimes, but going to church is very important. I’m a pretty religious person.

听起来Will比Jane更加虔诚，因为他每个星期天都去church–教堂。对了，professor, 基督徒去church，佛教徒去temple–寺庙，犹太教徒则去synagogue，那么Muslims 去那里祷告呢？

Professor: Muslims pray at their mosque.

哦，对! mosque，m-o-s-q-u-e，清真寺! Will每星期天都要起大早，去教堂，他说这样虽然有点累，但既然是教义规定的，他就得执行。

Will: So Jane, do you think your parents would be mad if you married someone who isn’t a Buddhist?

Jane: Did you say marry? Will, it’s only our first date!

Will: I know! But I just wanted to ask you, just in case…

Jane: Actually, my parents have told me that it’s OK to marry someone who believes in other religions.

这个Will，初次约会就提到结婚的事儿了! 还好，Jane的父母同意女儿嫁给不信佛教的人! 对了，Professor Bowman, 在中国，人们可以既拜佛，拜菩萨，又拜太上老君，玉皇大帝。可是我发现，西方人只能信一种宗教。

Professor: That’s true. Which do you think is better?

我看对所有神明都崇敬，都拜，那一定就会有神来保佑你的!

A: 不同文化的融合确实得付出很大努力！别说文化，就连爱好都一样!

B: I know! My ex-boyfriend was such a tech-head! He just had to have every new apple product or the newest camera! Sometimes I thought he would rather date his gadgets than me- honestly! He definitely spent more time and money on them…

A: Aw….I’m sorry to hear that! 不过这些科技发烧友对新电子产品的热情也真让我无法理解! 正好，下面的business etiquette里就谈到了这个话题，咱们一起去听一听!

礼节美语 EARLY ADOPTERS I

Sara在公司走廊上看到同事Henry.

Sara: Hi Henry, how was your weekend?

Henry: Excellent! I went down to the mall and got myself one of those new minicomputers.

S: You mean the new Orange SuperCom 4? I’ve seen ads for those on TV! They look really cool.

H: They are pretty cool. It has Wi-Fi, a huge memory and super fast processor. Plus, it’s so small it fits in a shirt pocket….look, here it is.

S: Wow…it’s so thin! Hey Mark, check out Henry’s new toy!

Henry 情绪很好，因为周末他去买了一个最新款的迷你电脑，the new Orange SuperCom4, 有无线宽带，大容量存储，超快处理器。而且，体积小到能装在衬衫口袋里。Sara看了觉得很酷，叫同事Mark过来，check out Henry’s new toy. 看看Henry的新玩具。Mark说：

M: Ah….the Orange SuperCom 4, eh? It’s all the rage these days.—Must’ve cost you a pretty penny.

H: Actually it was a tad bit expensive. I signed up for an early waiting list, but because demand was so strong, I did have to shell out a couple extra hundred dollars for it.

M: I saw news reports that people were lining up around the block in front of Orange Computer stores. Some people were even camping out overnight waiting for the store to open!

Mark不用看就知道Sara说的是Orange SuperCom4, 因为 It’s all the rage these day. 这是现在最潮的。说一件事情是 all the rage 意思是时下最流行的。比如 Skinny jeans are all the rage. 时下最流行穿细腿牛仔裤。Mark猜，It must’ve cost you a pretty penny. 你一定花了不少钱。cost a pretty penny 是价格不菲的意思。Henry 承认，因为订购的人多，I did have to shell out a couple extra hundred dollars for it. 我确实不得不多交了几百美元。to shell out 意思是出钱。Mark说，新闻里说，为了买这款新电脑，不少人在Orange SuperCom电脑专卖店前大排长龙，甚至有人 camp out overnight 夜里在商店门口露宿。Henry说：

H: I didn’t camp out, but I did have to stand in line for about four hours.

S: Is it really worth all the effort? I’m not that devoted to anything. If the wait is longer than 15 minutes, count me out.

M: Some people are “early adopters” of technology. They just have to get their hands on the latest product.

H: Yep, that’s me…I got my first computer when I was 14, and from that day onward I was hooked. Every time a major new product comes on the market, I’ve just got to get it! I’ll bet I’ve spent tens of thousands of dollars on IT products over the years.

Henry说，自己虽然没彻夜露宿，但确实排了四个小时的队。Sara表示不解，说不管买什么，如果要排十五分钟以上的队，count me out. 我就免了。Mark说，有些人就是科技“潮人”，early adopters of technology. 有什么新产品，他们都得在别人前面用上。They have to get their hands on the latest product. 这里所说的 to get their hands on something 意思是得到。Henry承认自己就是这种人，14岁有了自己的第一部电脑后，I was hooked. 我就着迷了。这么多年，不知道在科技产品上花了多少钱。

A: 这些科技发烧友们可真够呛! How do they keep up with all the new gadgets?? New things come out every day!

B: Well, it can certainly be overwhelming, but I can’t imagine life without my smartphone! What if I got lost? What if I didn’t check my email 18 times a day? What if I didn’t stalk 阿信 on weibo??? HE WOULD MISS ME.

A: He definitely would miss you Kat. 现代人生活忙得四脚朝天，要是没有科技的帮忙，估计就疯了! 不过正好，说到繁忙，咱们来听听这个词儿用美语怎么说!

Donny 在北京学中文。他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是杨琳要问的：忙。

Donny：Hi 杨琳，what’s up? I haven’t seen you in ages.

YL: 别提了，我最近特别忙，I am really busy! 忙得四脚朝天，怎么说…four feet up!

Donny: four feet up? I can imagine. But in English, we don’t say that….You can say I’m up to my neck in work.

YL: I’m up to my neck… in work ? 工作太多，堆到和脖子一样高？被工作压得喘不过气来。这个说法太形象了! 还有别的吗？

Donny: There is another expression that also has to do with body parts. It is “I’ve got my hands full”.

YL: I’ve got my hands full。我明白了，就是说两手都没闲着。

Donny: Exactly. Oh, I just thought of another one—“I have a lot on my plate”.

YL: I have a lot on my plate? plate, p-l-a-t-e, plate 不是盘子么？说盘子里有很多东西，那一定是…忙着吃呢吧？

Donny:That’s possible! Anyway, when you say you have a lot on your plate, it means you’re busy.

YL: 我知道了。哎呀，我快迟到了，快，再教最后一个。

Donny: Okay, this one will be easier to remember– I’ve got a million things to do!

YL: 太夸张了吧! I’ve got a million things to do! 有一百万件事情等着我去做。

Donny: Right! Now, Yang Lin, tell me what you’ve learned today!

YL: 今天学到的还真不少。形容特别忙可以说，I’m up to my neck in work，工作堆到脖子了；I’ve got my hands full, 两手都占着呢；I have a lot on my plate，盘子里堆得满满的。哎呀! 我得赶紧走人了，I’ve got a million things to do!

这次的“美语怎么说”就到这里结束了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给Donny, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

A: 现代人的生活总是这么忙碌，这不是，之前有好几起年轻人猝死的事件，就是因为压力太大，工作太累了!

B: Yeah, I heard those reports too. That’s a reminder for us, 杨琳! In the interest of our health, we should definitely take it easy with all this serious hosting and take a break to go have some fun!

A: 哈哈，我只好听你的喽! 好，这次节目时间就到这里。同学们，如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: Tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: See you next time!

美语训练班第055课

A: 欢迎大家来到这期的美语训练班! 我是杨琳！

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，赶快告诉大家咱们今天要学些什么!

A: 好! 今天，咱们要接着去看看电子产品的发展走势，听听人们都有怎样的固有观念，学学怎么面对棘手的问题，还要告诉大家怎么用美语说”人气”!

B: 人气!? 提到这个我就想到了那个Mike隋，现在他好火呀!

A: 哈哈，回头咱们也录一集，说不定也火了! 不过现在，咱们先赶快来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word: bearing

今天我们要学的词是bearing. Bearing is spelled b-e-a-r-i-n-g, bearing. Bearing 意思是关系，意义。我们常用 to have bearing on something 意思就是同某事有关系，对某事有影响。The decision had much bearing on the way the company was run. 这个决定对公司的管理运营有很大影响。His private life has no bearing on his competence as a manager. 他的私生活同他作为经理的工作能力无关。美国总统奥巴马最近公开支持同性婚姻，一项民调发现，Sixty percent of Americans say Obama’s new position on same-sex marriage will have no bearing on how they vote in the November election.百分之六十的美国人表示，奥巴马在同性婚姻问题上的新立场并不会影响他们在11月总统大选中把票投给谁。好的，今天我们学习的词是bearing, bearing, bearing.

B: 杨琳，look at my new bag! Isn’t it awesome?

A: OMG!!! LV???!!!我的天啊，好看是好看，可是你怎么买得起这么贵的包包呢？

B: Well, my salary has no bearing on what I’m gonna buy. That’s what credit cards were made for, right?? 女生嘛，就得自己疼自己!

A: 这也对….可是一个LV包包都能顶上我一个月的房租了!!! Kat, I think you are going to have to come to grips with how much you can actually afford to spend on stuff like that…

B: Hmm… I will leave that question to future Kat, ha! But more importantly, you just mentioned a really good phrase: come to grips with, 咱们一起来听听这个短语的用法!

Words and Idioms

现在播送<美国习惯用语>第 964讲。我是杨琳。

M：我是 Steve Baragona.

昨天我姐姐给我打电话，抱怨他们家的家庭战争。我姐夫自己开了一家进出口公司，本想让子承父业，可我外甥偏要当个软件工程师，让我姐夫备受打击，过了好长时间，他才慢慢接受现实。这让我想到了一句习惯用语，那就是:

M: Come to grips with. Come is spelled c-o-m-e, and grips; g-r-i-p-s. Come-to-grips-with.

女：Grip 本身是抓，掌握的意思; come to grips with, 意思就是去面对，着手处理。就像上面的例子里，我外甥不愿意继承父业，一心要当软件工程师，我姐夫虽然失望，但最后还是肯于面对事实。He has come to grips with my nephew’s decision not to take over the family business. 2001年9月11号的恐怖袭击是美国历史上的一件大事，下面我们来听听历史学家对这起事件的看法:

M: “On September 11, 2001, four U.S. planes were overtaken by terrorists. Their dramatic crashes resulted in the deaths of nearly 3,000 people. In some ways, Americans have COME TO GRIPS with how that day changed the country forever. But it remains a difficult experience for many to deal with.”

这段话意思是说：[2011年9月11日，三架美国飞机遭到恐怖份子的劫持。这次袭击造成近3千人死亡。从某些方面看，美国人已经开始面对那天发生的一切彻底改变了国家这一事实。但对很多人来说，这段经历还是很难承受的。 ]

是啊！尤其是对那些在911恐怖袭击事件中失去亲人的人来说，这段经历一定不堪回首。我记得上高中时，养了十几年的猫死了，I had a hard time coming to grips with the loss of my cat. 我难过了好长时间，才能面对这个事实。好了，我们再来听听刚才那段话：

女: 我朋友Amy最近刚离婚。She still hasn’t come to grips with the fact that her ex would leave her for a younger woman. 她到现在还无法接受前夫为了一个比她年轻的女人而离她而去的现实。美国是个大熔炉，如何面对种族歧视是一个重要问题。下面的这个例子里讲到了一个叫George的人，我们来听听他的想法发生了怎么样的转变：

M: “George had always held a low opinion of immigrants. One day he was driving to work when a truck hit his car and knocked him unconscious. He awoke to find that he’d been rescued by a woman who’d grown up in Mexico. That’s when he CAME TO GRIPS WITH his prejudice. It was time to face his dislike of people he didn’t really know.”

这段话的意思是说：[乔治一直对移民没什么好印象。有一天他开车去上班的路上，一辆卡车撞到了他，把他撞昏了过去。醒来时，他发现，是一名墨西哥裔的妇女救了他。这件事让乔治开始正视自己的种族歧视心态，不能对不熟悉的人存在任何偏见。]

种族歧视是一个很严肃的问题。通常情况下，存在偏见的人往往很难改变他们固有的想法，因为他们会避免去接触那些自己本来就看不上的人。好了，我们再来听听刚才那段话：

今天我们学习的习惯用语是come to grips with ，意思是“正视面对”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Steve Baragona。谢谢各位的收听。

A: That’s exactly my point Kat. 我看你老买这些高级货，I think you need to watch your spending habits girl! 你说要是每个月都月光，到时候万一有个急用的时候你怎么办呀?

B: 杨琳，冷静，冷静点!! I will be fine! Anyways, you’ve got this backward. I just need to find a high-paying job to match my spending habits! There’s no way I’m willing to give up the love of my life…LV….

A: 哎哟，那我可真无语了….算了，刚才你提到冷静，下面咱们就来学学这个词用美语怎么说!

Donny 在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是Jimmy要问的：别慌。

Jimmy: Donny, 大事不好了!

Donny: What happened, Jimmy? You look terrible!

Jimmy: 两小时后….我要和女朋友约会，她刚提醒我，今天是我们认识一周年纪念日，还给我准备了礼物。But I totally forgot! 怎么办？她肯定会生气，会骂我，会分手，还会……

Donny: Hey! Hey! Don’t have a cow!

Jimmy: 啊？你说什么？cow? cow 不是奶牛么？

Donny: What I meant is– you need to calm down. “Don’t have a cow” 也就是中文里说的不要慌张。

Jimmy: 哦，让别人冷静，别慌，就说 Don’t have a cow! 哎？还有别的说法么？我记得有个词叫 chill, c-h-i-l-l?

Donny: Yes! You can say chill out. It means calm down, or “don’t panic”.

Jimmy: 啊! 要是我今晚跟女朋友坦白讲：我就是忘了咱俩认识一周年这回事了，你能把我怎么样？她肯定会抓狂。然后我就说：Honey! Chill out!

Donny: 呃….I think you better say “Honey, I’m really sorry. How can I make up to you?”

Jimmy: 呵呵，我开玩笑的。

Donny: Oh, speaking of the word “chill”, you can also say “take a chill

pill”. It’s another way of saying “calm down”.

Jimmy: Take a chill pill. Pill, p-i-l-l, pill是“药丸”的意思，所以, take a chill pill字面意思就是“吃个冷静药丸”，就是叫人别激动，别慌。

Donny: You got it. So what are you going to do for tonight’s date?

Jimmy: 还能怎么办，抓紧这两小时，赶紧去买礼物呗! 走啦!

Donny: Before you go, tell me what you’ve learned today!

Jimmy: 今天学了让人别慌的三种说法。第一，Don’t have a cow;

第二，Chill out;

第三：Take a chill pill.

这次的”美语怎么说”就到这里结束了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给 Donny, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

B: See 杨琳，you really just need to take a chill pill. It’s obvious that with skills like mine, it won’t be long before I will be so famous that I will be able to afford all the luxury goods I want!

A: 你可真不像一般的美国人。There’s a stereotype that Americans don’t really care about luxury brands. 你说大街上大家不都穿T-shirt和牛仔裤么!

B: You forget- I’m not “everyone.” I’m a unique and beautiful flower! 哈哈哈，开个玩笑! 我个人可不喜欢这些刻板印象，不过in today’s Go English, we’ll take a look at different stereotypes from around the world!

A: Let’s listen!

Culture: Intermediate

各位听众，大家好！今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“社会文化”单元的中级课程。

Jane 和Will初次约会，聊到彼此的家庭背景。我知道Jane 的父母来自中国，所以我很想听听，作为一个亚裔美国人，Jane的成长经历是什么样的。

Professor: That’s right, Winnie, let’s listen to what they have to say.

Will: So Jane, you said that both your parents are from China. How do they like living in America?

Jane: They really like it, but of course they miss their friends and family back home sometimes.

Will: Yeah, I can imagine. So do you consider yourself Chinese or American?

Jane: Well, that’s a complicated question. Of course I’m American, but I’m ethnically Chinese as well.

Will: I see. So you consider yourself both?

Jane: That’s right.

Will总是问一些严肃的问题! 他问Jane，觉得自己是中国人还是美国人。Jane回答说，自己既是中国人，也是美国人。

Professor: Right. Jane is an American citizen, but she is also ethnically Chinese.

Ethnically？我明白了，ethnic是民族的意思.

Professor: Exactly. For example, I could say that Hispanics are one of the largest ethnic groups in America.

所以，从民族上讲，Jane认为自己是华人。

Professor, 拉美裔人，是美国人口最多的少数族裔之一？那么，亚裔人口又怎么样呢？

Professor: Asians make up about 4.5 percent of the American population.

Will: Did you face a lot of stereotypes growing up?

Jane: Of course, all minorities face some stereotypes. For me, lots of people assume that because I’m Asian, I’m smart and good at math.

Will: That doesn’t sound like a bad stereotype to have!

Jane: No, it’s not a very offensive stereotype. But it’s still wrong for people to assume things about me because of how I look. I hate math!

Will: Me too! I guess that’s one thing we have in common.

stereotype, s-t-e-r-e-o-t-y-p-e, stereotype，是“刻板印象”、“先入为主的看法”。Jane说，因为她是亚裔，所以很多美国人对她持有stereotype，一看她的亚洲脸，就认定她的数学一定很好!

Professor: But Jane thinks that stereotypes are wrong, doesn’t she?

当然啦! Jane说，以貌取人是不对的。她其实很讨厌学数学。

Professor: That’s right. She and Will both hate math, so that’s one thing they have in common.

Will: Did people tease you when you were growing up because you’re Asian?

Jane: My school was very politically correct, so people tried really hard not to say things that would offend me.

Will: Right. Race can be a sensitive subject in America. People like to talk about it, but only in a polite way.

Jane: That’s true. People these days try hard to be tolerant, and are careful not to say things that other people may think are racist.

看来Jane 是在比较 tolerant–“宽容”的环境下长大的。人们没有因为她是亚裔而嘲弄她。不过，Professor, 什么叫“politically correct”？

Professor: Being politically correct is making sure that the things that you say won’t offend people in minority groups and disadvantaged groups.

哦，politically correct，在政治上保持正确，也就是言行上避免有歧视少数族裔或弱势群体之嫌。

Professor: Right. People don’t want to say anything racist, so they make sure all their words are very polite.

没错，racist–“种族歧视性”言行，肯定不能让你做到 politically correct.

Jane: It’s pretty easy for me living in the US because it is such a diverse country. There are many other minorities, so I don’t feel different.

Will: That’s true. The US is a country of immigrants, so it is very diverse.

Jane: Yup. My university is especially diverse. It tries to find students from all over the world.

Will: Oh yeah, my university has lots of minority students too. I’ve really enjoyed learning about lots of different cultures from them.

Professor: Winnie, do you know what “diverse” means?

Diverse就是“多样化”。Jane和Will的大学都很diverse, 不仅有来自各族裔的学生，还有来自世界各地的留学生! Professor, Jane和Will初次约会就谈了宗教、种族这些严肃话题，而且聊得挺高兴。我看他们真是天生一对儿!

A: 我觉得上面说得很对，我来美国最大的文化冲击就是这种多元化! Learning about all these different cultures is definitely fun, but sometimes it’s challenging not to offend anybody!

B: 那你干嘛还说我买LV包包嘛!

A: 我这不是为你好吗?!

B: 哈哈，yeah yeah I get your point. Actually everybody has some kind of hobby that they end up pouring cash into! Let’s follow up with our friend the tech-head in Business Etiquette and see what he ends up buying!

礼节美语 EARLY ADOPTERS II

Henry买了最新的超小电脑Orange SuperCom 4，拿给同事Sara和Mark看。Sara问他：

Sara: So did you already own an Orange SuperCom 3?

Henry: Yeah, I sold it on eBay last week.

M: I used to rush out and buy the latest gadgets as well, but I discovered that first generation products often have a lot of bugs in them.

H: Actually, Mark is right. Even this Orange SuperCom 4 is not quite up to snuff. The connection to the Internet is a bit slow, and it seems like the computer has a little trouble multitasking.

Mark说，他原来也是科技潮人，一出什么新玩艺儿，the latest gadgets, 马上跑去买。gadget is spelled g-a-d-g-e-t, gadget 是小玩艺的意思，常指科技类产品。不过，Mark发现，很多第一代，第二代产品都有很多 bugs, bugs在这里指技术方面的漏洞。Henry承认，他新买的SuperCom4 is not quite up to snuff. 也不是样样都好， up to snuff 意思是符合标准，相当于 up to standard.

M: The problem is that many times in the beginning they haven’t quite ironed out all the wrinkles in the software. By the third or fourth generation the company’s engineers have a better idea of what works and what doesn’t.

S: I’m generally pretty content just to stay with the same system until it becomes obsolete. I still play my old cassette tapes at home.

M: That’s one way to go. You know the old expression: “If it ain’t broke…don’t fix it.”

S: Exactly, I use things until they literally fall apart.

H: I prefer the expression: “Out with the old and in with the new!”

Mark说，问题关键是，第一、二代产品时，很多软件中存在的小问题还都没有得到解决。They haven’t ironed out all the wrinkles in the software. to iron out 意思是抹平，解决。Sara说，她在这方面从不赶时髦，家里的东西都得用到过时。英语里有一种说法叫：If it ain’t broke…don’t fix it. 没坏就不要去修它。Henry 崇尚的则是另一种境界：Out with the old and in with the new! 旧的不去，新的不来。

M: I guess the world needs both kinds of people. Early adopters of technology like Henry help pave the way into the future.

S: And people like me try to keep the pace of change down to a reasonable speed.

H: I have to tell you though…despite all its faults, the new Orange SuperCom 4 is really quite an amazing machine!

M: Maybe after work I can take a quick look at your new toy.

H: Sure! I love showing off my new gadgets! Sara, care to join us?

S: That’s OK…I think I’ll stay at home and play my cassette tapes. You guys have fun!

Mark说，Sara和Henry这两种人，都是不可缺少的。他问Henry下班能不能去摆弄一下他的新玩具。Henry欣然同意，说：I love showing off my new gadgets! 我就喜欢显摆我的新玩艺，to show off 是显摆的意思，他还问Sara, care to join us? 要不要一起来。Sara开玩笑说，她还是选择回家去听她的磁带录音机。

B: See, THOSE guys tend to spend every dollar they have on new gadgets! Compared to them, my enthusiasm for beautiful, elegant bags is nothing!

A: 嘿! 就你能找借口!

B: 嘿嘿，再说了，这也能为我增添人气啊。Today, for example, I’m carrying this brand new style of LV bag. A bunch of people on the street stopped to compliment me on my bag! I’m practically a local star.

A: Now that might be true. 这倒是个增添人气的方法哈! 说到这里，咱们去看看人气这个词儿用美语怎么说!

Donny 在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天吴琼是要问的：人气。

Donny: Hi, Wuqiong, do you want to go to this concert with me?

WQ: 演唱会？让我看看是哪个歌星开的。哇! 这个人现在是人气天王! 我当然愿意跟你去啦。哎？人气在英文里怎么说？

Donny: 人气就是受欢迎的程度。So you can use the word “popularity”, p-o-p-u-l-a-r-i-t-y, popularity.

WQ: popularity 就是人气。这个词就是 popular 的名词形式嘛。

Donny: Exactly. I’ve heard about this singer’s rising popularity. That’s why I want to go to his concert.

WQ: 演唱会的表演嘉宾，guest stars，都有谁？

Donny: Well, here’s the guest star list. Most of them are popular too, but who’s this person on the bottom of the list? 我怎么没听说过。

WQ: 让我看看，让我看看。哦，这个女明星几年前很红，可后来过气了。

Donny: No wonder I’ve never heard about her. She’s a has-been. The word “has-been” means someone who is no longer popular.

WQ: has-been? has 和 been放一起就是过气的人，过时的东西。This guest star used to be famous and popular, but now she’s just a has-been.

Donny: 对。

WQ:这么说，她可能想借着当嘉宾的机会重新走红喽？

Donny: That’s possible. This concert will be a good opportunity for her to stage a comeback.

WQ: comeback, c-o-m-e-b-a-c-k, comeback 就是东山再起，咸鱼翻身的意思吧？If this singer makes a comeback, she will regain her popularity!

Donny: Exactly. Now let’s see what you’ve learned today!

WQ: 第一：人气叫 popularity;

第二：过气、过时的人或物是 a has-been;

第三：东山再起是 a comeback.

这次的”美语怎么说”就到这里结束了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给 Donny, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

A: I hope my popularity will increase after all this serious hosting. I should get SOME kind of reward for dealing with YOU all day….

B:哈哈，赶快去查查你微博的粉丝人数涨没涨?

A: 哈哈，我这就去!(笑) 好了，这次节目时间就到这里。同学们，如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: Tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: See you next time!

美语训练班第056课

A: 欢迎大家来到这期的美语训练班! 我是杨琳！

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，快给大家介绍一下今天咱们要学什么?

A: 好! 今天，咱们要去看看一次糟糕的约会，听听Harry今天有多倒霉，学学怎么表达计划泡汤，还要告诉大家怎么用美语说”赘肉”和”宅男宅女”!

B: 我可不喜欢宅男宅女，they are SO boring!! Life should be full of adventures!

A: 哈哈，I know you are a daredevil! 不过现在，咱们先赶快来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word # 1510 stepping-stone

今天我们要学的词是stepping stone. Stepping is spelled s-t-e-p-p-i-n-g, stepping; and stone, s-t-o-n-e, stone; stepping-stone. Stepping-stone是为了达到目的而准备垫脚石，敲门砖。阿尔及利亚最近举行议会选举，Algeria’s authorities say a parliamentary election is a stepping stone towards a more democratic state, but many people do not believe such promises. 阿尔及利亚当局说，议会选举是为建立更民主的国家作铺垫，不过很多人并不相信这些承诺。

Many people use education as a stepping stone to a better life. 许多人通过受教育来争取过上更好的生活。Internships are a stepping stone into the corporate world and, for many, are the best way to learn. 实习是进入企业界的敲门砖，对许多人来说，也是最好的学习机会。
好的，今天我们学习的词是stepping-stone,stepping-stone, stepping-stone.

B: OMG，杨琳，I’m so excited for my trip to Colorado next week!

A:Wow, that sounds cool! What are you going to do while you’re there?

B: Well, I’m going to go see my friend Dave, visit a couple of cities, and most importantly, I’m going to go hiking in the
dessert! Great Dunes National Park here I come!!

A: 啊? 在沙漠里徒步旅行? 我的天啊，Kat, 你可别走丢了….

B: 当然不会! 不过我得赶快去定票! 要是定不到想要的日子，then all my plans will be ruined!

A: Oh gosh, you waited way too long to buy your ticket, girl! 提到这个，在下面的Words and Idioms里，我们就来教你怎么说计划泡汤!

Words and Idioms 965

现在播送美国习惯用语第 965讲。我是杨琳。

我是Steve Baragona.

我刚开编辑会回来。老板通知我们，这个星期的节目要另嘉宾，因为别的制片人把我们原来请的嘉宾挖走了。我同事听到这个消息，气急败坏。这也
让我想到了一句习惯用语，那就是：

Cook someone’s goose. Cook is spelled c-o-o-k; and goose; g-o-o-s-e. Cook-someone’s-goose.

Cook意思是煮，goose是鹅。连起来，to cook someone’s goose, 可并不是煮鹅的意思，而是指打碎某人的计划，或者毁了一个人的名誉。在上面的例子中，别人挖走了我们的嘉宾，我同事气急败坏，She is probably going to cook the guy’s goose who stole our guest. 她八成要狠狠地整一下那个挖走我们嘉宾的家伙。在下面的例子中，我们要听听一个叫Brad的人在得知他女友的所作所为之后做了什么:

M: “Brad’s girlfriend should have told him that she was out with another guy last weekend. When he found out, he was more than jealous. He was furious. Not only did he break up with her, but he also sent an e-mail to all of their friends about what she’s done. That COOKED HER GOOSE. Her reputation was ruined.”

这段话的意思是说：[布拉德的女朋友本应告诉他，她上周末跟另一个男人出去约会了。布拉德自己发现后，不光是嫉妒，简直就是气得发疯。他不仅跟这个女孩分手，而且还给他们俩的所有朋友发电子邮件，告诉大家她的所作所为，彻底坏了这个女孩的声誉。]

这女孩确实做得不对。可是Brad也够狠的。大家还记得前一阵子国际货币基金组织前总裁斯特劳斯-卡恩的性丑闻么? The sex scandal cooked his goose. 那次性丑闻彻底毁了他的名誉。好的，我们再来听听刚才那段话：

我上大学的时候有个好朋友，她因为室友总是偷吃她的食物，所以决定要报复。她在烤饼干了放了泻药，She really cooked her roommate’s goose that time. 她那次真是把自己的室友好好修理了一顿。

大家恐怕都有过这样的经历，就是有的时候，整整一天都倒霉，干什么事情都不顺。下面的例子就谈到了这样的一天，让我们来听听看：

M: “Our plane is leaving in an hour. And here we are stuck in some of the worst traffic we’ve ever seen. If we don’t make that flight, we’ll miss our connection. Then OUR GOOSE WILL BE COOKED! We won’t get to the port in time to board our cruise. Our vacation plans will be ruined.”

这段话是说：[我们的飞机一小时之后就要起飞了。可现在我们却被塞在路上。如果我们赶不上这班飞机，就会错过转机。那我们的计划就完全被打乱了! 我们也没办法按时登上油轮。那我们的渡假计划就彻底泡汤了。]

渡假计划被打乱是最让人沮丧的事情。这里用了被动语态，Our goose will be cooked. 意思跟cook our goose是一样的，就是破坏了我们的计划。好的，我们再来听听刚才那段话：

好的，今天我们学习的习惯用语是cook someone’s goose，意思是“彻底打乱某人的计划，或者毁了一个人的名誉”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Steve Baragona。谢谢各位的收听。

A: 让我也来造个句， If you can’t get a plane ticket soon, your goose will be cooked!

B: 别乌鸦嘴，杨琳! 我这就定…

A: 哈哈，开个玩笑嘛 …. 不过沙漠旅行太危险了! What if you get lost? 要是让我在惊险生活和宅在家里选一个，我还是宅吧….

B: But you only live once! You should take advantage of it and get all the excitement you can! 说到这，咱们先来看看宅这个词儿用美
语怎么说!

Jessica 在北京学汉语，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是吴琼要问的：宅男宅女。

Jessica: Wuqiong, 听说你表妹从上海来看你了，怎么样， Are you two getting along？

wq: 唉，她哪是来看我。整天待在家里，根本不理我，每天就知道上网，看电视，也不出去玩儿。标准的宅女! 像这种特别“宅”的人，在美语里叫什
么？

Jessica: I think you can call them “homebodies”. A homebody is a person who prefers to stay at home and seldom goes out.

wq: homebody? home 就是家的意思，body 是身体，两个词连在一起—身体长在家里了，就是homebody! 宅男宅女! My cousin is totally a homebody! 哈哈，我回家要告诉她这句话!

Jessica: Well, you can also call her a “shut-in”. s-h-u-t, shut; i-n, in–shut-in.

wq: 哦，shut-in也是指不愿意出门和别人交往的宅男宅女! 我要告诉我表妹，Don’t be a shut-in! Go out and get some fresh air!

Jessica: 对! 让她出去转转，不然，Her brain will rot if she stays home and stares at a screen all the time!

wq: 啊？r-o-t, rot 不是腐烂么？Her brain will rot 就是“她脑子要发霉”的意思吧？

Jessica: That’s right! Being a couch potato isn’t healthy.

wq: 没错。couch potato，沙发土豆，就是一天到晚赖在沙发上看电视的人。每天不运动，变得圆滚滚的，跟个potato–大土豆一样！

Jessica: I’m sure your cousin doesn’t wan to look like a potato! Now, tell me what you’ve learned today!

wq: 第一，宅男宅女叫 homebody, 或者 shut-in;

第二，一天到晚坐在沙发上看电视的人叫 couch potato;

第三，说脑子要发霉了，就是Your brain will rot!

B: See杨琳，if you become a homebody, then you’ll probably become a couch potato, too….

A: 然后就会长肉!! 太可怕了太可怕了。不过我也不是每天都在家，你看上周我就去了华盛顿的使馆之旅，就是每个国家的大使馆都对公众开放，特别好玩!

B: Oh fun! I bet you learned about a whole bunch of different cultures and customs!

A: I sure did, plus I tasted tons of different foods from around the world! 说到这，在今天的美语三级跳里，我们就再去领略一下不同文化!

B: Let’s listen!

Culture: Advanced

今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“社会文化”单元的高级课程。

Professor: Today we’re learning some words for talking about “affirmative action” programs in the US. Winnie, if a college or business has an affirmative action program, that means it gives preference to minority students, who have traditionally been underprivileged in American society.

嗯，这个我听说过。美国的”Affirmative action”，平权法案，要求对少数族裔人口实行入学、就业方面的优惠政策。我想，这个政策应该是为了帮助少数族裔，改善他们的社会地位，可难免也会引发一些不满和争议吧？

Professor: Yes, it has been quite controversial. Let’s see what Will and Jane have to say about it.

Will: So Jane, where do you go to college?

Jane: I’m at the University of California, in Los Angeles. It’s a great school academically, but also because it gives me the chance to meet people of all different nationalities, races and backgrounds.

Will: Yeah, US colleges have become much more diverse ever since affirmative action policies were put in place. But even though that’s a good thing, some people still gripe about them.

Jane: Of course, there has been a lot of controversy surrounding them. After all, affirmative action is a pretty blunt instrument for helping disadvantaged groups improve their lives.

Professor Bowman, 什么叫 gripe？

Professor: To gripe is to complain about something. For example, the employees at every company I’ve worked at have always griped about how rich the boss is, even though they make good salaries.

哦，gripe, g-r-i-p-e, gripe, 就是“抱怨”的意思。 Will 说，虽然平权政策使很多少数族裔学生得到了上大学的机会，提升了美国大学校园的多样性，但还是有人对这个政策不满。对了，Jane说，平权法案是个blunt instrument，Professor, 这是什么意思呢？

Professor: Winnie, a “blunt instrument” is a method that uses too much force, so that, in achieving your aim, it also causes some harm or trouble. For example, “War is a very blunt instrument for settling disputes between countries. It’s better to resolve them through careful negotiations.”

我明白了，blunt instrument就是“生硬的方法”，用这种方法做事，往往事倍功半，效果不佳。

Will: Why do you think some people are opposed to affirmative action?

Jane: A lot of people think we no longer need affirmative action, and that it’s unfair. If two people apply for a job, should one be given better treatment because of his or her skin color?

Will: I see your point. But many of the poor people in American society are minorities. I think we should try to give them a leg up.

Jane: True, but there are lots of poor people who aren’t minorities too. Shouldn’t they get help too?

Will: I agree that it isn’t a perfect solution, but it’s a pretty good way of leveling the playing field.

听起来Will很支持平权法案，他说，美国很多穷人都是少数族裔，平权法案可以give them a leg up–助他们一臂之力，使他们获得一些优势。

Professor: That’s right. Will also says he thinks that affirmative action policies are a good way of “leveling the playing field”.

对，level the playing field 就是说为大家提供公平赛场，让所有人站在同样的起点上。Will觉得，平权法案虽然并不完美，但至少缩小了白人和有色人种之间的社会差距。

Jane: You know, I think one thing that everybody can agree on is that we should live in a world where affirmative action isn’t necessary.

Will: I totally agree. When each person has the same opportunities in life, regardless of his or her skin color, the world will definitely be a better place.

Jane: Hey Will ….. just a suggestion, but can we talk about something less serious? All this talk of religion and discrimination isn’t what I had in mind for a first date.

Will: Well sure …. we can talk about something light and fun. What do you think about global warming?

Jane: Waiter, can you bring the check please?

哈哈，Jane终于受不了了! Will尽和她谈这些严肃话题，让他换个轻松点的，他居然会想到 global warming–全球暖化！怪不得Jane急着给钱走人!

Professor: Yup, sounds like Will made a pretty bad move.

A: 这个Will可真无聊，约会非要谈这些严肃的话题，我看他们也不会再一起出去了!

B: Yeah, you bet. That IS a boring date, and believe me, I know about boring dates…

A: 哎呀，不过我还是在想，你请假出去玩了，就没人跟我耍贫嘴了，真无聊! I will have a lot of bad, boring days!

B: 哈哈，那可不! I’m the sunshine that brings you happiness every day! Kidding kidding. 好了，刚才你谈到a bad day, 咱们下面就去听听Harry讲讲他倒霉的一天!

礼节美语—BE-243 A Really Bad Day I

Harry在公司遇到同事Cindy.

Harry: Oh man…it’s really not my day!

Cindy: Having a bad hair day?

H: You have no idea! I woke up late because I didn’t hear my alarm…then I realized I’d forgotten to pick up my suit from the dry cleaners.

C: So you rushed out of the apartment to go grab your suit and …?

H: I closed the door without taking my keys!

C: So you’re locked out of your apartment?

H: Yep…but that was only the beginning of my troubles.

C: Tell me more.

Harry这天特别倒霉。It’s not his day. 或者也可以说 He’s having a bad hair day. 意思都是说这天真倒霉，干什么都不顺。早上闹钟没听见，起床晚了不说，急着出门去取干洗的西装，一着急，忘了带钥匙。He locked himself out of his apartment. 这里说的 dry cleaners 意思是干洗店。而这还只是个开头。我们接着听。

H: Well…I was still running late for work so I hailed a cab. I got here 45 minutes late and had no choice but to wear this T-shirt and jeans. The boss gave me a funny look when I came in…so who knows? Maybe I’ll get fired today as well!

C: You poor thing! You really are having a bad day!

H: But it gets worse! As soon as I sat down at my desk, I noticed my wallet was missing!

C: No way!

H: Yep…it’s gone.

C: Did you leave it in the taxi?

H: That’s what I first assumed…but that doesn’t make sense because I paid the cabby with money from my wallet.

Harry出门打车上班，打车可以用动词 hail. He hailed a cab. 结果穿着T恤衫和牛仔裤就跑来了，而且还迟到了45分钟。The boss game me a funny look. Harry不巧被老板撞到，老板用很奇怪的眼光看了看他，而这还不是最糟糕的。It gets worse. 更糟糕的还在后面呢！刚坐稳当，Harry就发现钱包不见了。Cindy问他是不是落在出租车上了。Harry说不可能，因为他下车付钱的时候钱包还在呢。那会丢在哪里了呢？

C: So you simply misplaced it?

H: Nope. Just as I was walking from the cab to the front door of our office building, a guy bumped into me.

C: Oh no! You got hit by a pickpocket!

H: Yep. After I put two and two together I realized that was exactly what happened. He bumped up against me so I wouldn’t notice he stole my wallet.

Cindy问Harry是不是把钱包随手放在什么地方，所以才找不到的，misplace is spelled m-i-s-p-l-a-c-e, misplace 是放错地方的意思。

Harry说，进公司的时候 A guy bumped into him.有个人撞在了他的身上。After I put two and two together 把丢钱包和被人撞这两件事情联系起来，Harry恍然大悟，钱包是被扒手pickpocket偷走了。Harry没带钥匙，又丢了钱包，这一天要怎么过呢？我们下次继续听。

B: Oh man! This episode reminds me that I should go book my ticket! 我可不想像Harry这么倒霉!

A: 哈哈，那可不! 话说，其实我今天就挺不高兴的!

B: Really? What’s wrong 杨琳?

A: 我昨天本来想去游泳，发现长膘了之后，游泳衣都穿不上了….

B: 哈哈，girl, then just come jogging with me! Exercise is the best way to keep fit!

A: 好吧…不过说到这，咱们来学学这个我最恨的赘肉用美语怎么说!

Jessica在北京学汉语，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是于苗要问的：赘肉。

Jessica: 于苗! You look so cute in this red dress!

YM: 真的么？难道你不觉得这件连衣裙有点瘦么？

Jessica: Ah….it’s….a little tight. Just a little!

YM: 唉，我去年买这条裙子的时候，穿着还有点肥呢，今年居然紧成这样，看来我这赘肉真是没少长啊!

Jessica: Don’t be upset, Yumiao. You may have a little extra meat on your bones, but trust me, you still look good!

YM: extra meat on my bones？骨头上有多余的肉？这在中文里就叫”赘肉”。唉，I really want this “extra meat” gone! 尤其是这腰上的赘肉，真是讨厌的“救生圈”啊!

Jessica: I know! No one wants that “spare tire”. It’s our worst enemy!

YM: spare, s-p-a-r-e, spare; tire, t-i-r-e, tire, spare tire 不是指“备用轮胎”么？原来，中国人把腰上的一圈赘肉比喻成“救生圈”，美国人则把它比成“spare tire”备用胎。

Jessica: That’s right! We also call the extra fat around your waist line “love handles”.

YM: 腰上的赘肉还可以叫 love handles？ love 爱情；handle, h-a-n-d-l-e, handle 把手。这肥肉也能跟爱情挂上钩吗？

Jessica: Well, think about it. When your boyfriend wraps his arms around you, he can hold on to these like handles?!

YM: 啊？太可怕了。我可不想要 love handles. I’m going to the gym, starting TODAY!

Jessica: Well, before you go, tell me what you’ve learned today!

YM: 第一“赘肉”在美语里叫 extra meat on the bones;

第二，形容腰上的赘肉，可以说 spare tire;

第三，腰间肥肉的另外一种说法是 love handles.

A: Alright! 好吧! 行动起来! 咱们现在就去跑步!

B:哈哈，没问题! 不过，咱们还得跟观众 say bye bye 呢!!

A: (笑) 好了同学们，这次节目时间就到这里。如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: Tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: See you next time!

美语训练班第057课

A: 欢迎大家来到这期的美语训练班! 我是杨琳！

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，快说说咱们今天都要学什么?

A: 好! 今天，咱们要去吃个快餐，继续看看Harry倒霉的一天，学学怎么表达隐瞒证据，还要告诉大家怎么用美语说”花美男”和”一夜成名”!

B: 一夜成名? 我年轻的时候也这么想过…

A: 哈哈，stop daydreaming there…. 咱们先赶快来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word undermine

今天我们要学的词是undermine. Undermine is spelled u-n-d-e-r-m-i-n-e; undermine. Undermine 是“削弱，损害”的意思。The U.S. State Department says deep cuts to its budget proposed by Congress will undermine America’s security and global leadership. 美国国务院表示，国会提出的大幅削减国务院预算的计划会伤害美国的安全，并削弱美国的全球领导地位。Afghanistan’s president has warned that civilian casualties caused by NATO air strikes could undermine the recently-signed cooperation agreement with the US. 阿富汗总统警告说，北约空袭造成的人员伤亡可能会动摇最近跟美国签署的合作协议。好的，今天我们学习的词是undermine, undermine, undermine.

A: I’ve had this problem on my mind lately- One of my best friends is dating this guy, but I feel like I have a responsibility to undermine their relationship….我不能让他们就这么发展下去。

B: Wait what? Why would you do that?

A: 其实那个男的也是我的朋友，可他是个花花公子! He’s a womanizer! I don’t want my friend to get hurt.

B: Oh I see. Yeah, you might want to tell her about that, but you’ll be sure to cover your tracks when you warn her about that guy, right?

A: 是啊! 咱们先想想办法，不过你提到了一个很有用的词儿: cover one’s track, 咱们一起来听听这个短语的用法!

Words and Idioms

现在播送<美国习惯用语>第 966讲。我是杨琳。

M：我是 Steve Baragona.

上星期我朋友的公司出了一起风波。一名会计被发现挪用公款。他连续几个月没被发现，因为他做得很隐蔽。我们可以用一个习惯用语来形容他的这种做法，那就是:

M: Cover one’s tracks. Cover is spelled c-o-v-e-r; and tracks; t-r-a-c-k-s. Cover-one’s-tracks. Cover one’s tracks.

Cover 意思是隐瞒，掩饰，tracks 轨迹。连起来，to cover one’s tracks, 意思就是掩盖行踪，隐瞒证据。上面的例子中，The accountant was able to COVER HIS TRACKS for a long time before his scheme was finally discovered. 这位会计长期隐瞒证据，直到他的阴谋被发现。下面的例子里，一名罪犯越狱之后是如何掩饰自己行踪的呢? 我们赶快来听听看:

M: “The prisoner escaped weeks ago. The police had a hard time finding her because she COVERED HER TRACKS. She was careful not to use her real name and she kept traveling from one state to another. When her photo appeared on TV, a viewer reported seeing her. And she was finally captured.”

这段话意思是说：[这名犯人几星期前越狱，警方费了好大力气搜捕她，但是她很好地掩盖了自己的行踪。她不使用真名，而且不停在州与州之间转移。直到她的照片被公布在电视上，有人举报说曾经见过她，才终于把她抓了回来。]

现在高智商犯罪真是越来越普遍! 很多犯罪分子不但聪明，还会利用高科技手段来掩盖自己的所作所为。我还记得前几年大热的美剧: Prison Break 越狱，里面的男主角Michael就是这样，He was able to cover his tracks with a complicated underground maze. 他挖了一条复杂的地下迷宫来掩饰行踪。好的，言归正传，我们再来听听刚才那段话:

大家都喜欢惊喜派对。下面的这个例子里，兄妹俩人为了给他们的妈妈制造一个惊喜派对，一直试图掩饰他们的计划。让我们来听听看他们都做了些什么:

M: “Mom and dad have no idea that we’re organizing a party to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. So far we’ve been pretty good at COVERING OUR TRACKS. If we let them think that we and the other guests have other plans that weekend, they won’t find out what’s really happening. Then it’ll be a big surprise!”

这段话是说：[妈妈和爸爸完全不知道我们为他们50周年结婚纪念日准备了一场派对。到目前为止，我们的掩饰工作做得还不错。如果我们能让他们以为大家在那个周末都有别的安排，他们就完全不会知道我们真正的计划。那就真是个大惊喜了!]

所以说，cover one’s tracks 也不一定都是干坏事。我同事有一次也给了我这样一个惊喜。他们计划了一次特别的午餐会庆祝我晋升，但是却骗我说这是一次编辑会。They carefully covered their tracks so I didn’t find out about the surprise lunch party! 他们小心掩饰，所以我一点也没发现，原来那是一次惊喜午餐会! 好的，让我们再来听听刚才那段话:

今天我们学习的习惯用语是 cover one’s tracks，意思是“掩盖行踪，隐瞒证据”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Doug Johnson。谢谢各位的收听。

B: Ooh! Ooh! I have an idea, 杨琳! You can try to get your friend to see that guy’s true colors by showing her all the pictures of him with other girls on 人人!

A: 嗯，也行, 这样我就什么都不用说，让她看事实就行了! 我觉得她就是喜欢他的外表，this guy takes GREAT care of himself! I bet he spends more money on his hair than I do! 就是咱们老说的花美男!

B: Oooh- he’s one of those, eh? I know that kind- sometimes I think they’re prettier than me!! 在今天的美语怎么说里，咱们就来看看花美男这个词怎么说!

How to say it in American English

JESSICA 在北京学汉语，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是杨林要问的：花美男。

YL: JESSICA，你发现没有，现在有一种男人，皮肤比女人还好，比女人还爱打扮，穿得特时髦，都跟从偶像剧里走出来似的。我们叫他们“花美男”，flower-pretty-man! 呵呵，我瞎翻的，美语中不会也有类似的称呼吧？

JESSICA: Actually, there IS an English equivalence. It’s “metrosexual” m-e-t-r-o-s-e-x-u-a-l, metrosexual.

YL: metro– “大城市”，加上 sexual– “性别的”。那 metrosexual 跟中文里说的“花美男”指的是一种人吗？

Jessica: Well, Metrosexual men live in big cities, know all the trendy places in town and pay great attention to their appearances.

YL: 没错! 花美男就是住在大城市里的时尚达人，特别注重外表和打扮！要这么说，花美男就是 metrosexual man!

JESSICA: I guess being a metrosexual man means you’re doing your homework on the latest trends. You need to be up-to-date on the hottest fashion!

YL: up-to-date on the hottest fashion? fashion是时尚的意思，up-to- date 是跟上潮流，所以，up-to-date on the hottest fashion 就是“紧跟最新时尚”吧？

JESSICA: That’s right! But Yanglin, I would say the real fashionable people are not those who follow the trends, but the trend setters!

YL: trend setters? t-r-e-n-d, trend 是趋势的意思，setter, s-e-t-t-e-r 是设定者，所以 trend setter 就是开创时尚的真正潮人!

JESSICA: 没错! Now let’s see what you’ve learned today!

YL: 第一，注重打扮的“花美男”是 metrosexual men；

第二，紧跟流行时尚是 be up-to-date on the hottest fashion；

第三，领导时尚的潮人叫 trend setter!

B: You might joke, but you know what? I like metro guys! They are always clean and don’t let themselves get smelly like other guys!

A: 但是我觉得男的太娘了也不好吧! 像我有个朋友，大男人天天要保持身材，从来不吃快餐，每天沙拉水果….

B: It’s good to be healthy, but everyone needs to indulge themselves once in a blue moon!

A: 对啊! 有时候我就特别想吃不健康的! 薯条，汉堡，奶昔! 好吃又肥胖，哈!

B: 好啦好啦杨琳，等会咱们就可以一起去吃个冰激淋! Even better, in America, we have an extremely convenient way of buying fast food- the drive through! Let’s listen to today’s Go English and learn more!

GoEnglish: Food (Beginner)

今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“食物”单元的初级课程。

Doug and Liz 正开车去超市买菜，可Doug忽然觉得饿了，想顺道先去快餐店买个汉堡吃。

Professor: Winnie, do you ever get hungry when you go shopping?

当然有啊，所以每次去超市前，我都先要吃得饱饱的，要不然，到了超市里，我就会看见什么买什么!

Doug: Hey Liz, I’m really hungry. Let’s stop and eat something.

Liz: Alright, where do you want to eat?

Doug: There is a McDonalds nearby.

Liz: Fast food is so unhealthy. But if you are really hungry, we can go through the drive-through.

Doug: No, let’s go inside. I don’t want to spill my drink in the car.

Professor: So Winnie, did you hear where Doug wants to eat?

他想去McDonalds，就是麦当劳。不过，他说drive-through，就是中文里说的“得来速”，也就是不用下车的点餐服务窗口吧？

Professor: Exactly! Why doesn’t Doug want to use the drive-through?

因为他不想在车上吃东西，怕饮料会洒在车上。我也觉得，边吃东西边开车是很危险的。

Professor: That’s true. I guess there are two ways eating fast food can kill you.

MC: 说得对! 吃太多快餐垃圾食品会把身体搞垮，如果边开车边吃还可能让你出车祸!

Cashier: Welcome to McDonalds! May I take your order?

Doug: Yes, I’d like two hamburgers, a large Coke and a large fries.

Cashier: Do you want anything, mam?

Liz: No thanks, I’m on a diet.

Cashier: For here or to go?

Doug: For here.

Cashier: Alright, that will be 11 dollars and 50 cents.

Liz 说，she is on a diet, 正在节食，所以不吃这些高热量的快餐。Doug 真应该向 Liz 学学。

Professor: Yes, fast food has a lot of fat in it. But Winnie, does Doug want the food “for here” or “to go”?

MC: Doug 说for here, 也就是在餐厅里吃。如果说 “to go”，就是打包带走的意思。

Professor: Yes. When you take food home from a restaurant, you can also say the food is for “take out.” Now Doug and Liz are eating their food. Let’s listen.

Doug: Do you want to eat my tomato? I don’t like them. The only topping I like is ketchup.

Liz: Sure, I love tomatoes. They’re a healthy food.

Doug: That’s true. Are you sure you don’t want anything?

Liz: Well I know the French fries are very unhealthy, but they look so good.

Doug: Come on Liz, try one. It won’t kill you.

Liz: Well alright, I’ll have just one.

Doug: Great! I’m going to get a refill of soda.

看来， Liz 的决心动摇了。虽然她一直在说快餐多没营养，可是一看到Doug的薯条，也忍不住要吃上一根。

Professor: That’s right. And did you hear what topping Doug likes, and which one he doesn’t like?

MC: Doug 说, 在汉堡的所有佐料中，他只喜欢ketchup–番茄酱, 还说他不爱吃番茄。真奇怪，番茄酱不就是番茄做的嘛？

Professor: That’s right. What does Doug say he is going to do at the end?

他说他要去refill他的饮料. Professor, refill, r-e-f-i-l-l, refill 就是续杯的意思吧？

Professor: Correct. When you go to a restaurant, you can ask the waiter, “Do you have free refills?”

嗯…这些碳酸饮料中的热量已经很高了，还要续杯？我看还是算了吧!

Professor: Now let’s see what Doug says when he returns to the table.

Doug: Liz, where are all my fries? Did you eat them all?

Liz: I’m sorry, Doug. They were just so good! Once I started eating them, I couldn’t stop.

Doug: Don’t worry Liz. If I’m going to get really fat, you should get really fat too! We will look really cute together.

Liz: Wow, that is a really scary thought. I need to exercise right now!

啊？ Liz 趁Doug不在，居然把他的薯条都吃了！不过，她显然不想和Doug一起变成胖子，所以说要马上去健身。不过首先，希望他们在超市能买些健康食品!

Professor: Well listen next time to find out!

A: 我就是这样! Once I start eating french fries, I can never stop! 我一定会把一包都吃完!

B: Haha, well it’s okay as long as you remember that eating fast food too often is not good for you either, girl….

A: 我可没天天吃，不过有时候心情不好的时候，塞个汉堡，马上觉得全身都温暖有力了耶!

B: Hahah, totally! We all want comfort food on bad days! 下面的例子里，倒霉的Harry接着讲他倒霉的一天，咱们一起去听听看!

礼节美语— A Really Bad Day II

Harry告诉同事Cindy, 他这一天真是倒了血霉了。早上起晚，上班迟到，忘了取送去干洗的西装，所以只好穿着T恤和牛仔裤来公司上班，不仅如此，钱包还被人偷了。Cindy听后很同情地说，

Cindy: Wow, Harry…this might just be the worst day of your life!

H: I know! (beep, beep sound) Well…when it rains it pours! Now my cell phone is out of power! And of course…I left my charger at home.

C: (sniffs) Hey…what’s that smell? it’s kind of nasty.

H: Yeah, you’re right….it does stink. Oh! Look at my shoes! I stepped in dog poo!

C: (chuckle) It’s almost funny. Well, you know…when life brings you troubles you can either laugh or cry. Maybe you should go buy a lottery ticket! One of my Chinese friends told me that when you step in doggie poo, you might win the lottery!

正聊着，Harry手机又没电了。When it rains, it pours! 这种说法是指不管好事还是坏事，要来的时候就会接二连三，在这里可以理解为祸不单行。这时，两人都闻到有臭味，It stinks. 原来是Harry不小心踩到了狗屎，dog poo. Cindy说，她的中国朋友告诉她，踩到狗屎应该去买乐透lottery，没准能中大奖。

H: Ha! Even if I wanted to…I don’t have any money! I don’t even know how I’m getting home tonight.

C: I can lend you some money.

H: Thanks, Cindy…that’s very kind of you.

C: Not at all! Did you cancel your credit cards?

H: Not yet.

C: You better get on the phone and do that ASAP…you don’t want some thief going on a shopping spree with your cards.

H: No, I certainly don’t. Do you think I should report the theft to the police?

别说买乐透，Harry钱包丢了，今天连回家的路费都没有着落呢。Cindy安慰Harry, 说可以借钱给他，还问他有没有 cancel your credit cards.把信用卡都关掉，否则的话，小偷可能会拿着Harry的信用卡，go on a shopping spree 去疯狂购物。Harry说自己这就去，还问Cindy，自己要不要向警察报案。Cindy说：

C: Well…to be honest, the chances of getting your wallet back are low…but you might want to report it anyway. Maybe the cops will eventually catch the guy.

H: Ok…I’ll go do that during my lunch break. Wow…what a day!

C: Keep your chin up, Harry. I know it’s been a rough day for you, but someday you’ll be able to laugh about this.

H: I hope so. Thanks for being a good friend.

C: Of course! What are friends for? Let me buy you lunch today…ok?

H: Cindy…you’re an angel.

Cindy觉得，to be honest 老实说，钱包找回来的可能性很小，但她还是建议Harry去报案。Cindy还鼓励Harry说，keep your chin up! 抬起头来，别那么沮丧。Harry夸Cindy够意思。Cindy回答说，What are friends for? 直译为“要朋友干嘛用的？”意思是这是朋友应该做的，她最后还说，要请Harry吃中饭。

A: 说起吃饭，我今天好想吃热狗啊! 咱们等会去吃好不好!

B: Wow, I’ve never realized that you are a total fast food lover, girl!

A: 热狗多好吃啊，肉又多，我最爱吃肉了，哈哈!

B: Hmm Yanglin, I’ve got an idea! You should enter a hot dog eating competition and then you can become famous overnight! And I get to be your manager, of course.

A: 哈哈，没错没错! 在下面的美语怎么说里，咱们就来看看这个窜红的美语说法!

How to say it in American English

Donny 在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是吴琼要问的：窜红。

Donny: Wuqiong，你看什么杂志呢, and who’s the girl on the cover?

WQ: 这是最新一期的时尚周刊。这个女生现在可红了。你肯定猜不到，她是我高中时的好朋友! 拍了一部电影，一下就窜红了!

Donny: No kidding! Introduce her to me! 对了，你说她“窜红”，什么意思啊？

WQ: 就是红得很快，suddenly 她就 famous了!

Donny: I got it. She became famous overnight.

WQ: overnight，我知道，o-v-e-r-n-i-g-h-t, overnight 就是一夜之间。To become famous overnight 就是“一夜成名”!

Donny: That’s right. You can also say “she’s an instant hit”. Instant is spelled i-n-s-t-a-n-t, hit is spelled h-i-t.

WQ: 哦，说一个人火速窜红还可以用 an instant hit.

Donny: Yeah. In the case of this old friend of yours, you can say “her exceptional performance in the new movie made her an instant hit.”

WQ: 对，我这个同学特别会演戏，电影一出来，她马上就窜红了。

Donny: WQ, I just thought of another way to put it—She catapulted to fame with her first movie!

WQ: cata 什么？怎么拼？

Donny: catapult, c-a-t-a-p-u-l-t, catapult, 有“弹弓”的意思，as a verb, it means to launch.

WQ: 我明白了，catapult 是弹弓，所以 catapult to fame，就是“一炮而红”! 我这个朋友演了一部电影就红了，所以说 She catapulted to fame with her first movie.

Donny: That’s right! Now, WQ, tell me what you’ve learned today!

WQ: 第一，to become famous overnight，一夜成名；

第二，to be an instant hit, 火速窜红；

第三：to catapult to fame，就是“一炮而红”!

A: 快查查今年的吃热狗大赛是什么时候，I’ll be an instant hit! 一炮而红!

B: 好吧…等会下班给你查…

A: 一言为定! 好了同学们，这次节目时间就到这里。如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: And don’t forget to tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: See you next time!

美语训练班第058课

A: 当当当! 本周美语训练班上课啦! 我是杨琳!

B: Welcome to American English Mosaic, 我是Kat! 杨琳，快说说咱们今天都要学什么?

A: 好! 今天，咱们要去看看有机食品的好处，学学怎么接受媒体采访，看看怎么说大力整顿，还要告诉大家怎么用美语说”普通人”和”人脉”!

B: 人脉很重要呀! Yanglin, don’t you feel lucky to have a friend like me — someone who has a very diverse social circle? 跟我混你能认识好多人呐!

A: OMG….对对对, 臭美冠军! 好了好了，不贫嘴了，我们赶快先来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word underwater

今天我们要学的词是underwater. Underwater is spelled u-n-d-e-r-w-a-t-e-r. Underwater本意是“水下的”，但用在商业上可以指资不抵债。美国房屋市场次贷危机产生了许多underwater mortgage，就是指房屋按揭额超过房屋市值的贷款。最近的统计发现，Despite rising home prices, more than 30% of borrowers were underwater on their mortgage during the first quarter of 2012. 虽然房价在上涨，但在2012年第一季度，美国贷款买房者中依然有百分之30的人的房子资不抵债。不过，Most underwater homeowners are still paying their mortgages on time. 大部分资不抵债的购房者依然在按时缴纳按揭。好的，今天我们学习的词是underwater, underwater, underwater.

B: Underwater mortgage? Buying a house is not something I see happening any time soon! When you mention the word “underwater,” the only thing I can think of is jumping into the pool!

A: 哈! 对啊，我现在就天天在社区游泳池里游! 解暑又减肥!

B: Oh wow, there’s a pool at your apartment complex? Can I go swimming with you, PLEASE?

A: Look at those puppy eyes, haha! 可以是可以，不过可能得等过一阵， They’re serious about the rules and are cracking down on non-residents using the pool…. 咱们先避避风头….

B: Oh god….那好吧! 不过你刚才提到了一个很好的词儿，crack down, 咱们一起来看看这个习惯用语的用法!

Words and Idioms crack down (on)

现在播送<美国习惯用语>第 967讲。我是杨琳。

M：我是 Steve Baragona.

家长都希望孩子在学校成绩优异，所以会在功课上不遗余力地辅导和帮助孩子，不过，学校似乎觉得这种帮助得有个度。最近，我朋友收到孩子学校寄来的一份合同，要求家长在上面签字，保证以后不能替孩子写作业，孩子必须交上独立完成的东西。学校的这种做法让我想到一个习惯用语，那就是:

M: Crack down. Crack is spelled c-r-a-c-k, and down; d-o-w-n. Crack-down. Crack down.

Crack down的意思是“大力整顿，严格管制”。上面说到，校长不愿意家长过份插手孩子的作业，所以试图严格限制这种做法，在这里就可以用 crack down. 在下面的例子中，小镇警方将采取行动，解决一个愈来愈严重的问题，我们来听一听:

M: “For months, motorists had been speeding down Main Avenue. They caused a number of accidents including pedestrians being hit. That’s when more police officers were assigned to enforce the law. It’s worked. Since we CRACKED DOWN on speeding, there have been fewer problems.”

这段话意思是：[几个月来，开车的人总是在主街大道上超速飞车，结果发生了好多起交通事故，还有行人被撞到。为此，警方在那里增加了警力，加强执法。这种大力管制很有效，管制开始以来，事故的数量减少了。]

女：其实还可以在事故频发的路口安装摄像头，这样既节省了警力，又能更清楚有效地抓到违反交规的人。违章超速的司机本来洋洋自得，觉得没有警察管，可是会突然在某天接到罚单，因为被“电眼”逮到了！好的，言归正传，我们再来听听刚才那段话:

刚才说了学校对学生、警察对违规者的严格管理和整顿，现在咱们来看看工作场所。一个严格的老板会怎么做呢？

M: “I know the employee manual says that we only have an hour for lunch. But once in a while I have an errand to run and I get back a few minutes late to the office. My new boss is so strict about the rules. She’s taking notes on anyone who’s not at his desk on time. She’s really CRACKING DOWN ON us.”

这段话是说：[我知道员工守则上说我们的午饭时间只有一个小时，不过有时我有些杂事要办，也会晚个几分钟回办公室。我的新老板对这条规定特别叫真儿。所有没按时回到办公桌前的员工都被她注意到。她管我们真是严格无比。]

大家看到了，如果在crack down 后面加人或物时，需要加介词on, to crack down on somebody or something意思就是大力整顿或者打击某事。另外，把crack 和down这两个词放在一起，就变成名词了crackdown, 意思一样，也是打击，镇压。比如，The government began a crackdown on piracy. 政府开始大力打击盗版活动。好的，让我们再来听听刚才那段话:

今天我们学习的习惯用语是 crack down，意思是“大力整顿，严格管制”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Steve Baragona。谢谢各位的收听。

B: I hope the crackdown is going to end soon! I can’t wait to go swimming! 你看我们普通人住不起高档公寓….

A: 别装可怜了，我不吃这一套!!

B: Oh uh, 被发现了。不过刚才我提到普通人，这个词在美语里也有个说法，咱们一块去听听看!

How to say it in American English

Jessica 在北京学汉语，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是Jimmy要问的：普通人。

Jessica: Jimmy! I heard you got the scholarship from Cambridge University! 你真厉害啊!

Jimmy: 嘿嘿，没什么大不了的。

Jessica: But that scholarship is very hard to get. After you graduate from Cambridge, 你就是“精英”啦!

Jimmy: 哪里! 我也就一普通人，ordinary person!

Jessica: Hmmm…. I wouldn’t call a Cambridge graduate an average Joe.

Jimmy: An average Joe? 我知道 average, a-v-e-r-a-g-e, average 是普通，平均的意思，an average Joe 就是指普通人，平头百姓么？

Jessica: That’s right. I think it’s because the name “Joe” is very common in English, just like 张三李四 in Chinese.

Jimmy: 对，我就和张三李四一样，你把我往人堆里一放，就找不着啦!

Jessica: Haha! that’s a very vivid expression. We have a similar phrase in English. You can say you’re “just another face in the crowd”.

Jimmy: Just another face in the crowd? 人群中的又一张脸？这个说法好，人海茫茫，你不过就是其中一个而已。对了，说了半天普通人，要是形容那些不同寻常的人，该怎么说呢？

Jessica: You can use “stand out from the crowd” to describe someone who is unusual.

Jimmy: stand out from the crowd, 比别人都站得高，他就明显，这就是不寻常!

Jessica: That’s right. Now let’s see what you’ve learned today!

Jimmy: “普通人”在美语里叫 “an average Joe”；还可以说 just another face in the crowd；不同寻常则叫 stand out from the crowd!

这次的“美语怎么说”就到这里了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给 Jessica, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

B: Well, since we can’t go to the pool at your place, do you want to go to the beach with me?

A: 那当然了! 对了，你不就在海滩小镇长大的吗?

B: 对啊! 而且，如果我们去海滩，we can not only swim, but can also enjoy the sun and eat tons of delicious BBQ!

A: That sounds GREAT! I’m definitely in! 我可以带一些有机玉米去烤，特别好吃!

B: 难道你也是个有机食品控?

A: 没错! 下面的美语三级跳里就谈到了这种有机食品，Organic food，我们一起来听一听!

GoEnglish: Food (Intermediate)

今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“食物”单元的中级课程。

Professor: Doug and Liz are at a supermarket buying food to cook for dinner. In the last episode they ate a lot of fast food, so now they want to buy some healthy organic food.

不过，professor Bowman, organic food–有机食品价格比较贵，不知道 Doug和Liz 舍不舍得买。

Professor: Let’s listen and find out.

Liz: Alright Doug, first we need to buy some produce. What kinds of fruits and vegetables should we get?

Doug: Wow, look how big those oranges are! Let’s get some of those.

Liz: No let’s not get those. They put all kinds of artificial things into them to make them grow that big. Let’s get some organic ones.

Doug: But the organic ones are much smaller and more expensive.

Liz: Doug, it’s worth it to pay more for healthy food.

Doug想买那些又圆又大的橙子，可Liz说，这些橙子是人工助长的，不健康，她想买纯天然的有机食品。对了，Professor, 什么是produce?

Professor: “Produce” is a general word for fruits and vegetables. If you go to a store and want to buy fruits and vegetables, you can ask where the produce section is.

我明白了，produce就是蔬菜水果这些农产品。

Liz: Alright, next we have to go to the dairy section. We need milk and cheese.

Doug: Great! I have a coupon for milk. It’s only 2 dollars per gallon!

Liz: No way! I want all-natural milk. The Happy Cow Milk Company gives its cows massages every day and lets them listen to music.

Doug: Yeah, and it’s three times more expensive! Who cares if the cows are really happy and relaxed?

Liz: A happy cow is a healthy cow, and a healthy cow produces the best milk!

Professor Bowman, dairy在这里是指奶制品吧？

Professor: Exactly. And remember, in America, milk is usually sold in gallons.

噢，在美国，牛奶按“gallon”，“加仑”卖。Doug 说，他有一张牛奶的coupon–优惠券，可是 Liz不要这种便宜牛奶，她要一家给乳牛按摩、听音乐的公司出的牛奶。

Professor: Can you believe that? I think buying organic food is good, but massages for cows are a little ridiculous.

Liz: Alright, now let’s go get some soap. Can you go get me some all-natural deodorant?

Doug: All-natural deodorant? Oh come on, Liz. Deodorants with chemicals in them work much better.

Liz: No way! All those chemicals are really bad for your health. I don’t want to get cancer.

Doug: Yeah, but I don’t want to have a girlfriend who smells really bad. Liz, you can buy all-natural food, but I draw the line at personal hygiene.

哇，Liz 连deodorant–香氛剂都要all-natural–纯天然。

Professor: She seems to be worried that the chemicals in other deodorants will give her cancer.

可Doug说“draws the line at personal hygiene”是什么意思呢？

Professor: Winnie, when you draw the line at something, it means you will not tolerate it. For example, it’s good for people to be nice to their pets, but when they treat them like children, that’s where I draw the line.

MC: 我明白了， draw the line at something就是“拒绝接受”的意思。Doug 说，Liz可以买全天然食物，但不能买全天然的香氛剂，因为没有化学成分的香氛剂根本不香，Liz会变得臭臭的，Doug可受不了这样的女朋友。

Professor: Exactly. Now let’s listen to them paying the cashier.

Cashier: Would you like paper or plastic?

Doug: We’ll take plastic bags.

Liz: Doug, what are you doing? We can’t use plastic bags. They’re bad for the environment!

Doug: OK fine. Can you put them in paper bags please?

Liz: Doug, paper is bad for the environment too! They have to cut down trees to make paper bags.

Doug: Well what are we going to do? We need some kind of bag to bring the groceries home.

Liz: Let’s buy a cloth bag that’s reusable. They’re only 10 dollars.

Doug: I was afraid you would say that!

Professor: So Winnie, why doesn’t Liz want to put the groceries in paper or plastic bags?

MC: 她觉得塑料袋和纸袋都对环境有害，所以要买个可以反复用的布袋子。Professor，Doug和Liz买这么多菜，不知道会做些什么好吃的!

Professor: Listen next time to find out!

A: 好吧! 我都等不及了! 咱们赶快来计划一下咱们的海滩之行吧!

B: This is going to be so much fun! But remember to bring your sun block- last time I was on the beach, there was a camera crew interviewing people about their summer plans. This one guy was bright red, head to toe! 太丢人了!

A: You really do want to be famous Kat- 你是不是老琢磨着打扮好随时接受采访啊?

B: A girl’s always gotta be prepared to look great, Yang Lin!

A: 哈哈，没错! 面试或者接受采访之前，可千万得注意自己的形象! 这不，下面的business etiquette里，为了接受媒体采访，公司主管还特别请人来给他培训呢!

B: Let’s listen and learn some tips for your next big break!

礼节美语 Preparing for a Media Interview I

公司主管 Lenny 要接受媒体采访，让秘书 Jessica 帮他请了一个咨询顾问，预先做准备。Lenny 打电话问 Jessica:

Lenny: Hey, Jessica…did you set up that appointment with the media consultant?

Jessica: I sure did, boss. I expect her any minute now.

L: Good. I’m kind of jittery about this interview. I’m new at this and the idea of going on television gives me butterflies in my stomach.

J: Don’t worry sir, I’m sure you’ll do just fine…oh, here’s the consultant!

Carl: Hi, I’m Carl Anderson from Plus 1 Media Consultants.

J: Hi Carl. Mr. Lee is waiting for you in his office. Please come this way.

秘书Jessica告诉老板，咨询顾问约好了，随时会到。I expect her any minute now. Lenny承认，他以前没接受过采访，I’m new at this. 所以感觉很紧张，I’m kind of jittery about this interview. jittery is spelled j-i-t-t-e-r-y, jittery 意思是紧张，心里打鼓，也可以说 The interview gives me butterflies in my stomach. to have butterflies in one’s stomach 也是心里紧张，七上八下的意思。正说着，咨询公司的Carl到了，Jessica 带她去见 Lenny.

C: Good morning, Mr. Lee. Nice to meet you!

L: Hello Carl. So…I hear you can help me nail this upcoming interview.

C: Our company specializes in media matters. We can help you learn how to put your best foot forward, what pitfalls to avoid and how to sound friendly without sounding insincere.

L: Those would be good points…okay, let’s hear what you got.

C: For starters, let’s talk about the news organization that’s going to be interviewing you. Business Watch International or BWI is a hard-hitting business news channel. They won’t make it too easy for you.

Carl工作的咨询公司做的就是跟媒体有关的事情。They specialize in media matters. specialize is spelled s-p-e-c-i-a-l-i-z-e, specialize是专门从事的意思，后面跟介词 in. Carl能教 Lenny 如何 put your best foot forward 展现出自己最好的一面，让他显得友好但又不虚伪。Carl说，准备采访Lenny的媒体 BWI is a hard-hitting business news channel. hard-hitting意思是力度大，毫不客气的。Lenny问：

L: So no softball questions, huh?

C: Actually, the interviewer will probably start off with a couple of really easy and complementary questions. But don’t let these fool you into a false sense of security. Right after the interviewer butters you up, he or she will throw you a curve ball.

L: Okay, so in the beginning I’ll try to remain guarded.

Carl说，采访Lenny的记者上来会先问几个简单的问题，这种问题也可以叫 softball questions，相对于 hardball questions, 刁难人的题。但是Carl警告Lenny说，Don’t let these fool you into a false sense of security. 别上当，错误地觉得自己安全了。to fool someone into a false sense of security 意思是给人错觉，让人觉得自己很安全。Carl 还说，Right after the interviewer butters you up, he or she will throw you a curve ball. 这里所说的 to butter someone up 意思是恭维某人，throw a curve ball at someone 意思是出其不意地刁难某人。看起来，Lenny一定得保持警觉，remain guarded. 或者也可以说，He cannot let his guard down. 不能放松警惕。

A: Hmm, 不管是采访还是面试，要是我我就不紧张! 我最爱跟人面对面交流了!

B: You are definitely a people person, girl! 我也同意，就拿找工作来说， I think I can tackle interviews, the hard part is how to get the opportunity to have an interview!

A: 那当然就得看你的人脉啦!

B: Exactly. That’s especially true with today’s competition in the job market!

A: 没错! 这不，在下面的美语怎么说里，我们就来看看人脉这个词儿的美语说法!

How to say it in American English

Donny在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是方方要问的：人脉。

Donny: 方方，听说你找到一个特好的实习？

ff: 还不错啦! 现在竞争激烈，多亏我人脉广! 对了，美语里“人脉”怎么说啊？

Donny: I think you can use the word “connection”. c-o-n-n-e-c-t-i-o-n, connection.

ff: 原来connection 就是“人脉”。那我说自己路子野，人脉广，就是 I have a lot of connections. 对么？

Donny: That’s right. 你还可以说：I’m well-connected. c-o-n-n-e-c-t-e-d, connected。

ff: connected? 这词儿我知道，意思是“连在一起”，所以well-connected就是和很多人连在一起，也就是人脉广喽!

Donny: Right! Connections are important. 有人说，找工作时，What really counts is not what you know, but who you know.

ff: “Not what you know but who you know?” 不是看你知道什么，而是看你认识谁？我觉得，也不能这么绝对! 关系固然重要，但自己还是要有真本事!

Donny: Certainly! So it should be “what you know plus who you know”!

ff: 对，肚子里有学问，人脉又广，二者结合在一起，你就无敌了。不过，像我这种刚出校门的，社交能力还不行，需要磨炼!

Donny: Don’t worry. You’ll have plenty of time to work on your networking skills.

ff: 哦，networking skills 就是社交技巧。

Donny: Right. With strong networking skills, you’ll develop more connections. 到时候，我找工作可得靠你帮忙了!

ff: 哈哈，我期待这一天!

Donny: 先别美! Tell me what you’ve learned today!

ff: 第一，”人脉”在美语里就是 connection；

第二，形容”人脉广”用 well-connected；

第三，社交技巧，是 networking skills!

这次的美语怎么说就到这里。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给 donny, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

B: So you see, my network of broke friends from college will totally come in handy one day! Wanna learn how to cook ramen? CHECK. Mend your own shoes? CHECK. Sew your own clothes? CHECK.

A: 啊…你说的是这种人脉呀…. 我还是跟同学们好好建立人脉吧! 好了同学们，这次节目时间就到这里。如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: Tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: We will see u next time!

美语训练班第059课

A: 美语训练班上课啦! 大家好，我是杨琳!

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，快说说咱们今天都要学什么?

A: 好! 今天，咱们要去party上吃个大餐，看看接受媒体采访要注意些什么，看看怎么说船到桥头自然直，还要告诉大家怎么用这个流行的BFF!

B: Yanglin, you are totally my BFF!!….the kind of real BFF that would get me a new Macbook Pro 3 for my birthday…

A: 大家瞧Kat的梦做得多美呀! 好了好了，言归正传，我们赶快先来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word mandatory

今天我们要学的词是mandatory. Mandatory is spelled m-a-n-d-a-t-o-r-y, mandatory. Mandatory指“强制性的，必须的”。比如，mandatory retirement age 强制退休年龄。Bulgaria’s Minister of Regional Development is calling for the introduction of mandatory insurance for private residencies and all privately-owned buildings. 保加利亚地区发展部部长提出，应要求该国的私人住宅和全部私有建筑一律购买保险。The New York City Council is considering a new bill that will make it mandatory for all bikers to wear helmets.纽约市市议员正在考惮7b一项新议案，硬性要求纽约市每个骑自行车的人都必须佩戴头盔。好，今天我们学习的词是mandatory, mandatory, mandatory…..

B: Ugh- mandatory things stress me out! I hate mandatory classes in school, I’d rather be more flexible and do what I want when I want!

A: 我也不喜欢上有些必修课，就像什么毛泽东思想邓小平理论的….太无聊了!!不过我倒是觉得，像数学啊，物理阿什么的，虽然我都不喜欢，可是毕竟对以后还是有用的嘛!

B: Well, as I always say, all the hard questions are for FUTURE KAT! I just don’t think it’s worth it to worry about things- if there’s a problem, I will just cross that bridge when I come to it….

A: 你真是个随性的人呀! 不过你刚才提到了一个很好的词儿，cross that bridge when one comes to it, 咱们一起来听听这个习惯用语的用法!

Words and Idioms cross that bridge when one comes to it

现在播送<美国习惯用语>第 968讲。我是杨琳。

M：我是 Steve Baragona.

我的小侄女很喜爱动物，而且做事很认真。最近她宣布，长大后要当兽医! 我们都觉得这个职业蛮适合她的，不过她父母并不打算现在就开始为她成为兽医做任何投资和计划，因为孩子毕竟还小，很可能以后改主意! 她父母的这种做法让我想到一个习惯用语，那就是:

M: Cross that bridge when one comes to it. Cross is spelled c-r-o-s-s, and bridge;b-r-i-d-g-e. Cross that bridge when one comes to it.

Cross that bridge when one comes to it 字面的意思是“到了桥边再过桥”，其实就是指“等事情发生了再应对”，“船到桥头自然直”。我侄女的父母就是这个态度，They don’t want to start thinking about how to finance their daughter’s veterinarian training yet. They prefer to cross that bridge when they come to it. 他们不要现在就开始为孩子上兽医学校准备学费，而是打算等孩子真上了再说。在下面的例子中，有个女孩为自己的未来做打算，嗯，其实也可以说是没做什么打算。我们来听一听:

M: “Carrie is determined to move to New York City next fall. At the moment, she doesn’t know what she’s going to do for a job once she gets there. Still, she’s not worried. She says that she will CROSS THAT BRIDGE WHEN SHE COMES TO IT. The way she figures it, she’ll be able to find work after she gets settled.”

这段话意思是说：[Carrie下决心秋天到了就搬到纽约去住。现在，她还不知道搬过去之后要做什么工作。不过，她也不担心。她说，船到桥头自然直。等她到了纽约，一切都安顿好了，再找工作也不迟。]

这种随遇而安的心态真不错，不过，很多人都没Carrie这么大松心，不愿意走一步算一步。很多人都是尽量避免可能出现的问题，这样的话， They don’t have to cross that bridge when they come to it. 他们就不用等问题发生了，再急切着想法子应对了。好的，言归正传，我们再来听听刚才那段话:

M: “Carrie’s determined to move to New York City next fall. At the moment, she doesn’t know what she’s going to do for a job once she gets there. Still, she’s not worried. She says that she will CROSS THAT BRIDGE WHEN SHE COMES TO IT. The way she figures it, she’ll be able to find work after she gets settled.”

企业家常被人们认为是务实、有远见、有计划的人，可实际上真是这样么？咱们来听听下面这段话：

M: “So far, the company presidents have agreed that they’ll sign the contract with Mexico. Beyond that, they haven’t really decided what they’ll do next. The reality is that they’ll deal with the situation when it happens. They’re CROSSING THAT BRIDGE WHEN THEY COME TO IT.”

这段话是说：[到目前为止，公司总裁已经同意和墨西哥方面签合同，可除此之外，公司决策层并没有决定下一步的工作。事实上，他们打算走一步算一步。他们的态度就是等问题出来了再去想怎么办。]

Cross the bridge when one comes to it 在口语里的另外一个说法是Wing it. Wing is spelled w-i-n-g; and it, i-t. Wing it，也是“到时候再说”、“随机应变”的意思。好的，让我们再来听听刚才那段话:

今天我们学习的习惯用语是 Cross that bridge when one comes to it，意思是“走一步算一步，船到桥头自然直”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Steve Baragona。谢谢各位的收听。

A: Well, I’m the exact opposite. I need to plan things to a T! 什么事儿我都得详细计划好，不然我就特别紧张!

B: HE-LLO. Talk about a control freak! But Yanglin, things always change- it’s hard to plan ahead!

A: 也是! 今天早晨就是! 本来上班只要15分钟，我足足走了一个小时! 就是因为路上出了起事故，大家都看热闹，结果路上堵的不行!

B: See, that’s my point! You just need to go with the flow! 不过你刚才提到看热闹，咱们今天来看看这个词儿用美语怎么说!

How to say it in American English

Donny 在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是吴琼要问的：看热闹。

Donny: Wuqiong, I heard you got your driver’s license !

WQ: 是啊，昨天我已经开车上路啦!

Donny: So how did it go?

WQ: 唉，别提了! 我开的那条路上出车祸，结果，开车的、骑车的、走路的，都想看热闹，最后，整条街都堵住了! 对了Donny，这些看热闹的人，用英文怎么说呢？

Donny: 英文叫 rubberneck.

WQ: rubberneck? 我知道 rubber 是橡胶，neck 是脖子。那rubberneck不就是橡胶脖子么？

Donny: 你想啊，那些看热闹，围观的人，they stretch their necks to watch what’s happening, right?

WQ: 哦……我明白了，伸长脖子看热闹的人好像长了橡胶脖子，所以叫他们rubberneck! 哈哈，真形象!

Donny: Right! rubberneck 也可以当动词。你刚才说，大家看热闹，整条街大堵车，在英文里就是 The traffic was bumper-to-bumper because of rubbernecking.

WQ: bumper-to-bumper? b-u-m-p-e-r， bumper, 不是汽车保险杠么？

Donny: Exactly! So bumper-to-bumper means cars are moving so slowly that their bumpers are almost touching.

WQ: 我明白了，bumper-to-bumper，汽车一辆紧挨着一辆，慢慢往前拱。这□ ‘5c说，I was stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic，郁闷死了!

Donny: Wuqiong, 那车祸到底严不严重？

WQ: 特严重! 六辆车撞在一起了!

Donny: Ouch… a six-car pileup!

WQ: pileup? p-i-l-e, pile, 再加上 up, pileup 就是连环车祸么？

Donny: That’s Right!

WQ: 我跟你说，这个pileup里，有两辆奥迪，一辆奔驰，一辆宝马，好像还有…

Donny: Wuqiong, 你看得这么清楚，真不愧是 a good rubberneck! Okay, new driver, tell me what you’ve learned today!

WQ: 第一，看热闹的人叫rubberneck；

第二，堵车可以说bumper-to-bumper；

第三，连环车祸是pileup, p-i-l-e-u-p!

这次的美语怎么说就到这里。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给 Donny, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

A: Bumper to bumper, 太形象了! 北京三环上的那个堵绝对可以称得上是bumper to bumper! 保险杠贴着保险杠!

B: Yeah…this is one of the biggest reasons why I don’t want to live in big cities forever…I hate being stuck in traffic! I feel like a caged animal!

A: That’s true! 不过我已经习惯了，现在呢，我就会买各种好吃的早餐，被堵的时候可以吃个好吃的嘛….

B: 哈哈，Yanglin, if the world was ending but I gave you a cupcake, I don’t think you would care. Sometimes I forget how much you love to eat.So, this should interest you: in today’s Go English, we are going to check out all the delicious food served at a potluck!

A: Mhmm yummy- Let’s listen!

GoEnglish Food (Advanced)

今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“食物”单元的高级课程。

Professor: Today Robert is going over to Liz and Doug’s apartment for dinner party, but he is about to find out that his tastes in food are very different from theirs.

Robert: Hey Doug! Hey Liz! Thank you so much for inviting me over for dinner.

Liz: Oh, it’s our pleasure! We haven’t had company in a long time so we’re really excited you could make it. Hey, what’s that dish you brought?

Robert: Well, Doug told me we were going to have a potluck dinner, so I cooked up some of my famous steak and brought it over. I hope you like it.

Liz: Oh my gosh Doug! He brought a dead animal into our house! What are we going to do?

Robert: Uh …. Doug? What’s the problem? Doesn’t Liz like steak?

Doug: Jeez…. I totally forgot to tell you. Liz is a vegetarian because she thinks eating meat is like murdering animals. Don’t worry honey, tomorrow I’ll take the steak outside and bury it.

原来Liz是个vegetarian–素食主义者，觉得吃肉就是谋杀动物。难怪她看到Robert带牛排来那么生气。

Professor: Exactly, Winnie. And did you hear Liz talk about “having company”? When you have company, that means you invite guests over to your house. For example, “I can’t go to the movies on Friday night because I’m having company.”

哦，have company 就是“有客人在”的意思。对了，professor, potluck dinner 是什么意思？

Professor: At some dinner parties the host prepares all the food for the guests. But at a potluck dinner, all the guests each bring a dish to share with the other guests.

我明白了，potluck dinner就是客人都自己带菜，大家一起吃的聚餐。

Doug: Don’t worry Robert! Even though we can’t eat the steak, we’ve got lots of other good stuff to eat. Come and sit down at the table.

Robert: Great! I’m starving. What are we having?

Liz: I really hope you like it! I’ve prepared a three-course meal for you. For our appetizer we’re having carrots, for the entree we’re having chicken, and for the desert we’re having chocolate cake.

Robert: Well that sounds great …. but did you say we’re having chicken for the main course? I thought you didn’t eat meat!

Liz: Oh don’t be ridiculous! It’s not real chicken. It’s fake chicken, made from tofu.

Robert: Doug, did she say we’re having fake chicken made from tofu?

Doug: That’s right. Trust me, it sounds pretty weird, but I’m sure you’re going to love it.

Professor Bowman, 什么叫 three-course meal?

Professor: When you go to dinner in America, each dish is served one after another. Each dish is called a “course,” so if there is a three-course meal, that means three dishes are being served and they are “appetizer”, “entree”, and “desert”.

哦，原来这就是由“头台”“主菜”和“甜点”这三道菜组成的大餐。对了， Liz还说，主菜是豆腐做的素鸡，这个菜可不好做!

Professor: Well now they have finished eating, so let’s see what Robert thought.

Liz: So Robert, how did you enjoy your meal? It looks like you barely touched any of your chicken.

Robert: It was … umm …. interesting. It’s just that I’m not feeling so well. I think tofu chicken might be an acquired taste.

Doug: Believe me buddy, that’s what I said when I first had it. But I’m telling you, once you get used to it you’ll never go back to eating real chicken.

Liz: You know Doug, if tofu chicken really is an acquired taste, we should just put the leftovers in a doggie bag to give to

Robert to take home. Then he can keep eating it all week!

Professor, 什么叫acquired taste?

Prof: It means a preference that is only acquired after considerable experience.

我明白了，acquired taste 就是慢慢培养出来的爱好。

哈，Robert 客气地说，吃素鸡是 acquired taste，其实就是表示自己不爱吃这道菜。

Prof: That’s right! But Liz offers to let him take the leftovers home so he would fall in love with it someday!

A: 其实说到吃，my dream is to open a bakery one day! I LOVE baking cakes just as much as I love eating them! 我就不爱老坐在办公室前面对着电脑，特别无聊!

B: I’m the same! Luckily, I’m horrible with interviews, I always panic- so no office jobs for me. Instead, I’ll have a fulfilling career as your professional cupcake taster! eh? eh?

A: 我看可以! 不过面试呀，接受采访呀，都是挺让人紧张的事。这不，在下面的business etiquette里，这个公司主管就特地为接受媒体采访搞培训呢!

B: 咱们赶快来听听吧!

礼节美语 Preparing for a Media Interview II

公司主管 Lenny 要接受媒体采访，请媒体咨询公司的Carl帮他准备。Carl告诉Lenny, 记者一上来会问几个简单问题，但不能因此而放松警惕。Carl说：

C: Remember to keep your game face on. It’s really important not to seem surprised when they ask the first difficult question. You don’t want to have a moment where it seems you’re on the defensive.

L: All right…I’ll be expecting tough questions. What kind of controversial topics do you think they might cover?

C: I’d be ready to answer questions about anything. Your company’s stock price has recently taken a dip, your CFO left your company and joined a rival firm, there was a product recall last year and sales for your latest gadget have been disappointing.

L: Wow…I see what you mean. So overall, what do you think my response strategy should be?

Carl告诉Lenny要 keep your game face on. 保持战斗姿态。game face 原指球员场上比赛时的面容表情，引伸为志在必得的样子。这样做是因为，软问题过后，记者出其不意，提出第一个刁难性问题时，you don’t want to seem on the defensive. 你不想让人看出你处于被动防守的状态。记者什么样的问题都可能问，比如：公司股票最近下跌，take a dip; 公司首席财务长官跳槽到对手的公司；跳槽在英语里可以用 jump ship. 如，Your CFO jumped ship to join a rival firm. 另外，公司最近有产品因为质量问题被召回，而且最新推出的产品销量也不尽人意。遇到这样的问题，Lenny该怎样回答呢？

C: The main thing is to focus on the positive. Yes, our stock price has been a little volatile… but we are on course for a third quarter rebound. Yes, it was unfortunate that our CFO chose to join our rivals, but the opening has given us a chance to hire fresh blood and incorporate new ideas.

L: I see your point: don’t evade the question, but try to twist it towards the positive.

C: Exactly! And you need to appear confident and strong.

L: What kind of tone would you recommend I take with the interviewer? Friendly? A little distant?

Carl说，被问到这种难堪问题时，关键是要 focus on the positive. 强调积极的一面。比如，公司股票价格最近是有些波动，但是 we are on course for a third quarter rebound. 第三季度预计会出现反弹；虽然高管跳槽，但这样我们才有机会 hire fresh blood 雇佣新人。归根结底一句话，不能回避问题，但要从积极的一面来回答问题。接受采访时采取什么样的态度最合适呢？Carl回答说：

C: Stay friendly but remember: they’re not on your side.

L: I guess that’s the same as when I’m at any business negotiation.

C: Yes. Use the interviewer’s first name…especially at the beginning of the interview. But don’t overdo it, because that sounds insincere.

L: These are all really good points, Carl. Maybe we could meet again next week. I think I need a little bit more practice.

C: Sure. I’ll have your secretary set up the appointment. See you next week, Mr. Lee.

L: Goodbye, Carl.

Carl说，态度必须友好，但是要记住，they’re not on your side. 采访你的人不是站在你这边的。Carl还建议Lenny从采访一开始就用记者的first name名字称呼对方，这样显得亲切，但 don’t overdo it. 也不要显得过份热络。Lenny跟Carl约定，下星期再演练一次。

A: 你看看你看看，接受个采访，还得准备这准备那的，真麻烦! 要是以后我真有一个蛋糕店，就能天天吃自己烤的蛋糕，多棒呀!

B: I’d give up boys for cupcakes in a heartbeat! and I’m not afraid to admit it!

A: That’s why we are BFFs!

B: Hahaha, exactly. Alrighty guys, let’s learn how American youth use this term: BFF!

How to say it in American English

Jessica 在北京学中文，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是于苗要问的：闺蜜。

Jessica: Wow, 于苗! What are you doing all dolled up!

YM: 我今天要去见我最最好的朋友! 她是我大学同学，我们都两年没见了!

Jessica: Oh wow, sounds like you guys go way back!

YM: 可不! 她可是我的标准闺蜜! My best friend!

Jessica: Actually in English, you can call her your BFF. BFF stands for Best Friend Forever. People use this term to refer to their best friends.

YM: 原来BFF就是永远的好朋友! Yes, she’s definitely my BFF! We were college classmates and lived in the same dorm for four years. 我们特别铁，无话不谈。咦，这个”铁”用英文要怎么说呢?

Jessica: You can say: we are tight! Tight是关系紧密的意思，也就是说你们特别铁!

YM: 可不! 话说来跟我们一块吃饭的还有另外一个人! 我们吧，也挺好的, 不过吧， She’s super competitive. She always wants what I have! 你说这种人该怎么说? Partial BFF? Partial tight?

Jessica: 哈哈…. that sounds like a frenemy of yours. Frenemy consists of friend and enemy, it is basically half friend and half enemy!

YM: 原来如此! This girl is a frenemy. 我们俩表面不错，但是暗地里好象老是在明争暗斗的。

Jessica: Sounds like a love-hate relationship to me!

YM: That’s so true, 我对她绝对是又爱又恨，你看，今天我跟我闺蜜见面，她又跟来了! 哎。。。

Jessica: 哈哈，开心点！Before you go, tell me what you’ve learned today!

YM: 今天我们学到的内容包括:

第一，闺蜜是best friend forever, 也就是BFF,

第二，关系很铁可以用 tight;

第三，亦敌亦友，叫做frenemy;

第四，爱恨交加是 a love-hate relationship!

这次的”美语怎么说”就到这里了。如果你也有不会说的词，请写信给Jessica, 电邮请寄meiyu@voanews.com

B: A love-hate relationship? I think that describes my relationship with that three layer chocolate cake I ate last night….

A:哈哈我也一样! 不过说归说，吃还是要吃的嘛! Alright! 同学们，

这次节目时间就到这里。如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: And in your email, tell us with whom or what you have a love-hate relationship! Cupcakes? Dinosaurs? Troublesome co-hosts??

A: 您还可以关注新浪微薄@ Moo爱说英语的牛，收听更多课程!

B: And don’t forget to tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: Bye bye!

美语训练班第060课

A: 美语训练班上课啦! 大家好，我是杨琳!

B: 我是Kat! 杨琳，快说说咱们今天都要学什么?

A: 好! 今天，咱们一起去学学怎么打篮球，看看怎么装饰办公室来鼓舞士气，吃顿饕餮大餐，还要告诉大家怎么说”换位思考”!

B: 换位思考! 这是我无数优点中的一个呀!

A: Uh oh…大家都笑了…. 好了好了，言归正传，我们赶快先来进入第一个单元，Learn a Word!

今天我们要学的短语是lock horns. Lock是锁上， horn是动物头上的角，lock horns原指动物用角互顶打架，引伸为“激烈争论”，杠上了。India and the European Union are likely to lock horns over new green energy norms at the Earth Summit in Brazil. 在巴西召开的地球峰会上，印度和欧盟很可能就新的绿色能源标准争论不休。U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder locked horns with congressional Republicans at a hearing on a gun-trafficking case. 美国司法部长霍尔德同国会共和党人在听证会上因一起枪支走私案顶了起来。The mayor and her deputy locked horns over plans for a new road. 市长和她的副手因为修路计划而激烈争吵。好，今天我们学习的词是lock horns.

A: 说起lock horns, 你看了这一期的Iron Chef, 料理铁人了吗? I love that show so much! It’s so intense- I can’t get enough of watching the competitors lock horns in epic food battles!

B: Yeah, that kitchen is definitely a war zone. I saw this one episode where the chefs had to cook five dishes with just eggs! Only eggs! Now that’s a seriously tough challenge.

A: 可不是! They’re amazing- for me, I have to keep my fingers crossed that even my scrambled eggs in the morning don’t turn out horrible!

B: Hahah, well in the end, the contestants successfully made some AMAZING gourmet food! 你刚才提到了一个很好的词儿，fingers crossed!! 咱们一起来听听这个习惯用语的用法!

现在播送<美国习惯用语>第 969讲。我是杨琳。

M：我是 Steve Baragona.

这个周末是我和男朋友在一起一周年的纪念日。我们计划去远郊的一个酿酒场品酒，然后再去吃一顿法国大餐。我男朋友还说要带我去坐热气球! 听起来真棒!不过我有些担心这个周末的天气，天气预报说周末要刮大风，还可能会下雨! 这也就让我想到这个习惯用语，那就是:

M: Cross one’s fingers. Cross is spelled c-r-o-s-s and fingers; f-i-n-g-e-r-s. Cross-one’s-fingers.

女：大家都知道，cross是交叉的意思，fingers是手指，cross one’s fingers, 字面意思是手指交叉，实际上就是希望得到好运气的意思。美国人经常把食指和中指交叉，意思就是祝你好运! I cross my fingers, hoping the weather would be good this weekend. 我交叉手指，希望这个周末会有好天气。下面例子里的这个排球运动员也相信这个动作能给他们带来好运，我们来听听看:

M: “Our volleyball team has beaten every team in the division so far. I know it’s because we have better players and we’ve practiced harder. Still, we’re up against our greatest challenger next week and many of us are crossing our fingers. We’re hoping that we’ll be successful and win the trophy.”

这段话是说：[我们排球队到现在为止一直保持全胜。我们一直很努力地训练。不过下个星期，我们将面临这个赛季最强劲的挑战，很多队员都交叉手指期盼好运。我们希望我们能够获胜，赢得奖杯。]

女：有时候一点小小的迷信无伤大雅，对吧? 想想我从小一直弹钢琴，每次演奏之前，我都会交叉手指，期盼好运。I cross my fingers every time before performing in the concerts. 也许是我迷信，不过每次我这么做，表演都很成功! 所以，这也就成了我的好运标志。好了，enough about me. 言归正传，我们再来听听刚才那段话:

女: 自从2008年以来，美国的经济情况一直不好，就业市场也一直很低迷。很多人失去工作，而在找新工作的过程中也遇到很多阻碍。下面的例子就谈到了类似的情况，让我们来听听看:

M: “My daughter has been looking for a job for almost two years. After sending in lots of resumes and going on a number of interviews, she’s become really frustrated. The position she just applied for looks like a good match for her skills and experience. She’s got her FINGERS CROSSED. This may be the chance she’s been waiting for.”

[这段话是说：我女儿找工作已经找了两年了。在无数简历和若干次面试之后，她特别沮丧。现在她刚刚申请的职位特别适合她的技能和经验。她交叉手指，祈求好运。这可能就是她一直在等待的机会。]

女: 我们也祝她好运! 不知道大家有没有注意到，这个短语也可以使用被动语态。所以对于我的情况，我也可以说 I have my fingers crossed that my hot air balloon adventure will take place. 我交叉手指，希望热气球之行能够成行。The team members have THEIR FINGERS CROSSED that they’ll win the next game. 球员交叉手指，祈求好运，希望能够赢得下一场比赛。好的，让我们再来听听刚才那段话:

今天我们学习的习惯用语是 cross one’s fingers，意思是“交叉手指，祈求好运”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Steve Baragona。谢谢各位的收听。

A: 其实吧，我煮饭水平也还行，fingers crossed I can be a real chef one day! 你就做我的专业试吃员 professional food taster 如何？

B: Uh… I know that we’ve talked about how much I like a life full of adventures, but I think that might just be a bit too dangerous for me…

A: 哈哈，don’t be scared, Kat! I know how important eating delicious and interesting food is to you- I’ll take good care of you! 在今天的美语怎么说里，我们就要来教教大家怎么形容Kat这类人—食客!

MC: Jessica在北京学汉语，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是方方要问的：食客。

FF：Jessica, 今晚跟我去吃饭怎么样？

Jessica: 好啊! 吃什么!

FF: 吃正宗的湖南菜，怎么样？Look, this is the restaurant I’m talking about.

Jessica: Hmm, I’ve never heard of this restaurant. Are you sure its food is authentic?

FF: Authentic? 什么意思？

Jessica: Authentic is spelled a-u-t-h-e-n-t-i-c, authentic的意思是“真实的”，“地道的”。 For example, authentic Chinese food 就是地道的中餐。

FF: 哦! 那authentic American English就是“地道美语”，对不对？

Jessica: 没错! 对了, You haven’t answered my question yet–why are you so sure that restaurant serves authentic Hunan cuisines?

FF: 因为这是一个特别会吃的朋友推荐的。他可是个老饕，或者叫食客，专门能发现一些不起眼，但是特地道的餐馆。对了，这种食客在美语里要怎么说呢？

Jessica: We call those people foodies. F-o-o-d-i-e, foodie refers to someone who loves everything there is to know and learn about food. You can rely on their picks of restaurants.

FF: My friend is totally a foodie! He took me to a small eatery last week, and the food there was terrific!

Jessica: Wow, you must have pigged out!

FF: Pig out?

Jessica: To pig out means to eat a lot until you’re really full.

FF: 哦，to pig out就是甩开腮帮子狂吃! Sometimes I like to go to KFC to pig out!

Jessica: Watch your waistline, Fangfang!

FF: 哈哈，I will. 不过话说那天我和这个朋友去吃饭，本来打算pig out, 可是我这个人啊，总是眼大肚子小，没吃多少就饱了，唉! 真不争气! 眼大肚子小你懂吧？

Jessica: You mean you have big eyes and a small belly? Are you saying you’re good-looking?

FF: 哈哈! No. “眼大肚子小”就是 you want to eat a lot, but your belly can’t take all the food.

Jessica: I see. There’s a similar expression in English: your eyes are bigger than your stomach.

FF: 原来”眼大肚子小”是 eyes are bigger than stomach. Jessica, please make sure I don’t eat anything before tonight’s dinner. I want to pig out on great Hunan food.

Jessica: 哈哈，别光想着吃，还是先说说，今天都学了什么。

FF: 好，今天我们学了：表示地道，用authentic; 会吃的食客，老饕，是foodie; 大吃大喝是to pig out; “眼大肚子小”则是eyes are bigger than stomach.

A: I can definitely admit that my eyes are totally bigger than my stomach! 就像上个周末，我在家组织了一个party, 准备了无数好吃的，最后都没地方放了!

B: Wait.. you had a party and didn’t invite me???

A: 因为这是个sports party! 组织大家一块看球的! 我记得你说你不是个篮球迷，对吧?

B: True- I’m not really a sports fan. Okay, I’ll let you get away with it just this once.

A: See, I know you so well! 不过在下面的美语三级跳里，我们就要带着大家去打一场篮球，顺便学学这些个篮球术语该怎么说!

B: Let’s listen!

大家好！今天我们为您播出“美语三级跳”节目“体育运动”单元的初级课程。

Ryan 想锻练锻练，改善自己的身材。他的朋友Alice篮球打得很好，Ryan打算拜她为师。

Professor: That’s right, Winnie. Basketball is a very popular sport in America.

中国人也很喜欢打篮球啊! 姚明就是中国人，而且有很多粉丝!

Professor: That’s true. Do you think Ryan will be a good
basketball player?

咱们来听听吧！

Ryan: Thanks for teaching me how to play basketball, Alice.

Alice: No problem. I am happy to be your basketball coach.

Ryan: Great. Where did you learn how to play?

Alice: I played basketball in college.

Ryan: Were you better at offense or defense?

Alice: I was better at offense. I was the best shooter on the team.

Professor: So Winnie, where did Alice learn to play basketball?

Alice说她是在大学里学会打篮球的，她不光是校队成员，还是the best shooter–最棒的投手呢! 这么说，Alice投篮肯定特别准!

Professor: Right. And in basketball, when you shoot and score a point, you can say you scored a basket.

MC: 没错! 如果你投篮成功，就可以说“score a basket.”

Professor: So, is Alice better at offense or defense?

Alice说， she was better at offense than defense，进攻能力比防守能力强。这不难理解，她是the best shooter–最棒的投手嘛! 有她当教练，Ryan肯定很快就能变成篮球飞人。

Alice: Alright Ryan, first you have to learn how to dribble.

Ryan: Don’t worry, I know how to dribble. Let’s just play some one-on-one.

Alice: Uh…. are you sure you don’t want to practice a little first?

Ryan: Nope! I’m ready to play. Don’t go easy on me.

Ryan是不是有点自信过头了？Alice想慢慢教他，从 dribble–“运球”开始。可Ryan上来就要打one-on-one–一对一的比赛! Professor, one-on-one这个短语可以用在其它语境里么？

Professor: Sure! For example, you can say I didn’t want the other students to hear me talk to the teacher, so I asked to talk to her one-on-one.

“Talk to her one-on-one”, 就是单独和她谈话。对了，Professor, Ryan 让Alice不要”go easy on him”，是不是说，Alice对他不用手下留情？

Professor: Right. For another example, “I haven’t studied much for the test, so I hope my teacher goes easy on us.”

啊~~因为没好好复习，所以希望老师手下留情。好! Ryan和Alice一对一比赛已经结束了，我们看看谁胜谁负!

Alice: Great game, Ryan! I had a lot of fun.

Ryan: (Panting) Yeah, I hope so. It must have been a lot of fun beating me 20 to zero.

Alice: Well do you want to have a re-match? I think you will score a basket next time.

Ryan: I don’t think so … and I can only take one shutout per day.

看来，Ryan根本不是Alice的对手! 让人家打了个20比零! professor, 什么叫shutout？

Professor: Winnie, if one team doesn’t score any points in the game, you can say the game is a shutout.

哦，shutout, s-h-u-t-o-u-t, shutout 就是输掉的队伍得零分的比赛。

Professor: Ryan didn’t score any points, so you can say he was “shutout”. Alice asks him if he wants a rematch, but Ryan says no.

是啊，Ryan 不愿意再被刷个零，所以他不想play a re-match–再打一次了。真希望Ryan学篮球的热情没有被彻底浇灭!

Professor: Let’s see what Alice says.

Alice: Ryan, I think I know a better way to teach you basketball.

Ryan: Really? What is it?

Alice: I’m going to take you to watch a basketball game.

Ryan: Great! I love watching professional basketball.

Alice: Professional? I didn’t say we’re going to a
professional basketball game!

哦，原来，Alice打算带Ryan去看篮球赛，让他观摩观摩。不过，他们要去的不是a professional game–专业球赛。

Professor: Right. What kind of game do you think they’re going to?

我们下次就知道啦!

A: 说起来，我原来上初中还是篮球队的呢! I used to be great at shooting! You should come play basketball with me- I can teach you!

B: Well, thanks for the invitation, but I would rather go to a museum and enjoy the AC and the beautiful art!! You can go run around and get all sweaty- I, on the other hand, want to surround myself with 高雅文化。

A: 呦，原来你还是个艺术爱好者? 那下面的 business etiquette正合你的胃口，今天，我们要去看看怎么用不同形式的艺术作品来进行装饰!

B: Let’s take a look!

公司主管 James 找到公关部主任 Felicia.

James: Hey, Felicia…do you have time for a quick conversation?

Felicia: Sure, boss. What’s up?

J: I was walking through the hallways of our office yesterday and it struck me that we could use a little beautification around here.

F: Are you thinking about repainting the hallways?

J: Well, actually I was considering buying some art to display around the office and factory grounds. I think we could all benefit from a little touch of culture, don’t you think?

F: Yes…that’s a great idea. I think looking at beautiful things helps lift morale.

公司主管James说，自己昨天经过公司走廊，突然觉得，We could use a little beautification around here. 我们的工作环境需要美化一下。beautification is spelled b-e-a-u-t-i-f-i-c-a-t-i-o-n, beautification 是名词，意思是美化。原来，James是想购置一些艺术作品，给公司增添些许文化气息。Felicia 表示赞成，她觉得，看到赏心悦目的东西，也有助于 lift morale 提高员工士气。James 说：

J: Yeah, that’s what I was thinking. It might brighten up the office and lift people’s spirits a bit as well. I’m not really sure about what kind of art to buy though.

F: That is a tricky issue. Everyone has different tastes. You know the old expression: “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

J: What about you Felicia? What kind of art do you like?

F: Well, actually I like abstract modern art. I love the works of Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock.

J: I see. So you’re a bit of a modernist, huh?

每个人对艺术的偏好都不一样，Everyone has different tastes. taste is spelled t-a-s-t-e, taste 在这里是名词，意思是品味。俗话说： Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 只要看的人喜欢，那就是美。这句话经常被用在情感方面，相当于中文里所说的情人眼里出西施。Felicia 说，她偏爱 abstract modern art 抽象派现代艺术。为什么呢？

F: I feel modern art is open to interpretation. Each person looks at the painting with a different understanding and gets a different message from it. Sometimes I find landscape paintings or more traditional art to be a bit boring.

J: Yes, I would agree with that. I don’t want any pictures of fruit in bowls hanging on our walls…it needs to be something inspirational!

F: How about you, boss? What kind of art inspires you?

J: I’m a big fan of photography. I like real images captured by a camera. They’re so genuine, and I find that I don’t get tired of looking at them over and over again.

Felicia 喜欢抽象派现代艺术作品是因为：It is open to interpretation. 这类艺术作品给观众留下了解释的空间，每个人对抽象派艺术作品的解读都可能不一样。James 说，他最喜欢摄影作品。I’m a big fan of photography. 用相机捕捉的真实画面，令人百看不厌。

A: 所以，你喜欢哪种呀 Kat? Abstract modern art or photography?

B: I think I enjoy photography more. It captures an authentic moment and you can feel the different emotions in each piece. Actually there’s a new exhibit opening today, do you wanna go see it with me?

A: 我还是算了，我对艺术一点也不懂，去了也看不明白!

B: Well that’s true. I don’t think you will enjoy it much if art’s not your thing- you’ll just be bored and your feet will hurt from standing there for hours.

A: 谢谢你能换位思考！在下面的美语怎么说里，我们就要来看看Kat无数优点中的一个—换位思考该怎么说!

Put yourself in someone’s shoes

Jessica 在北京学中文，她的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教她。今天是于苗要问的：换位思考。

YM: Hey Jessica! How’s it going?…你怎么看起来气呼呼的?

Jessica: I AM angry! One of my friend said she’s going to come visit me, but she canceled her trip AT THE LAST MINUTE! I’ve saved all my weekend for her!

YM: 啊? 这可真扫兴，不过你有没有问她，为什么不来了呢?

Jessica: She said a very important client is coming to town over the weekend, and she got the opportunity to accompany them.

YM: 哦，原来是这样。你想想，你朋友刚开始工作，能有这么好的接触大客户的机会，你应该为她高兴呀! 试着换位思考一下嘛!

Jessica: 换位思考?….哦，我知道了，you are telling me to put myself in her shoes. Yeah, I guess I’m being a little harsh.

YM: 对啊! 她一定也很想跟好朋友过个休闲的周末，but sometimes you’ve got to sacrifice your personal life for work, especially when you are new at your job! Jessica, 你这么善解人意，一定明白的!

Jessica: Yeah, I guess I should be more considerate.

YM: 哦! 原来善解人意就是 considerate! 我其实特别明白你朋友的心情，我感同身受! Hmm, 这个“感同身受”用美语要怎么说呢?

Jessica: You can say it strikes a chord. Strike is spelled s-t-r-i-k-e； and chord, c-h-o-r-d, chord. If something strikes a chord, it means it evokes a similar emotion or reaction. 就是你说的感同身受!

YM: 原来是这样! Yes, your friend’s situation strikes a chord with me!

Jessica: You know, Yumiao, I think you are right. I will call her and apologize for overreacting, and I will wish her good luck!

YM: 我来总结一下今天所学的：第一，换位思考叫做 put oneself in someone else’s shoes;

第二，善解人意可以用 considerate;

第三，感同身受，叫做 strike a chord!

B: If I put myself in other radio host’s shoes, I realize that they must have a lot of pressure! They don’t get to have half as much fun as we do, right Yanglin?

A: Ha, yeah, right, 不知道微薄上谁的粉丝多呀? (两人笑) 好啦同学们，这次节目时间就到这里。如果你对我们的节目有什么建议，或者想提什么问题，请发电子邮件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: Tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: See you next time!

返回《美语训练班》页。

禅世界

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