新视野大学英语视听说教程 4 Unit 1-5

IV. Speaking Out
MODEL 1   Don’t let it get to you!
Susan: You look so angry. What happened?
Chris: Nothing I’d rather not talk about it. Just don’t ask.
Susan: Come on. Relax. Talk to me.
Chris: All right. This morning I took my car to the garage to check the air conditioner. They only gave it a quick look, refilled it with some Freon, and charged me 300bucks!
Susan: No wonder you’re livid. I’d be mad too if someone ripped¹ me off like that.
Chris: Yeah. And they were rude. They said I didn’t know anything about cars, which I don’t, but they didn’t have to be blunt²!

Susan: Sounds like you got a raw deal!
Chris: What’s worse, as I was leaving, I herd³ then saying, “Don’t trust that guy. He looks broke.” When I heard that, I almost hit the roof.
Susan: Don’t let it get to you. Better ignore them.
Chris: I agree. I did manage to keep my cool.
Susan: Well, the best thing you can do is to file a complaint with the Consumer Protection Agency⁴.
Chris: sounds like a good idea.

1 ripped   

adj. <美俚>喝醉的，受毒品麻醉的 动词rip的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He had ripped up the carpet, leaving only the bare boards. 他用力扯去了地毯，只剩下裸露的地板。
• I ripped my jeans on the fence. 我的牛仔裤在栅栏上划破了。

2 blunt   

adj.（刀子）钝的，不锋利的，迟钝的，直率的

参考例句：

• The axe is too blunt to cut down the tree.斧头太钝，砍不倒树。
• She is rather blunt in speech.她说话很直率。

3 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

4 agency   

n.经办；代理；代理处

参考例句：

• This disease is spread through the agency of insects.这种疾病是通过昆虫媒介传播的。
• He spoke in the person of Xinhua News Agency.他代表新华社讲话。