美語(yǔ)訓(xùn)練班063

A: 歡迎大家來(lái)到這期的美語(yǔ)訓(xùn)練班!

B: 我是Kat! 楊琳，趕快來(lái)告訴大家今天咱們要學(xué)什么吧!

A: 好! 今天，咱們一起去看一場(chǎng)電影，學(xué)學(xué)怎么理性投資，教你怎么說(shuō)名褒實(shí)貶，還要一起來(lái)看看小家電怎么說(shuō)!

B: 名褒實(shí)貶? 這是什么意思....我不明白....

A: 等會(huì)聽(tīng)了節(jié)目你就明白了! 言歸正傳，我們趕快來(lái)進(jìn)入第一個(gè)單元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word 1542 gadget

今天我們要學(xué)的詞是 gadget. Gadget is spelled g-a-d-g-e-t , gadget. Gadget 意思是小玩意，小工具，經(jīng)常用來(lái)指小電器產(chǎn)品。比如，My friend Michael is a gadget freak who always wants to get his hands on the latest inventions. 我朋友Michael是小電器產(chǎn)品發(fā)燒友，有什么新玩意他都得拿來(lái)玩玩。The company caters to high-end users who crave the newest gadgets. 這家公司專(zhuān)門(mén)服務(wù)那些熱衷最新小電器產(chǎn)品的高端用戶(hù)。蘋(píng)果手機(jī)問(wèn)世五年。For users, iPhone has changed from a gadget to a way of life. 對(duì)用戶(hù)來(lái)說(shuō)，蘋(píng)果手機(jī)已經(jīng)從一個(gè)小小的通訊工具，變成了一種生活方式。好的，今天我們學(xué)習(xí)的詞是 gadget, gadget, gadget...

A: 說(shuō)起 gadget, 我昨天終于去換了iPhone 3 , 你看!

B: An iPhone 3? Oh my god, what century are we in? Well, it's still an iphone, I guess... so wow... cool phone!

A: Why do I get the feeling that you are damning me with faint praise?

B: Well... everyone is using iPhone 4s now and the 5 is actually coming out this year! ....既然你已經(jīng)提到了damn with faint praise, 咱們就來(lái)學(xué)學(xué)這個(gè)短語(yǔ)的用法吧!

Words and Idioms 973

現(xiàn)在播送美國(guó)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)第 973講。我是楊琳。

M：我是 Dan Markus

我很尊重我奶奶，不過(guò)坦白說(shuō)，她有時(shí)候真讓我沒(méi)辦法。上星期她來(lái)我家之前，我特地把家里打掃得干干凈凈，還去買(mǎi)了幾個(gè)沙發(fā)坐墊，把客廳裝飾的更加溫馨。可他對(duì)我煞費(fèi)苦心地裝飾只說(shuō)了句：還湊合吧! 真氣死我了! 這也讓我想到一個(gè)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)，那就是:

M: Damn with faint praise. Damn is spelled d-a-m-n, damn; faint, f-a-i-n-t, faint; and praise; p-r-a-i-s-e, praise. Damn-with-faint-praise. Damn with faint praise.

Damn 作為動(dòng)詞，是批評(píng)的意思，而faint praise, 在這里是指無(wú)力的贊揚(yáng)。 Damn with faint praise, 作為一個(gè)詞組，意思是名褒實(shí)貶，用輕微的贊揚(yáng)進(jìn)行貶低。我奶奶就是這樣，對(duì)于我全部的努力，她就說(shuō)了一句湊合， She damned me with faint praise even though I've tried my best to impress her. 雖然我盡了全力，可她還是名褒實(shí)貶地忽略了我的努力。下面的例子里談的是父子關(guān)系，我們來(lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)看:

M: "Is it any wonder that my dad and I aren't that close? No matter what I achieve, it always seems it isn't good enough. He doesn't actually say so directly. But the way he DAMNS me WITH FAINT PRAISE, I always feel like I'm not meeting his expectations. Why can't he compliment me once in a while?"

這段話(huà)是說(shuō)：我跟我爸爸的關(guān)系不是很好，這也沒(méi)什么好奇怪的。不管我取得了什么成就，對(duì)他來(lái)說(shuō)好像始終不夠。他并不會(huì)直接這么說(shuō)。但是他從來(lái)都只是蜻蜓點(diǎn)水地贊揚(yáng)，讓我覺(jué)得我永遠(yuǎn)達(dá)不到他的期望。為什么他就不能夸獎(jiǎng)我一次呢?

對(duì)啊! 有這樣的家長(zhǎng)真的很讓人難受。有些家長(zhǎng)認(rèn)為如果表?yè)P(yáng)孩子就是對(duì)他們的溺愛(ài)，其實(shí)不是這樣。誰(shuí)都需要表?yè)P(yáng)和肯定，不是嗎? 在工作中也一樣，如果有個(gè)不愛(ài)表?yè)P(yáng)人的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)，底下人的士氣肯定也不高。Instead of damning the employees with faint praise, supervisors should encourage the staff when they do a good job. 好的，我們?cè)賮?lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)剛才那段話(huà):

M: "Is it any wonder that my dad and I aren't that close? No matter what I achieve, it always seems it isn't good enough. He doesn't actually say so directly. But the way he DAMNS me WITH FAINT PRAISE, I always feel like I'm not meeting his expectations. Why can't he compliment me once in a while?"

Damn with faint praise, 名褒實(shí)貶，用輕微的贊揚(yáng)進(jìn)行貶低。對(duì)于電影評(píng)論這個(gè)職業(yè)，或許這是一個(gè)有用的性格特征? 我們來(lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)看下面這個(gè)例子:

M: "The movie director had received many positive reviews for her latest work. One critic, however, didn't seem to care for it much. It's not that he gave it an openly bad review. Instead, he wrote that he was pleasantly surprised that the film was shorter than the other films. It was easy to see that he was DAMNING the director WITH FAINT PRAISE."

[這段話(huà)是說(shuō): 這名電影導(dǎo)演的最新作品獲得了很多正面評(píng)價(jià)。不過(guò)有一名影評(píng)人似乎并不怎么看好他的新片子。他倒也沒(méi)有公開(kāi)說(shuō)這部電影不好，不過(guò)他說(shuō)，他很高興地發(fā)現(xiàn)，這部電影比這個(gè)導(dǎo)演的其他電影要短。很顯然，他對(duì)這部電影是名褒實(shí)貶。]與其收到這種評(píng)論，倒還不如別人直接批評(píng)我! 我記得我聽(tīng)過(guò)一句話(huà): " If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all." 如果你沒(méi)有好話(huà)要說(shuō)，那就閉嘴。我覺(jué)得這句話(huà)說(shuō)的特別對(duì)。每個(gè)人都希望得到別人的肯定，誰(shuí)愿意得到這種蒼白的表?yè)P(yáng)呢? 好的，讓我們?cè)賮?lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)剛才那段話(huà):

M: "The movie director had received many positive reviews for her latest work. One critic,however, didn't seem to care for it much. It's not that he gave it an openly bad review. Instead, he wrote that he was pleasantly surprised that the film was shorter than the other films. It was easy to see that he was DAMNING the director WITH FAINT PRAISE."

今天我們學(xué)習(xí)的習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)是Damn with faint praise, 意思是“名褒實(shí)貶，用輕微的贊揚(yáng)進(jìn)行貶低”。好的，這次[美國(guó)習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)]就到此結(jié)束，我是楊琳，我是 Dan Markus。謝謝各位的收聽(tīng)。

A: Listen, I'm just not a tech geek so I don't really care about what kind of phone I get. 我也就是發(fā)個(gè)短信，看個(gè)電影什么的，iPhone 3 對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)足夠用了。

B: Haha, well at least you've got your priorities straight. Got any good movie recommendations for me?

A: 那你得告訴我你喜歡什么類(lèi)型的呀?喜劇?懸疑片?功夫片?愛(ài)情片?

B: I love them all!!! But I think I enjoy the bloody ones best! Have you heard of Cannibal: The Musical? That's my favorite movie of all time! A: 哎呦哎呦別說(shuō)了，我膽兒小。

B: Haha, well you're just going to have to deal with it! In today's Go English, we will take you to the movie theatre for a horror movie!

Movie Dialogue: Beginner

大家好!今天我們?yōu)槟コ?ldquo;美語(yǔ)三級(jí)跳”節(jié)目“電影”單元的初級(jí)課程。

Professor: Winnie, today we're going to listen to Emily and Peter talking about movies on their blind date.

哎，初次約會(huì)通過(guò)聊電影來(lái)了解對(duì)方，這辦法不錯(cuò)!

Professor: I agree! Now let's find out if they both like going to the movies in their free time.

P: So Emily, what do you like to do for fun?

E: I like to go to the movies. What do you do in your free time?

P: I also like going to the movies.

E: Well that's great! It's nice that we have something in common.

聽(tīng)起來(lái)倆人都愛(ài)看電影，已經(jīng)有共同話(huà)題了!對(duì)了，Professor Bowman, doing something "for fun" 和 doing something "in your free time" 有區(qū)別么?

P: They're very similar. When you want to know what people's hobbies are, you can ask them what they do "for fun," or what they do "in their free time."

原來(lái)如此，那我可以說(shuō) "I like studying English in my free time."

P: Exactly, Winnie! Now let's listen and see when they go to the movies.

E: When do you usually go to the movies?

P: I usually go in my free time on the weekends. How about you?

E: The movie theater is always so crowded on the weekends. I like to go to the movies during the week.

P: That's true. And sometimes the tickets are cheaper during the week as well.

Professor: It looks like Emily and Peter like going to the movies at different times. Did you hear the difference, Winnie?

嗯，好像 Peter是周末去電影院，但 Emily嫌周末人多，所以她一般都是周一到周五去看電影。

Professor: That's right, and Peter says the tickets are cheaper during the week too. What kind of movies do you think they like?

唔，男生和女生喜歡的電影類(lèi)型一定不一樣，最好能有什么類(lèi)型的電影是他們倆都喜歡的，這樣第二次約會(huì)就有戲了!

Professor: Let's listen and find out.

P: I like watching comedies, like "Borat." Do you like watching comedies too?

E: Not really, I like watching horror movies, like "The Unborn."

P: You like horror movies? I don't like them because they're too scary! I like comedies because I love to laugh.

E: I like horror movies because I like to be scared.

啊呀, 他倆的電影口味相差很遠(yuǎn)呢! Emily是個(gè)女孩子，結(jié)果反倒愛(ài)看恐怖片，Peter是男子漢，卻不敢看這種電影。Professor Bowman，我有個(gè)問(wèn)題，他們好像管喜劇叫"comedies"，而不是"comedy movies"，這是為什么?

Professor: Well, Winnie, for some kinds of movies, you don't have to use the word "movies" after them. For example, you can talk about "comedies," "dramas" and "thrillers," and everyone will know you're talking about movies.

我明白了。comedies 喜劇片、dramas 劇情片和thrillers 驚險(xiǎn)片，后面都不用加 movies. Professor Bowman，你覺(jué)得，他們電影口味不同，還會(huì)繼續(xù)約會(huì)么?

Professor: I think if they really like each other, they'll find a way to solve the problem. Let's listen.

P: Well, it's too bad that we like different kinds of movies. Maybe we're just different kinds of people.

E: Yeah it's too bad ... but actually I think I know what to do.

P: What's that?

E: We can go to a horror movie, and I'll hold your hand so you don't get scared.

P: You mean ... like on a second date?

E: Of course! Or are you still too scared!

P: No way! That sounds great!

哈! Emily 可真不簡(jiǎn)單!她不僅安排了第二次約會(huì)，而且還找到了和 Peter 拉手的理由!

Professor: That was indeed very smart of her, Winnie! It looks like this date was a success after all.

是啊!您說(shuō)他們能成一對(duì)兒么?

Professor: Well, we'll have to listen in next time and see what happens.

A: Oh good! They haven't really started to watch the movie! 光聽(tīng)著我都害怕!為什么這些人要拍恐怖片呢?

B: Haha, a lot of people, for example me, just LOVE IT! Horror movies have a huge market and they don't require tons of investment like other kinds of movies.

A: 你說(shuō)這種電影投資不大?

B: Yeah, a horror flick doesn't require a huge set like a historical movie, or any of that 3D tech for sci-fi. It just needs some actors, some ketchup to throw around as fake blood and a place where you can run around and scream all you want!

A: 好吧好吧...你剛才提到投資，在下面的business etiquette里談的就是這個(gè)話(huà)題，咱們一起來(lái)聽(tīng)聽(tīng)吧!

B: Let's listen!

禮節(jié)美語(yǔ) BE-251 Investing I

Steve找到同事Bob, 向他請(qǐng)教投資的問(wèn)題。

Steve: Hey, Bob! You're a financial expert, aren't you? I hear you know a lot about investing.

Bob: Well, I don't like to toot my own horn...but I did go to school for a few years to study stuff like that.

S: Excellent. Do you mind if I pick your brain for a second?

B: For you, my friend, anything. What's on your mind?

S: My wife and I recently inherited some money. It's not a huge amount, but it's enough to make us consider investing. The problem is that neither of us has any experience in this field.

原來(lái)，Steve夫婦倆繼承了一筆財(cái)產(chǎn)，想拿去做投資。他知道 Bob 在投資方面比較在行，所以想 pick his brain 跟他咨詢(xún)一下。to pick someone's brain 意思是咨詢(xún)某人的意見(jiàn)，跟某人討主意。Bob 說(shuō)，I don't like to toot my own horn. 我不想自吹自擂。to toot one's own horn 意思是自吹自擂，類(lèi)似中文里說(shuō)的老王賣(mài)瓜自賣(mài)自夸。Bob 聽(tīng)說(shuō) Steve 打算投資后說(shuō)，

B: I see. Well, that's a nice problem to have, isn't it?

S: Yes, I guess it is. My wife's great uncle passed away last month and we unexpectedly got a call from a lawyer telling us he left us something close to $20,000 in his will.

B: Well, that's the kind of windfall that only comes around every blue moon so I agree that you and your wife really should think about investing. The problem is that there are so many options...Some offer stability but the money grows very slowly. Other options are more risky, but have more earning potential.

原來(lái)是Steve妻子從伯祖父那里很意外地繼承了將近兩萬(wàn)美元。Bob說(shuō)，That's the kind of windfall that only comes around every blue moon. windfall is spelled w-i-n-d-f-a-l-l, windfall 意外收獲，飛來(lái)橫財(cái)。every blue moon 意思是非常罕見(jiàn)。投資有很多選項(xiàng)，有些相對(duì)穩(wěn)固，但是增長(zhǎng)速度慢，有些收益潛力大，但是風(fēng)險(xiǎn)也大。

S: The stock market is one choice, but it really seems quite risky to me.

B: Stocks are risky. Most people who invest in the stock market end up losing money. The people who do make money - such as Warren Buffet - are in it for the long haul, and they have enough money to ride out the low points. I'm not sure I'd recommend you put your money into the stock market.

S: Okay...how about property? Lots of people have told us we should buy an apartment. They say land or real estate will always appreciate in value.

Steve 覺(jué)得，投資 stock market 股票市場(chǎng)風(fēng)險(xiǎn)大，Bob 表示贊同，說(shuō)凡是在股市賺錢(qián)的人，they are all in it for the long haul. 都是把錢(qián)放在股市里走長(zhǎng)線(xiàn)，這些人都有足夠的財(cái)力，能 ride out the low points 挺得過(guò)股市的低落點(diǎn)。to ride out something 是經(jīng)受得住，安然渡過(guò)的意思。投資房地產(chǎn)也是選項(xiàng)之一，Bob的意見(jiàn)如何?我們下次繼續(xù)聽(tīng)。

A: 現(xiàn)在真是個(gè)投資房地產(chǎn)的好時(shí)機(jī)，前兩天我還聽(tīng)說(shuō)又來(lái)了個(gè)買(mǎi)房團(tuán)呢!

B: I guess it is. The interest rates and housing prices are still really low. But...why are we even talking about this? It's not as if we actually have that kind of money!

A: 哈哈，也是。那咱們還是接著聽(tīng)聽(tīng)Steve是怎么決定的吧!

禮節(jié)美語(yǔ) - BE-252 Investing II

Steve找到同事Bob, 向他請(qǐng)教投資的問(wèn)題，Bob覺(jué)得股市風(fēng)險(xiǎn)太大，那房地產(chǎn)呢?

Bob: Buying property is definitely something to consider. But just because prices have been going up for a long time doesn't mean they will always go up. Lots of countries have experienced what's called a "real estate bubble" that eventually pops.

Steve: That's true. How about gold then? My brother-in-law says we should just buy a couple of gold bricks and store them in a vault somewhere.

B: Every time the economy begins to sour, people turn to gold. The price of gold then goes up because people see it as a safe haven.

Bob覺(jué)得，投資房地產(chǎn)固然可以考慮，但是房產(chǎn)價(jià)格不會(huì)永遠(yuǎn)攀升，很多國(guó)家都經(jīng)歷過(guò) real estate bubble 房地產(chǎn)泡沫，最后都以泡沫破滅而告終。除了股市和房市以外，還可以買(mǎi)黃金。Bob 也認(rèn)為，黃金是很好的避險(xiǎn)投資，people see it as a safe haven. safe haven 是避難所，意思是投資黃金比較安全，不會(huì)賠錢(qián)。Every time the economy begins to sour, people turn to gold. 每次經(jīng)濟(jì)走下坡路，大家都把投資轉(zhuǎn)向黃金。

B: But there are two problems with gold. One, there's no guarantee that prices will stay high, and two, while it might be safe, it's not really earning you anything in the same way that a smart investment could.S: That makes sense. You know, the more I think about this, the more complicated it becomes.

B: One of the safer bets might be government bonds. You give the government your money for say 20 years, and at the end of that period, they return it with a relatively high rate of interest.

S: That's kind of appealing because it means you can't touch the money during that period of time and it removes any temptation to go and buy a new car, for example.

除了黃金以外，另外一種安全投資是政府債券，safe bet, 安全的賭注，這里指萬(wàn)無(wú)一失的投資模式。Steve覺(jué)得，購(gòu)買(mǎi)政府債券確實(shí)不錯(cuò) that's kind of appealing. appealing is spelled a-p-p-e-a-l-i-n-g, appealing 意思是有吸引力的，因?yàn)樵趥狡谥?，這些錢(qián)是不能動(dòng)的，所以也就不會(huì)胡亂花掉。

B: Yeah, the money just sits there safely until you're ready to retire. Many banks offer similar long-term investment deals that also pay pretty good interest rates.

S: Thanks a lot, Bob. I'm going to look into government bonds, and I'm going to have a conversation with my bank's investment department.B: I'd say that's probably the smartest way to go. Good luck.

Bob說(shuō)，很多銀行也提供類(lèi)似的長(zhǎng)期投資產(chǎn)品，而且利息不錯(cuò)。Steve向 Bob表示感謝，說(shuō) I'm going to look into government bonds. look into something 是仔細(xì)研究的意思?？磥?lái)，Steve 還是準(zhǔn)備穩(wěn)妥起見(jiàn)，進(jìn)行長(zhǎng)期、風(fēng)險(xiǎn)小的投資。

A: Well, now the show is almost over. 我們今天要告訴大家一個(gè)傷心的消息，我最合拍的搭檔Kat也要為自己的職業(yè)投資，今天是她最后一次主持美語(yǔ)訓(xùn)練班了!

B: (say something you want to say to the audience)

A: 雖然我們經(jīng)常逗嘴，不過(guò)我肯定會(huì)很想你的! 希望你有空?；貋?lái)做客，Kat!

B：沒(méi)問(wèn)題! I will definitely come back to bother you. You can count on it, Yang Lin!

A: 好，這次節(jié)目時(shí)間就到這里。如果你對(duì)我們的節(jié)目有什么建議，或者想提什么問(wèn)題，請(qǐng)發(fā)電子郵件到[email protected]. 下周我們會(huì)有臨時(shí)的帶班主持人Jody參加，千萬(wàn)別錯(cuò)過(guò)呦!

B: Bye bye!