VOA慢速英语2018--Have You Ever 'Played the Fool?'

 

Hello and welcome to Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning¹ English. On this program we explore common words and expressions in American English.

In the United States April 1 is a day when you need to be a little careful.

Why?

It is April Fool’s Day so someone might play a practical joke on you -- a harmless² trick for fun.

We did a program on fool expressions a couple of years ago. We explained how to use foolhardy and foolproof. We talked about the idiom “A fool and his money are soon parted.”

But we left out some things. So, here we are again talking about fools!

Probably the most common definition³ of “fool” is someone who is silly and, well, foolish. It is very easy to trick a fool.

“To fool” can also mean to pretend. For example, “The child said he was sick but he was only fooling. He was in perfect health.”

If you say, “I was only fooling” that means you are not serious. You are kidding. So, if you say something to someone as a joke but they take you seriously, you can say to them, “I was only fooling.” Here, you could also say, “I was only kidding.”

We often pair “fool” with the verbs “play” and “act” to form the expressions play the fool and act the fool. They both describe someone who is easily tricked or deceived⁵. Or sometimes, we play the fool because we fall deeply in love and cannot think clearly.

Love runs deeper than any ocean

You can cloud your mind with emotion

Everybody plays the fool, sometime

There's no exception⁶ to the rule

Listen, baby, it may be factual, may be cruel

I want to tell ya!

Everybody plays the fool

The Main Ingredient⁷ sings “Everybody Plays the Fool”

Sometimes we use it to describe someone who is not easy to fool. For example, if your friend John is really smart and not easily tricked, you could say that he’s not one to play the fool. If that is too wordy, you can simply say he is no fool.

If you make a fool of yourself, you do something that makes you look foolish or silly.

For example, imagine you are at a party. Suddenly your best friend sees a young woman who he really likes. He wants to get her attention. So, he starts dancing. But, no one else is dancing. In fact, there is no music playing. You calmly go up to him and say, “You might want to stop. You are making a fool of yourself.”

But making a fool of yourself is better than making a fool of someone else. That is just mean. If a person tries to make a fool of you by yelling⁸ at you in public, just walk away. He will end up making a fool of himself.

Now, if you are fooling yourself you are unwilling⁹ to accept the facts of a situation. In other words, you are in denial¹⁰. If you think that you can learn perfect English in a very short time without studying or practicing, you are really fooling yourself.

Now, when we pair the word “fool” with “around,” we get an expression that has several meanings.

One is to spend time without any purpose. If you have the day off from work, you might decide to fool around all day.

Another meaning is to behave playfully. The two friends were fooling around near the train tracks when they heard a call for help!

But be careful. “Fool around” also means light-hearted sexual¹¹ activity. For example, the husband and wife were fooling around in the kitchen when their friends and family walked in for dinner. Awkward¹²!

In these three example, you could also say mess around. It has the same meaning and we use it in the same situations.

Finally, we often use the word “fool” in warnings to others. For example, “Don’t fool around with that! You will break it.” Or, “Stop fooling around.” And the ever popular, “This is no time to fool around.”

I’m Anna Matteo. And that’s end of this program. And this will be the last Words and Their Stories … ever.

I’m just fooling. We’ll back next week with a new show. No fooling!

And you're fooling yourself if you don't believe it

You're kidding yourself if you don't believe it

Why must you be such an angry young man

When your future looks quite bright to me

Words in This Story

practical joke – n. a joke involving something that is done rather than said : a trick played on someone

pretend – v. to act as if something is true when it is not true

kid – v. to speak to (someone) in a way that is not serious : to say things that are not true to (someone) in a joking way

deceive⁴ – v. to make (someone) believe something that is not true

denial – n. a condition in which someone will not admit that something sad, painful, etc., is true or real

awkward – adj. not easy to deal with

1 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。

2 harmless   

adj.无害的，无恶意的

参考例句：

• This experiment was harmless to the animals.这个试验不会对动物造成伤害。
• He was a harmless sort.他是一个不怀恶意的人。

3 definition   

n.定义；限定，确定；清晰度

参考例句：

• The book attempts a definition of his role in world politics.该书要阐明的是他在世界政局中的作用。
• I made a definition for this word.我给这个字下了定义。

4 deceive   

vt.欺骗，使弄错；vi.行骗

参考例句：

• I think this is just a government ploy to deceive the public.我认为这只是政府欺骗公众的手段。
• Don't try to deceive me.你别诳我。

5 deceived   

v.欺骗，蒙骗( deceive的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She was absolutely furious at having been deceived. 她受了骗，怒不可遏。
• He deceived people for years until the police got onto him. 多年来他欺骗人们一直到警察识破他。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 exception   

n.例外,除外

参考例句：

• Everyone should keep discipline and you are no exception. 每个人都应该遵守纪律,你也毫无例外。
• There's an exception to every rule. 每项规则均有例外。

7 ingredient   

n.（烹饪）等的材料，原料，成分，因素

参考例句：

• The basic ingredient of this meal is rice.这一餐的主要原料是大米。
• Trust is a key ingredient.信任是关键要素。

8 yelling   

v.叫喊，号叫，叫着说( yell的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The coach stood on the sidelines yelling instructions to the players. 教练站在场外，大声指挥运动员。
• He let off steam by yelling at a clerk. 他对一个职员大喊大叫，借以发泄怒气。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

10 denial   

n.否认；拒绝，拒绝给予

参考例句：

• The newspaper printed a denial of the untrue story.报社刊登了否认不实消息的声明。
• Her denial of my advice hurts me.她拒绝我的忠告伤害了我。

11 sexual   

adj.性的，两性的，性别的

参考例句：

• He was a person of gross sexual appetites.他是个性欲旺盛的人。
• It is socially irresponsible to refuse young people advice on sexual matters.拒绝向年轻人提供性方面的建议是对社会不负责任。

12 awkward   

adj.笨拙的，尴尬的，使用不便的，难处理的

参考例句：

• John is so shy and awkward that everyone notices him.约翰如此害羞狼狈，以至于大家都注意到了他。
• I was the only man among the guests and felt rather awkward.作为客人中的唯一男性，我有些窘迫。