VOA慢速英语2020 闪电从来不会击中同一个地方两次吗？

And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.

现在是美国之音慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。 

Lightning is one of the most powerful forces in nature.Scientists describe lightning as a huge burst of electricity between clouds, the air, or the ground.

闪电是自然界最强大的力量之一。科学家们将闪电描述为云层、空气或地面之间的电流大爆发。 

These bolts of electricity can heat the air around them to temperatures five times higher than the surface of the sun.And that is really hot!

这些电流可以将它们周围的空气加热到比太阳表面高出五倍的温度。那真的很热！ 

When you watch lighting¹, you know its fast.That is why English speakers use the expression lightning speed to describe anything that is super-fast.

当你看到闪电的时候，你就知道它的速度很快。这就是为什么说英语的人用“闪电般的速度”这个表达来形容任何速度超级快的东西。

A runner can have lightning speed.An Italian restaurant can drop off a nice, warm pizza at your front door at lightning speed.And unconfirmed stories often spread online at lightning speed.

跑步者可以有闪电般的速度。意大利餐厅能以闪电般的速度将美味热乎的披萨送至你家门口。未经证实的消息常常以闪电般的速度在网上传播。

So, lightning is fast; it also can be dangerous.When a thunder and lightning storm starts, it is best to find shelter.Do not stand in an open field.

所以，闪电速度很快；它也很危险。当雷电交加的暴风雨开始时，最好去寻找躲避的地方。不要站在空旷处。

Now, to protect buildings from lightning damage during a storm, you can attach a lightning rod to it.A lightning rod is a long piece of metal.This metal draws lightning away from the building.

现在，为了保护建筑物在暴风雨中免受雷击损害，你可以在建筑物上面安装避雷针。避雷针是一根长长的金属。这种金属能把闪电从建筑物引开。

People can also act as lightning rods … but in a different way.

人也可以充当避雷针，但方式不同。 

They attract attention, criticism and even anger of other people.A lightning rod is someone who becomes the target of criticism to draw attention away from more serious issues or other people.

他们会引起别人的关注、批评甚至愤怒。避雷针是指成为批评对象以把注意力从更严重的问题或其他人身上转移开的人。

Issues and even objects can become lightning rods, too.Anything that comes to represent something that people criticize can be called a lightning rod.

事件甚至物体也可以成为避雷针。任何等同于人们所批评事物的东西都可以被称为避雷针。 

When speaking about lightning, we have another common expression:

说到闪电，我们还有另一个常用表达： 

Lightning never strikes the same place twice.

闪电从来不会击中同一个地方两次。 

We use this expression when a very unusual event is not likely to happen again to the same person or in the same place.

当一件极不寻常之事不太可能再次发生在同一个人或同一地点时，我们会使用这个表达。 

It can be used when something good happens, such as winning a game of chance like the lottery².That does not happen very often.

它可以用于当有好事发生时，比如赢了如彩票这类碰运气的游戏。那种情况并不经常发生。 

Here is another example.Lets say your favorite sports team is having a bad year.But they were still able to defeat a much stronger team.However, the next time they face that stronger team, your team might not be so lucky.You know what they say -- lightning never strikes twice.

这是另一个例子。比如说你最喜欢的运动队今年表现不佳。但他们仍能击败一支比自己强得多的运动队。然而，下次他们面对更强的运动队时，你喜欢的这支运动队可能就没那么幸运了。你知道人们会说什么——闪电从来不会击中同一个地方两次。

We also use this expression to say a bad thing wont³ happen again.We use this to reassure⁴ someone, trying to make them feel better.

我们也用这个表达来形容一件坏事不会再发生。我们用这个表达安慰别人，试图让他们感觉好受些。

For example, lets say you are watching a baseball game and get hit by a baseball in your seat.Your friend might say, "Well, youre safe now.That cannot happen again!You know, lightning never strikes twice!"

例如，比方说你正在看一场棒球比赛，但在座位上被棒球击中了。你的朋友可能会说，“好的，你现在安全了。那不可能再发生！你知道的，闪电从来不会击中同一个地方两次！”

That probably will not make your head feel any better.And you can tell your friend that scientists say that lightning can and will strike the same place twice.

那可能不会让你的头感觉好些。而且你可以告诉你的朋友，科学家说闪电可以并且将击中同一个地方两次。

Whether for something good or bad, the underlying⁵ truth remains⁶ the same:The chances of some unlikely thing happening twice is very small.

不管事情是好是坏，基本事实都是一样的：不太可能发生的事情发生两次的几率非常小。 

And thats Words and Their Stories for this week.Until next time … Im Anna Matteo!

以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。下次见，安娜·马特奥为您播报！ 

Whoever said lightning never strikes twice in the same place,

是谁说闪电从来不会击中同一个地方两次， 

Whoever said miracles cant⁷ happen every day,

是谁说奇迹不可能每天都发生， 

Never felt anything quite like the way Im feeling every night,

我每晚感受到的他从未体验过， 

Whoever said that would take it all back if they ever met you...

说这话的人要是见到你就会收回他所说的这一切…… 

1 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

2 lottery   

n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事

参考例句：

• He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
• They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。

3 wont   

adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯

参考例句：

• He was wont to say that children are lazy.他常常说小孩子们懒惰。
• It is his wont to get up early.早起是他的习惯。

4 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

5 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 cant   

n.斜穿，黑话，猛扔

参考例句：

• The ship took on a dangerous cant to port.船只出现向左舷危险倾斜。
• He knows thieves'cant.他懂盗贼的黑话。