情景会话口袋书人际篇 第611期:签约(1)

 　　1. Do you think it's time to sign the contract?

　　该签合同了吧？

　　还能这样说：

　　Can we make the contract now?

　　Can we sign the agreement at the time?

　　应用解析：

　　pass time 打发时间；

　　play for time （用拖延等方法）争取时间；

　　find time 挤出时间

　　2. There are a few points which I'd like to bring up concerning the contract.

　　关于合同我想提出几点看法。

　　还能这样说：

　　I want to give some advice on the contract.

　　I have some opinions on the contract.

　　应用解析：

　　have no concern with 和……毫无关系；

　　it is no concern of mine 这不关我的事

　　3. We both want to sign a contract, so we have to make some concessions¹ to do it.

　　我们都想签合同，因此双方都要做些让步。

　　还能这样说：

　　We two parties both are willing to make a deal, so we should reach a compromise.

　　We should compromise with each side, and in this way we can reach a contract.

　　谚语：

　　Some people pretend to despise the things they cannot have.

　　吃不到葡萄的人说葡萄酸。

　　4. May I ask how you interpret this article?

　　我能请您解释一下这项条款吗？

　　还能这样说：

　　Could you explain this item?

　　Could you elaborate this article to me?

1 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。