生活英语对话 Episode 74: Alone at New Year（在线收听）

本单元是关于独自过新年的对话

Alice: Ah Kitty, there never was anything wrong with you, was there? I told Helen you were ok, but she wouldn't listen. She had to listen to the vet though. He said you were the healthiest cat he'd ever seen.
Anyway Kitty, Happy New Year: it's just you and me tonight. I didn't plan it this way Kitty, do you remember? I made all those resolutions last year: I was going to meet a gorgeous man. He was going to be funny, and rich too. And I did meet him, Kitty, we were going to get married and everything, ok, he hadn't asked me yet, but I had high hopes. But I didn't know he had a skeleton in his closet: a wife and two children. Oh well Kitty, that's that eh?
Ooh Kitty, who could that be? It's very late?

Vocabulary: 词汇

resolutions: 决心
promises you make to yourself about how you are going to improve your life by changing your behaviour; people often make resolutions at New Year

to have high hopes: 对未来感到乐观
to feel very positive and optimistic about the future of something

he had a skeleton in his closet: 他有个不可告人之事(秘密)
he had a secret about something bad that happened in the past

that's that: 事情就这样了
the situation is completed and can not be changed

本单元语言点是用 going to 表示未来计划，请看下面的解释和例句

The future in the past

Going to: future plans 用Going to表示未来计划
Speakers of English use to be + 'going to' + base verb (without 'to') to talk about plans for the future.

I'm going to visit my uncle in Thailand next Spring.
I'm going to wash the dishes.
I'm going to Poland for Christmas.

Time expressions can be used if the speaker wants to say when the action will happen.

I'm going to visit my uncle in Thailand next Spring.

But it is not always necessary to use a time expression: 'going to' refers to an unspecified time in the future.

I'm going to wash the dishes.


'Going to go' can be shortened to 'going'.

I'm going to Poland for Christmas. = 'I'm going to go to Poland for Christmas.'


Was going to: the future in the past 过去未来式(用was going to表示过去未来发生的动作)
Sometimes we make plans for the future, but the plans don't actually happen. Speakers of English use was/were + 'going to' + base verb (without 'to') to look back at the plans we made but didn't do.

I was going to visit my uncle in Thailand last Spring, but I couldn't afford a ticket.
I was going to wash the dishes, but there wasn't enough time.
I was going to go to Poland for Christmas, but I stayed in France.

Time expressions can be used if the speaker wants to say when the action should have happened.

I was going to visit my uncle in Thailand last Spring.

But it is not always necessary to use a time expression.

I was going to wash the dishes.
I was going to meet a gorgeous man.
He was going to be funny, and rich too.

When the subject of the sentence is I/he/she/it, use 'was'.

I was going to meet a gorgeous man. He was going to be funny, and rich too.

When the subject of the sentence is you/we/they, use 'were'.

We were going to get married.


Was/were going to: pronunciation 注意was/were going to的发音

In spoken English, the phrase 'going to' can be pronounced word by word, especially when speaking slowly, or in formal situations.