世博实用听力04:问候身边的朋友

 　　【Transcript】

　　Lawrence给Jen做媒，让她和自己的另一位朋友William约会。

　　Professor: Today Lawrence and Jen have met for coffee to talk about how Jen's date with William went.

　　Lawrence: So Jen, what did you think of William? Did you guys have a nice time on your first date?

　　Jen: Oh yeah, it was great! He took me to an Italian restaurant and we had an amazing conversation. I told him about how many kids I want, and how my parents will be so excited to meet him.

　　Lawrence: You said all that on the first date? Alright .... Well are you two going out again?

　　Jen: Yeah! I called him after I got home to arrange¹ our next date, but unfortunately his grandma is sick so he has been busy every night visiting her in the hospital.

　　Professor Bowman，看来这个William还真是a catch! Jen好象对他很满意，甚至提到去见父母和生孩子的事呢！不过，第一次约会就说这么严肃的事儿，会把男生吓跑的。

　　Professor: Judging from my personal experience, that's very possible! Did you hear that William's grandmother got sick right after his date with Jen? That's a little odd².

　　就是啊! Jen一约William， William就说自己奶奶病重，哪有这么巧的事？! 八成是他不想再见面，所以找的借口!

　　Lawrence: William told you that his grandmother is sick, huh? What exactly did he say?

　　Jen: He said his grandmother got cancer and has only a few weeks to live. It's really so sad! But when I talked to him on the phone, it sounded like he was holding up really well.

　　Lawrence: It didn't sound like he was too upset, huh? What did you tell him?

　　Jen: I asked if there was anything I could do to help his family, and I told him that I could be a shoulder for him to cry on.

　　Lawrence: Well I hate to tell you this Jen, but both of William's grandmothers passed away more than five years ago.

　　Professor Bowman, Lawrence说William的祖母五年前就“passed away”了， "pass away"不是去世的意思么？

　　Professor: Exactly. Sometimes people say that someone "passed away" because it sounds nicer than saying "died".

　　怪不得William在电话里holding up so well - 没有悲恸欲绝，原来奶奶生病真是他编出来的借口!

　　Jen: What do you mean his grandmothers are already dead? Wait a minute, you don't think he's avoiding me, do you?

　　Lawrence: Well you know, claiming that your grandmother is sick is the classic³ excuse used to get out of doing something.

　　Jen: Oh man, I hate rejection⁴. It really makes you feel terrible, especially when you really liked the person.

　　Lawrence: Is there anything I can do to help? Just remember that I'm there for you if you want to talk about it.

　　Professor, 我常听美国人说"being there for somebody," 这到底是什么意思呢？

　　Professor: "Being there for someone" is staying close to him and giving him support when he is going through a difficult period.

　　Oh, being there for someone就是某人遇到困难时在他身边支持他，鼓励他。

　　Jen: Thanks. Sometimes talking with a friend is a great way to get over something. Do you mind if I vent⁵ a little bit?

　　Lawrence: Of course not. If you're feeling bad and want to let your emotions out, you can just say whatever you want to me.

　　Jen: Great, because I am really mad at William. I mean, what kind of an idiot⁶ wouldn't be able to appreciate a smart, beautiful woman like me? Anybody who would be friends with that guy has to be really dumb⁷.

　　Lawrence: Uh, Jen .... you know I'm friends with William.

　　Jen: Oh right .... present company excluded⁸, of course!

　　嗯，遇到挫折时，能有个朋友听你vent倾诉真是一件幸运的事。 不过，professor, Jen说的 present company excluded 是什么意思？

　　Professor: When you criticize⁹ a group of people that the person you are talking to belongs to, you can say "present company excluded," which means¹⁰ the person you are talking to is excepted from that criticism¹¹.

　　哦， 就是“在场者除外”。如果你批评一群人，而听你说话的人也是其中一员的话，你就可以说“你不算，你跟他们不一样”。唉，Professor Bowman，学了今天这一课，我再次领悟到，天下乌鸦一般黑，男人全都靠不住!

　　Professor: Ahem??

　　Oh! 当然啦， present company excluded!

　　【Listening skills】

　　1.Today Lawrence and Jen have met for coffee to talk about how Jen's date with William went.

　　这一天，Lawrence好Jen在一家咖啡店喝咖啡，他们正讨论这Jen与William第一次约会的事呢。

　　这个句子中的的about的词尾t属于在句中轻读的现象，除非起强调作用时重读，因为介词本身没有含义，属于结构型词汇，作用是保持句子的通顺流畅。

　　2.另外，文中当中还会遇到很多生词，例如a catch，在这里做名词，意思是“a person that other people see as a good person to marry, employ, etc”即“理想的对象；意中人；雇用的好对象；看中的人”。不过这是个旧式英语的用法。

　　3.But when I talked to him on the phone, it sounded like he was holding up really well.

　　这句话当中的hold up意思是“to remain strong and working effectively¹² ”即“支持住；承受住；支撑得住”；

　　例如：Managed to hold up under the daily stress.

　　想办法应付每天的生活压力

　　4.present company excluded!

　　“在场者除外”。

　　如果你批评一群人，而听你说话的人也是其中一员的话，你就可以说“你不算，你跟他们不一样”

1 arrange   

vt.安排，整理，计划，改编(乐曲)；vi.协商，计划

参考例句：

• He began to arrange the flowers in the vase.他开始把花瓶内的花摆好。
• We must arrange about that.这事我们得安排一下。

2 odd   

adj.奇特的；临时的；奇数的；n.[pl.]机会

参考例句：

• She looks a bit odd.I wonder what has happened to her.她的神色有些异样，不知出了什么事。
• He's an odd character and no mistake!他的确是个怪人！

3 classic   

n.经典作品；adj.经典的，一流的；古典的

参考例句：

• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。
• The football match was a classic.那场足球比赛堪称典范。

4 rejection   

n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃

参考例句：

• He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
• The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。

5 vent   

n.通风口，排放口；开衩；vt.表达，发泄

参考例句：

• He gave vent to his anger by swearing loudly.他高声咒骂以发泄他的愤怒。
• When the vent became plugged,the engine would stop.当通风口被堵塞时，发动机就会停转。

6 idiot   

n.白痴，傻子，笨蛋

参考例句：

• Only an idiot would make such a thoughtless remark.只有草包才会说出这样没有头脑的话来。
• You are behaving like a perfect idiot.你表现得像个十足的白痴。

7 dumb   

adj.哑的；不会说话的；笨的；愚蠢的

参考例句：

• She is very kind to the dumb children.她对哑童非常好。
• It was dumb of you to say that.你说这种话太愚蠢了。

8 excluded   

v.排除，不包括在内( exclude的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The cost of borrowing has been excluded from the inflation figures. 通胀数字未包括借贷成本。
• The court excluded the confession wrongly obtained by the police. 法院排除了警方通过不正当方法获得的供词作为证据。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 criticize   

vt.批评；批判，指责；评论，评价

参考例句：

• Whenever you criticize him,he always has an excuse.你批评他，他总有说头儿。
• You are free to criticize my work.你可以随意批评我的工作。

10 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

11 criticism   

n.批评，批判，指责；评论，评论文章

参考例句：

• Some youth today do not allow any criticism at all.现在有些年轻人根本指责不得。
• It is wrong to turn a deaf ear to other's criticism.对别人的批评充耳不闻是错误的。

12 effectively   

adv.有效地，有力地，实际上

参考例句：

• This method worked effectively.这方法很见效。
• The public should be educated to use resources more effectively.应该教育大众更有效地使用资源。