生活英语对话 Episode 43: Exam revision

本单元是关于复习考试的对话

Michal: Oh dear I have my exam today. I'm really worried. Helen, will you practise with me please?
Helen: You must be joking!
Michal: Alice?
Alice: Oh Michal, you know I'm just back from a night-shift. I'm exhausted¹, sorry.
Tim: Don't worry mate, you'll be all right. Just relax, be yourself...
Michal: But I did very bad in my practice test last week.
Helen: I told you Michal, it's important to revise for exams but you went out every night this week.
Michal: Yes I know but it's a speaking exam so I had to talk to people. Won't anyone help me? Thanks Bronka, that's a big help!


Vocabulary:（词汇）

a night-shift: （夜班）
a period of work that takes place during the night

exhausted: （精疲力尽）
very tired

to revise for exams: （为准备考试而复习）
to do special preparation for an exam, when you look back at your earlier work

本单元的语言点是 homophones, 在英语里有时候有两个完全不同的字 - 拼写不同、字义不同 - 却有相同的发音。这就叫做 homophones 。举例来说， mail 和 male ， practice 和 practise。这是因为英文字并不完全按照声音来拼写。英文里估计大约有 400 组同音字。

Homophones

In English it is possible for two different words - words with different spelling and different meaning - to have the same pronunciation. These are homophones. For example, mail and male and practice and practise. This occurs because English is not written in a strictly² phonetic³ way. There are more than 400 pairs of homophones.

Common homophones:（常见同音字）

mail and male
The first means post and letters, the second is the opposite of female

brake and break
The first stops a car or bicycle from moving, the second means to damage something

wait and weight
The first is what you do at a bus stop, the second is measured in kilogrammes

read and red
The first is the past simple of 'to read', the second is the colour of danger

buy, by and bye
The first is to obtain something using money, the second is a preposition, the third is a shortened form of 'goodbye'

sore and soar
The first means something hurts, the second means to fly high in the sky

pause and paws
The first is a short gap in speech, the second are animals' feet

pores and pours
The first are small holes in the skin, the second is from the verb 'to pour water from a jug'


Verb and noun homophones:（动词与名词同音字）

practise and practice
Both mean to do something to get better at it. The first is the verb, the second the noun

license and licence
Both refer to official permission to do something. The first (in British English) is verb meaning to give the permission, the second is the noun and refers to the official document of permission


Contractions (e.g. he's, I'm) homophones:（缩写同音字）

aisle, isle and I'll
The first is the gap between columns of seats, the second is a small island, the third is a contraction of 'I will'

heel, heal and he'll
The first is the back of the bottom of your foot, the second means to repair an injury, the third is a contraction of 'he will'

your and you're
The first is a possessive pronoun, the second the contraction of 'you are'

there, their and they're
The first is an adverb, the second a possessive pronoun, the third a contraction of 'they are'

1 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

2 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

3 phonetic   

adj.语言的，语言上的，表示语音的

参考例句：

• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。
• English phonetic teaching is an important teaching step in elementary stages.语音教学是英语基础阶段重要的教学环节。