【英语趣味课堂】车祸-Car Accidents

Paul: So I was on my way to work the other day, and I saw this really—you shouldn't laugh but it was quite funny traffic accident. I shouldn't laugh but this old lady was in her car. And bless her, she must have got confused and she put the car into reverse and when she went to like put the car in forward gear, and she drove like straight into the person behind her and smashed up the car behind her.

 

Amy: Oh no.

 

Paul: I mean, it was an innocent mistake but it could happen to any of us but it was a bit, sort of calamitous¹ really. How about you? Have you had any car accidents?

 

Amy: Not like that. I've been in a car—I was a passenger in a car accident. When I was about 17, my boyfriend at the time was driving too fast on a country road with a national speed limit. So he was going pretty fast and then we were pulling into a small village, so he had to slow right down. The roads were very, very wet. It was dark. He came up over a small hill and there was a big jeep suddenly waiting to turn right and he stomped³ on the brakes and skidded⁴ right into the back of it. So his little car just got demolished⁵ by this jeep.

 

We were okay. He hit his head on the steering⁶ wheel. And I think I had seatbelt pain from where the seatbelt was but yeah, the car was a write-off. But we were okay.

 

Paul: Wow. Thank goodness for that. It sounds like pretty horrific.

 

Amy: No, no. It was okay.

 

Paul: Yeah.

 

Amy: It taught him to, I guess, be a better driver. He was driving too fast on slippery and dark conditions.

 

Paul: Yeah. I guess when you're at that age, you almost feel like you're untouchable, nothing can stop you. So sometimes, you need those sorts of experiences to kind of make you realize that.

 

Amy: Don't be a boy racer.

 

Paul: Don't be a boy racer and it can be taken away from you. Your life could be taken away from you very easily, you know. It's pretty—

 

Amy: Yeah, we were really lucky, for sure.

 

重点词汇：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the Lesson!

innocent mistake

 

It was an innocent mistake.

 

A innocent mistake is a mistake that is easy to make and not intended. Notice the following:

 

He said my name wrong, but it was an innocent mistake.

Forgetting your wife's birthday is not an innocent mistake.

calamitous

 

 

It was sort of calamitous really.

 

Something calamitous (a calamity) causes great damage. Notice the following:

 

It was a calamitous mistake that hurt the company.

The error was serious, but not calamitous.

stomp² on

 

He stomped on the brakes.

 

When you stomp on something, you step on is very hard. Notice the following:

 

She stomped on me at the meeting.

The boy stomps⁷ his feet when he gets upset.

a write-off

 

 

The car was a write-off.

 

A write-off is something that no longer has value due to damage. Notice the following:

 

The house was a write-off after the storm.

His car was a write-off after he wrecked⁸ it.

untouchable

 

You feel you're untouchable, nothing can stop you.

 

When you are untouchable, you feel bad events cannot happen to you. Notice the following:

 

He is rich and powerful, so he is untouchable.

The mafia often think they are untouchable.

1 calamitous   

adj.灾难的，悲惨的；多灾多难；惨重

参考例句：

• We are exposed to the most calamitous accidents. 我们遭受着极大的灾难。 来自辞典例句
• Light reveals the subtle alteration of things, the sly or calamitous impermanence or mortal life. 事物的细微变动，人生的狡猾，倏忽无常，一一都在光中显露出来。 来自辞典例句

2 stomp   

v.跺（脚），重踩，重踏

参考例句：

• 3.And you go to france, and you go to stomp! 你去法国，你去看跺脚舞！
• 4.How hard did she stomp? 她跺得有多狠？

3 stomped   

v.跺脚，践踏，重踏( stomp的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She stomped angrily out of the office. 她怒气冲冲，重步走出办公室。
• She slammed the door and stomped (off) out of the house. 她砰的一声关上了门，暮暮地走出了屋了。 来自辞典例句

4 skidded   

v.（通常指车辆） 侧滑( skid的过去式和过去分词 )；打滑；滑行；（住在）贫民区

参考例句：

• The car skidded and hit a lamp post. 那辆汽车打滑撞上了路灯杆。
• The car skidded and overturned. 汽车打滑翻倒了。

5 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

6 steering   

n.操舵装置

参考例句：

• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. 他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。
• Steering according to the wind, he also framed his words more amicably. 他真会看风使舵，口吻也马上变得温和了。

7 stomps   

v.跺脚，践踏，重踏( stomp的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• This one ends the world, stomps on it, grinds it up and spits it out. 这一部又把世界给终结了，践踏了地球，还碾压她，然后再把她吐出来。 来自互联网

8 wrecked   

adj.失事的，遇难的

参考例句：

• the hulk of a wrecked ship 遇难轮船的残骸
• the salvage of the wrecked tanker 对失事油轮的打捞