VOA慢速英語:農(nóng)場詞匯知識小測

Today we have a vocabulary quiz.

今天我們來個單詞測試。

We start with two questions about terms for plants.

首先我們以兩個關(guān)于植物的短語問題來開始。

First question: What is the name for a plant that lives only one year or one growing season? This kind of plant is called an "annual." Think of an annual report -- a report published just once a year.

第一個問題，那種一年只生長一次或者一季的植物叫什么?這種植物稱為一年生植物。參考年度報告來理解，那種一年只發(fā)表一次的報告。

You can probably guess the next question. What do we call a plant that produces new growth year after year? Plants that keep growing back are called "perennials." So a perennial is the opposite of an annual. Perennials come back year after year.

你可能會想到下一個問題將會是什么了。那種可以連續(xù)一年接一年生長的植物叫什么?這種連續(xù)生長的植物叫做多年生植物。所以多年生與一年生植物正好相反。多年生可以一年接著一年的連續(xù)生長。

Now some questions about terms for livestock.

下面是關(guān)于牲畜的一些短語問題：

What is another name for a male cow? A bull, right? Well, not always. A male cow is usually called a bull only if it still has its reproductive organs. If not, we call it a -- what? The answer: a steer.

雄性奶牛的另一種叫法是什么?公牛對嗎?好吧，這種叫法不常用。一只雄性奶牛只有在擁有雄性生殖器的時候通常才會成為公牛。如果沒有的話我們把它叫做steer,犍牛(被閹割掉的公牛)。

Next question:

下一個問題：

What is another name for a young cow? A very young cow is called a calf. But a young female cow, especially one that has not had a calf yet, has a special name. Do you know what it is?

怎樣稱呼一只年輕的奶牛?一只非常小的奶牛叫做小牛犢，但是一只年輕的雌性奶牛，尤其還沒有下過牛的奶牛有一個特別的名字。你知道是什么嗎?

The answer: a heifer. Maybe you knew that. But here is a question just for our radio and podcast listeners -- can you spell it? Heifer is spelled H-E-I-F-E-R.

答案是：heifer,小母牛。可能你已經(jīng)知道這種叫法了。但是現(xiàn)在給聽眾們提出的問題是，你能拼寫出這個單詞嗎?小母牛這樣拼寫H-E-I-F-E-R.

Cows, like all mammals, lactate. Our next question is: do you know what that means? To lactate means to produce milk. Cows lactate for up to ten months. In milk, fat rises to the top. But some people do not like to drink milk that way. So there is a process that reduces the size of the fat particles and mixes them all through the milk. This process has a name -- a long name. What is it? It's "homogenization."

像所有哺乳動物一樣，奶牛可以產(chǎn)奶的。我們下一個問題就是：你知道這意味著什么嗎?分泌乳汁就是可以產(chǎn)奶。奶牛產(chǎn)奶時間可以長達(dá)10個月。在牛奶中包含著大量脂肪。但是一些人不喜歡這樣喝牛奶。所以就有了一個程序來減少牛奶中的脂肪顆粒將其與牛奶充分混合。這個過程有一個專有名字，一個很長的名字。是什么?這個名字就是“均質(zhì)化”

Still with us? OK, another question.

大家還在聽嗎?好接下來下一個問題。

Milk can be made into cheese. Some people like cheese made with milk from a sheep. What do you call a female sheep? The answer: a ewe, spelled E-W-E.

牛奶可以加工制成奶酪。一些人喜歡用羊奶做的奶酪。那么一只雌性綿羊叫做什么呢?答案是，母綿羊，E-W-E。

Male sheep have their own name. A male sheep is a -- what? A ram. Rams and ewes produce lambs. A lamb is a sheep less than a year old. But what do you call the meat from a sheep over a year old? We call it "mutton."

雄性綿羊有他們自己的名字。一只雄性綿羊是，什么?雄性綿羊是“ram”，公羊。公羊和母羊共同生產(chǎn)小羊羔。一只小羊羔是不到一歲的綿羊。但是一只一歲以上的綿羊產(chǎn)生的肉叫什么呢?我們叫做mutton,羊肉。

Age also plays a part in terms for horses. For example, a mare is generally a female three years or older. But what do you call a female horse under three?

年齡對馬的稱呼來講也有區(qū)分。例如，mare,一匹母馬是指三歲及以上的雌性馬。那么不到三歲的雌性馬叫什么呢?

The answer: a filly. And for extra credit: do you know the name for a male horse under four? A colt.

叫filly,小母馬。再補(bǔ)充一點，你知道一匹四歲一下的雄性馬叫什么嗎?叫colt,小馬駒。

I'm Marsha James.

Jeri Watson wrote this report in VOA Learning English. Avi Arditti edited it.