听播客学英语 286 灯泡

 　　A few years ago there were lots of lightbulb jokes in English. You probably had them in your language too. Here is an example. How many policemen/civil servants/school teachers does it take to change a lightbulb? Five – one to stand on a table holding the lightbulb, and four to pick the table up and turn it round. Some people find these jokes very funny. Other people don’t think they are funny at all.

　　Look at the first sentence of the joke “How many policemen does it take to change a lightbulb?” It means¹ “How many policemen are needed to change a lightbulb?” Here are some more sentences that use TAKE in this way.

　　How many bricks² will it take to build the wall? It will take about 2000 bricks.

　　How much water will it take to fill the basin³? It will take about 2 litres⁴.

　　How long will it take to get to London? It will take about 2 hours.

　　How long do you take to do your homework? It takes me about one hour.

　　Here is a lightbulb joke about the English. How many English people does it take to change a lightbulb? What, change the lightbulb? That lightbulb has lasted nearly 500 years, and there’s nothing wrong with it. We couldn’t possibly change it now.

1 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。

2 bricks   

n.砖( brick的名词复数 )；砖块；积木；可靠的朋友

参考例句：

• He compounded water, sand and soil and formed bricks. 他用水拌和沙和泥土做成砖块。
• The United Auto Workers hit the bricks against General Motors. 联合汽车工人工会举行罢工，反对通用汽车公司。

3 basin   

n.脸盆；盆地，流域

参考例句：

• He washed his hands in a basin.他在盆里洗了手。
• The water was even with the rim of the basin.盆里的水与盆边平齐了。

4 litres   

n.升( litre的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• 3 litres of water 3升水
• The barrel would hold 100 litres. 这桶能装一百升。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》