ESL Podcast 941 – Types of Shopping Areas

 　　Sarah: Come on! We only have two more hours before the stores close and I want to make it to the outlet¹ stores.

　　Aidan: I thought that when you asked if I wanted to spend the day together, you meant we’d go somewhere for lunch, go to a movie, or just hang out.

　　Sarah: Isn’t this much more fun? Shopping centers are like Disneyland!

　　Aidan: This wasn’t exactly what I had in mind.

　　Sara: Just look. You have two shopping malls, retail² stores, outlet stores, department stores, and specialty³ stores. What more could you want?

　　Aidan: That’s great for you, but what am I supposed to do?

　　Sarah: You can come with me, watch me try on clothes, and help me decide what to buy. Come on, I want to go to those stores in the strip mall over there.

　　Aidan: Why don’t I just find a place to get a snack and wait for you? I’m just dead weight when it comes to shopping.

　　Sarah: But I thought you wanted to spend the day together.

　　Aidan: I did, but I didn’t know I’d have to go to shopping hell to do it.

　　Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

1 outlet   

n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄

参考例句：

• The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
• Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。

2 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

3 specialty   

n.(speciality)特性，特质；专业，专长

参考例句：

• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town.贝雕是该城的特产。
• His specialty is English literature.他的专业是英国文学。