2015年ESL之商务英语 07 Keeping a Meeting On Track

Keeping a Meeting On Track 

Lynda: Could I say one more thing about that? 

Bruce: I’m afraid we’re running short on time. Maybe we could wrap up this discussion now. 

Lynda: Before we leave this topic, though, I really think we should talk about next year’s plans. 

Bruce: That’s outside the scope of this meeting. We can put it on the agenda for next time. 

Lynda: But we won’t meet again for a month. We should spend some time talking about our plans for next year. I think we should consider closing the Irvine office and moving it to Franklin. It would save us a lot of money. 

Bruce: If we get off on a tangent, we won’t be able to get through our discussion for today. Let’s try to get back on track and discuss the main focus of today’s meeting, which is how to end this year without any more problems. I feel like we’re getting close to making some decisions. 

Lynda: We can’t make any decisions when there are still so many unresolved issues. Things are still up in the air because we don’t know what will happen next year. Any decisions we make now will be moot¹ if our assumptions are wrong. 

Bruce: I’m afraid we differ on that. I think we have enough information now to forge ahead. We can come to some tentative decisions and make any adjustments later. Should we take it to a vote? 

Lynda: If you insist. I still think it’s premature². 

Bruce: I’ll take that as a “no” vote. 

 

Script by Dr. Lucy Tse 

1 moot   

v.提出；adj.未决议的；n.大会；辩论会

参考例句：

• The question mooted in the board meeting is still a moot point.那个在董事会上提出讨论的问题仍未决的。
• The oil versus nuclear equation is largely moot.石油和核能之间的关系还很有争议。

2 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。