商务英语情景口语100主题010

010 Commuting¹

Dialogue 1

A: Where's Bill? The ambassador[ æm'bæsədə ] is already here. The meeting is set to start at 9 am.

B: He's late again. Traffic is probably holding him up. You know, he commutes³ from the suburbs. It's not easy commuting every day. We should cut him some slack.

A: Even though the trafic is bumper-to-bumper out there, I don't think it's heavy traffic that makes Bill late. He takes the train, remember?

B: Oh, that's right. Well, the train shouldn't be late. That means there is only one explanation.... Bill must have overslept.

A: Well, to be fare, since he's coming all the way from Lancaster, he's got to get up much earlier than the rest of us. He must get start on his commute² about 6:30, no telling what time he actually gets up.

B: That's right, because he's got to get to the train station from his house, then take the blue line into the city, then switch trains to the red line. In all, the trip's got to take more than 2 hours.

A: Why doesn't he just drive to work?

B: It's too difficult to park your car in the city. Also, the traffic coming in from the suburbs is a nightmare.

Dialogue 2

A: I can't wait until my car is repaired. The commuting with public transportation is killing⁴ me.

B: It can't be that bad.

A: But it is! Take this morning for example. The subway was so packed this morning, I got totally squished by about a hundred busy commuters on the way to work.

B: At least the subway is better than the bus. It's faster for one thing. And usually less crowded. But the drawback is that the subway is more expensive than the bus. It adds up over time, if you take it every day.

A: That's true. The bus is even worse. Just thinking about taking the bus every day makes me tired! Hey, how do you get to work every day?

B: I ride my bike. I don't live too far away, so it's pretty convenient. it's only about a ten minute bike ride from my house to the office.

A: I'll bet it's good exercise, too...a good way to keep fit.

B: Yes, not only a good way to keep in shape, but a good way to relieve stress as well. While you're stressed out by your commute, I'm releasing all the stress of the day with mine.

1 commuting   

交换（的）

参考例句：

• I used the commuting time to read and answer my mail. 我利用上下班在汽车中的时间来阅读和答复给我的函电。
• Noncommuting objects are as real to the mathematicians as commuting objects. 对于数学家来说，不可交换的对象与可交换的对象是一样真实的。

2 commute   

vi.乘车上下班；vt.减(刑)；折合；n.上下班交通

参考例句：

• I spend much less time on my commute to work now.我现在工作的往返时间要节省好多。
• Most office workers commute from the suburbs.很多公司的职员都是从郊外来上班的。

3 commutes   

上下班路程( commute的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She commutes from Oxford to London every day. 她每天上下班往返于牛津与伦敦之间。
• Barbara lives in Oxford and commutes. 芭芭拉住在牛津，通勤往来。

4 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。