VOA慢速英语2015 感到经济拮据

Feel the Pinch¹ 感到经济拮据

Hello, I'm Anna Matteo with the Learning² English program Words and Their Stories.

In the 1930s, a song, "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime³?" was very popular in the United States.

It was the time of the big Depression. The song had meaning for many people who had lost their jobs. A dime is a piece of money whose value is one-tenth of a dollar. Today, a dime does not buy very much. But it was different in the 1930s. During that time, a dime sometimes meant the difference between eating and starving.

The American economy today is much better. Yet, many workers are concerned about losing their jobs as companies re-organize.

Americans have special ways of talking about economic troubles.

People in business or families may say they feel the pinch. Or they may say they are up against it. Or, if things are really bad, they may say they have to throw in the towel.

A pinch is painful pressure. To feel the pinch is to suffer painful pressure involving money.

The expression, feel the pinch, has been used since the 16th century. The famous English writer William Shakespeare wrote something very close to this in his great play "King Lear."

King Lear says he would accept necessity's sharp pinch. He means he would have to do without many of the things he always had.

Much later, the Times of London newspaper used the expression about bad economic times during the 1860s. It said, "so much money having been spent ... All classes felt the pinch."

Worse than feeling the pinch is being up against it. The saying means to be in a lot of trouble.

Word expert James Rogers says the word "it" in the saying can mean any and all difficulties. He says the saying became popular in the United States and Canada in the late 19th century. Writer George Ade used it in a book called "Artie." He wrote, "I saw I was up against it."

Sometimes a business that is up against it will have to throw in the towel. This means to accept defeat or surrender⁴.

Throwing in the towel may mean that a company will have to declare bankruptcy⁵. The company will have to take legal steps to let people know it has no money to pay its debts.

Another word expert Charles Funk says an 1874 publication⁶ called the Slang⁷ Dictionary explains throwing in the towel. It says the words probably came from the sport of boxing, or prizefighting. The book says the saying began because a competitor's face was cleaned with a cloth towel or other material. When a boxer's towel was thrown, it meant he was admitting defeat.

Most businesses do not throw in the towel. They just re-organize so they can compete better.

This Words and Their Stories was written by Jeri Watson. And I'm Anna Matteo.

 

Check out our website for more episodes⁸ of Words and Their Stories.

1 pinch   

n.捏，撮，困苦，偷窃；vt.掐，使...困苦，偷窃

参考例句：

• She would pinch on food in order to spend on clothing.她过去常把伙食费省下来买衣服。
• He put a pinch of salt on his food.他在自己的食物上撒了一撮盐。

2 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

3 dime   

n.（指美国、加拿大的钱币）一角

参考例句：

• A dime is a tenth of a dollar.一角银币是十分之一美元。
• The liberty torch is on the back of the dime.自由火炬在一角硬币的反面。

4 surrender   

v.投降，自首；屈服；交出，放弃

参考例句：

• He preferred to die rather than surrender to the enemy.他宁死也不愿向敌人投降。
• Liu Hulan would rather die than surrender before the enemy.刘胡兰在敌人面前宁死不屈。

5 bankruptcy   

n.破产；无偿付能力

参考例句：

• You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy.如果你想避免破产，就必须节省开支。
• His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy.他的商号正面临破产的危险。

6 publication   

n.出版，发行；出版；公布，发表

参考例句：

• They don't think this article is suitable for publication.他们认为这篇文章不宜发表。
• The government has delayed publication of the trade figures.政府已将贸易统计数字延后公布。

7 slang   

n.俚语，行话；vt.使用俚语，辱骂；vi.辱骂

参考例句：

• The phrase is labelled as slang in the dictionary.这个短语在这本字典里被注为俚语。
• Slang often goes in and out of fashion quickly.俚语往往很快风行起来又很快不再风行了。

8 episodes   

插曲，片断( episode的名词复数 )； 一集

参考例句：

• The novel deals with the romantic episodes of her early life. 小说叙述了她早期生活的浪漫插曲。
• Three episodes have been telescoped into a single programme. 把叁集的内容压缩成了一个节目。