新西兰英语 573 Change your clock on Sunday

 　　Daylight Saving time finishes on Sunday April 1st, at 2am. It is time to put your clock back one hour. To help you remember which way to change your clock, you can say, ‘Spring Forward, Fall Back’. Fall is the American word for Autumn. The verb ‘to spring’ means to jump forward or upward. It is true that people can fall forward or backward. In fact people or things usually fall down so it is not very helpful to say ‘fall back’. However, you can’t spring backward.

　　When we give a word two meanings at the same time (i.e. Spring – a season, spring – jump forward) this is called a pun.

　　Right now when it is nearly time to change our clocks, the mornings are dark. If you wake up at 7am, it looks like 6am outside. Next week it will be lighter¹ at 7am and easier to get out of bed. At the other end of the day it will get dark earlier in the evening.

　　Many countries in the Northern Hemisphere have already moved to Daylight Saving time. They put their clocks forward one hour.

　　Changing our clocks is a reminder² that winter is on the way.

　　Listen to September 24th 2011 to hear more about Daylight Saving.

　　Jokes are often puns. Here’s an example:

　　Why did the man throw the clock out of the window?

　　He wanted to see time fly.

　　Spelling

　　Note comparatives: lighter, easier, earlier. Make comparatives of happy, tidy, sad (double the d).

1 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

2 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。