Duplex 双层公寓（精讲之一）

影片对白

Narrator: So, you're finally settling down. You've saved up a littlenest eggand are ready to dive into the real estate market. Let's do a little shopping around.

The American dream home, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, one doghouse, one garage, two garbage cans. It's cozy¹, safe, and just barelywithin your overstretched budget.

Not for you? For the same price, you can buy 200, 000 acres of prime Sahara wasteland. Put up a cottage. Nothing, but you and the sky. It's like a beach without the ocean. And talk about quiet neighbors.

Too remote? Oh, I understand. You need the thrill and excitement of the big city. With that same nest egg, you can get a slice of prime real estate. Not this real estate. Cozy and affordable², this lovely fixer-upper is the perfect place for a dynamic couple like you. No need toputter aroundthe house. It's all right there where you stand.

 What's the matter? Feeling a little cramped³? Well, just a stone's throw away, just one bridge or a tunnel ride, just outside the big, bustling⁴ city, there is a place with wide-open spaces, friendly natives, and spacious⁵ dwellings⁶. And it's allwithin your price range. It's almosttoo good to be true.

妙词佳句，活学活用

1. nest egg
这是比较常用的表达存款的意思。这种存款不是平常的那种把钱放到银行攒着。通常情况下，一提到nest egg指的都是攒一部分钱来做些事情，比如说投资股票、买车、买房等等。举个例子来讲，"我攒这些钱是为了将来出国用的"就可以是：I'm building the nest egg for going abroad in the days ahead.

2. within...budget, with someone's price range
上面的两个短语是同一个意思，并且在生活中可以替换使用，意思是在……的承受范围之内，换句话说就是某人买得起某物。打个比方："这件衣服虽然贵，但是我还是买得起的"就可以说“This dress is expensive, but it's within my price range.”
这里还要强调一点，在范围之内是within，范围之外就可以替换成beyond。

3. putter around
这是一个非常休闲的表达方式，意思是“漫步”。比如说"我漫步在城市夜晚的街头"就可以是：I putter around on the street of the city after sunset. 要注意的是，当用到这个短语时候，一定是要指很休闲、很享受的状态才好！

4. too good to be true
一定记住，这可是金牌句子，非常的实用。直译的话就"是太好了，以至于不像是真的"，但这样的话就太绕了，其实它的意思就是：It's incredible. It's unbelievable!（太不可思议了，太难以置信了。）举个例子吧， 一不小心，你得到了Harvard 的全奖，把消息告诉给你的朋友，他们就可以说：Wow, wow, wow, it's too good to be true!

文化面面观

New York City

Unlike most American cities, which make up only a part of a particular county, New York is made up of five separate counties, which are called boroughs⁸. Originally the city included only the borough⁷ of Manhattan, located on an island between the Hudson and East rivers. In 1898 a number of surrounding communities were incorporated into the city as the boroughs of Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx and Staten Island. The Bronx is the only borough of New York City on the mainland of the United States. Manhattan and Staten Island are surrounded by water, while Queens and Brooklyn are part of Long Island.

Queens is the largest of the five boroughs. Brooklyn is the second largest and most populous⁹ of the five boroughs. It is the home of such major cultural institutions as the Brooklyn Museum, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Coney Island is well known for its beaches and amusement parks. Staten Island is the third largest and least populous of the five boroughs. The Bronx is the fourth largest and the northernmost of the five boroughs.

Manhattan, or New York County, is the smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough consists principally of the island of Manhattan, but also includes Governors Island, Randalls Island, Wards¹⁰ Island, Roosevelt Island, U Thant Island, and Marble Hill, a small enclave on the edge of the Bronx mainland. Manhattan is the glittering heart of the metropolis¹¹. It is the site of virtually all of the hundreds of skyscrapers¹² that are the symbol of the city. Among the more famous of these are the Empire State Building (1931), the Chrysler Building (1930), and Citicorp Center (1977). (The 110-story twin towers of the World Trade Center were also among New York's famous skyscrapers until they were destroyed in a terrorist attack in 2001.)

考考你

1. 我会攒笔钱，以后用来股票投资。
2. 这套房是在我的支付能力之内的。
3. 没事的时候，我喜欢在院子里闲逛。

1 cozy   

adj.亲如手足的，密切的，暖和舒服的

参考例句：

• I like blankets because they are cozy.我喜欢毛毯，因为他们是舒适的。
• We spent a cozy evening chatting by the fire.我们在炉火旁聊天度过了一个舒适的晚上。

2 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

3 cramped   

a.狭窄的

参考例句：

• The house was terribly small and cramped, but the agent described it as a bijou residence. 房子十分狭小拥挤，但经纪人却把它说成是小巧别致的住宅。
• working in cramped conditions 在拥挤的环境里工作

4 bustling   

adj.喧闹的

参考例句：

• The market was bustling with life. 市场上生机勃勃。
• This district is getting more and more prosperous and bustling. 这一带越来越繁华了。

5 spacious   

adj.广阔的，宽敞的

参考例句：

• Our yard is spacious enough for a swimming pool.我们的院子很宽敞，足够建一座游泳池。
• The room is bright and spacious.这房间很豁亮。

6 dwellings   

n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The development will consist of 66 dwellings and a number of offices. 新建楼区将由66栋住房和一些办公用房组成。
• The hovels which passed for dwellings are being pulled down. 过去用作住室的陋屋正在被拆除。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 borough   

n.享有自治权的市镇；(英)自治市镇

参考例句：

• He was slated for borough president.他被提名做自治区主席。
• That's what happened to Harry Barritt of London's Bromley borough.住在伦敦的布罗姆利自治市的哈里.巴里特就经历了此事。

8 boroughs   

（尤指大伦敦的）行政区( borough的名词复数 )； 议会中有代表的市镇

参考例句：

• London is made up of 32 boroughs. 伦敦由三十二个行政区组成。
• Brooklyn is one of the five boroughs of New York City. 布鲁克林区是纽约市的五个行政区之一。

9 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

10 wards   

区( ward的名词复数 )； 病房； 受监护的未成年者； 被人照顾或控制的状态

参考例句：

• This hospital has 20 medical [surgical] wards. 这所医院有 20 个内科[外科]病房。
• It was a big constituency divided into three wards. 这是一个大选区，下设三个分区。

11 metropolis   

n.首府；大城市

参考例句：

• Shanghai is a metropolis in China.上海是中国的大都市。
• He was dazzled by the gaiety and splendour of the metropolis.大都市的花花世界使他感到眼花缭乱。

12 skyscrapers   

n.摩天大楼

参考例句：

• A lot of skyscrapers in Manhattan are rising up to the skies. 曼哈顿有许多摩天大楼耸入云霄。
• On all sides, skyscrapers rose like jagged teeth. 四周耸起的摩天大楼参差不齐。