【英语趣味课堂】他的改变-His Change

Maria: So Alex we were talking about what I would like to change about myself so I was wondering what would you like to change about, for example, appearance?

Alex: For me I've actually had some fun changing my appearance in the past. I have had the craziest hair colors. At one point I was pink, purple and red at the same time. Everything at the same time. I've done everything that I can think of, except green, I don't think green is an appropriate hair color, but I guess in the near future I think I'd want to probably lose about five or six kilos, mainly not so much because of appearance but it will also help me live about ten years longer which would be lovely.

 

Maria: As they say.

 

Alex: Yes, as they say. At the moment, you know I'm going to the gym and trying to get that happen. I wish I was a little bit taller, honestly, just a little bit. I'm probably the average height in Australia and I don't know I think being a bit taller would be good. Yeah, I think that's probably about it. I'd also, you know everyone wants that body that you can go out to on the beach, right?

 

Maria: The beach body?

 

Alex: The beach body and have the abs. I don't think I'll ever get abs because my descendents, my lineage is French and Irish and they're not really known for being abs types. If I was Brazilian, no problem, but the Irish in me makes me more probably rotund, let's say round, than anything else. More like a rugby player than a surfer.

 

Maria: You weren't blessed with the red hair but you did get the physique.

 

Alex: I'm kind of glad for not the red hair. People get teased² for that.

 

Maria: I heard.

 

Alex: Yeah.

 

Maria: Poor gingers³. What about character, like what about your personality?

 

Alex: I wish that sometimes I had the, let's say the strength to cut some people out when they have become kind of a bit of a drag, let's say. I wish, sometimes I wish I wasn't so, like I could be a bit more sensible⁴ honestly. I can get very, very, very silly so and kind of take things that are not too seriously. School, you know, I find it very, very difficult to like keep going at like at a good pace. I tend to sort of flow in and out of being serious about that. I think steady would be a good thing, I think for me for that.

 

Maria: Yeah.

 

重点词汇：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the lesson

abs

 

I don't think I'll ever get abs.

 

'Abs' is a short and informal way of saying 'abdominal⁵ muscles,' which are the muscles in your stomach that can create lines on your stomach if you are in really good physical shape. Notice the following:

 

He has always had really strong abs.

My abs hurt from going to the gym yesterday.

descendent¹

 

I don't think I'll ever get abs because my descendents.

 

Here, Alex is talking about his ancestors and where they came from.  Notice the following:

 

It is exciting for her to know what all of her descendants⁶ are doing.

After my great-grandfather moved to Canada in the early 1900s, all of his descendants were born here.

lineage

 

My lineage is French and Irish.

 

A person's lineage is their ancestry⁷ or the history of the people in their family.  This word is very similar in meaning to 'descendent.' Notice the following:

 

He believes that most of the capabilities⁸ that he possesses come from his lineage.

She was raised in the United States, but her lineage is Vietnamese.

cut people out

 

I wish I had the strength to cut some people out of my life.

 

When you 'cut a person out' of your life, it means that you no longer maintain⁹ contact or see them. Notice the following:

 

If anyone in her life makes a mistake, she cuts them out right away.

Your friends keep you too busy and stressful. It's time that you cut some people out of your life.

a drag

 

They have become kind of a bit of a drag, let's say.

 

Something that holds you back personally or makes you sad can be called 'a drag.' Notice the following:

 

It is a real drag to have a broken arm in the summer, because you can't go swimming.

It's kind of a drag that you are sick on your birthday.

 

1 descendent   

adj. 下降的, 降落的, 世袭的 n. 后代，子孙 =descendant

参考例句：

• With no direct descendent, who will succeed to the title? 没有直系后裔，谁来继承爵位呢？
• He is a descendent of Queen Victoria. 他是维多利亚女王的后代。

2 teased   

v.取笑，戏弄( tease的过去式和过去分词 )；梳理（羊毛等）

参考例句：

• He took a screwdriver and teased out the remaining screws. 他拿出螺丝刀把其余的螺丝卸了下来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I felt annoyance at being teased. 我恼恨别人取笑我。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 gingers   

n.姜，生姜( ginger的名词复数 )；姜黄色

参考例句：

• Condiments: Salt, gourmet powder, rice wine, corianders, scallions, gingers and sesame oil. 调料：盐、味精、料酒、香菜、葱、姜、香油。 来自互联网

4 sensible   

adj.可察觉的，意识到的，实用的；n.可感知物

参考例句：

• Are you sensible of the dangers of your position? 你觉察到你处境中的危险了吗？
• He was sensible enough to mind his own business.他颇有见识，不去管闲事。

5 abdominal   

adj.腹（部）的，下腹的；n.腹肌

参考例句：

• The abdominal aorta is normally smaller than the thoracic aorta.腹主动脉一般比胸主动脉小。
• Abdominal tissues sometimes adhere after an operation.手术之后腹部有时会出现粘连。

6 descendants   

n. 后代，后裔 名词descendant的复数形式

参考例句：

• They were the direct descendants of the Dutch settlers. 他们是荷兰移民的直系后裔。
• They are the descendants of Queen Victoria. 他们是维多利亚女王的后裔。

7 ancestry   

n.祖先，家世

参考例句：

• Their ancestry settled the land in 1856.他们的祖辈1856年在这块土地上定居下来。
• He is an American of French ancestry.他是法国血统的美国人。

8 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

9 maintain   

vt.支撑；赡养，抚养；维持，保有

参考例句：

• He has to maintain a large family on a small salary.他不得不依靠很少的工资养活一家人。
• We must do our best to maintain sales at their usual rate.我们要尽力使销售额保持在平日的水平上。