Popular American - #91
流行美語-第九十一課
without a hitch
chow down
期終考試今天全部結束,Larry和Li Hua準備開個party來慶祝一番。Li Hua會學到兩個常用語:without a hitch和chow down。
(household utensil noise)
LH: Larry, 你看我們準備的東西夠不夠???這是我第一次請朋友來開party,要是東西不夠吃,那就糟糕啦!
LL: Calm down, Li Hua. I'm sure the party will go off without a hitch.
LH: 你說我們的party會怎么樣 - without a hitch - 那是什么意思???
LL: Oh, if something "goes without a hitch", it means that everything goes smoothly and nothing will go wrong.
LH: 對,hitch這個字也可以解釋為“障礙”,那something goes without a hitch, 就是“進展順利”。
LH: Larry,你的意思就是我們的party will go off without a hitch,肯定能辦好,不會有問題...那我可不可以說:There won't be any "hitches"?
LL: No, No, Li Hua, you can't use it that way. You can only say that something "goes without a hitch." This is an idiomatic expression. You can't generally substitute the word "hitch" for "problem."
LH: 啊,原來something "goes without a hitch"是一個習慣用語,不能把hitch 和problem兩個交替來使用。那想說什么事一帆風順,我們就只能說:什么事情goes without a hitch.
LL: Okay, Li Hua, now that you understand the phrase, can you give me an example?
LH: 我來想一想。有了。最近這次考試我覺得我考得不錯 - My exams went without a hitch.
LL: I wish I were as confident as you are. Now, can you give me another example of how to use "without a hitch"?
LH: 嗯...我最近申請了暑期里到一個公司去工作。他們約我上星期去面談。我覺得那個面談進行得挺順利的,所以 - It went off without a hitch.
LL: Hey congratulations!
LH: Thank you, Larry. 哎喲,我們趕快準備吧??腿笋R上就要到了!
******
(party SFX)
LL: See, everybody is enjoying the party, I told you it would be fine.
LH: 嗯,大家好象都玩得挺開心。我原來還擔心吃的不夠呢,現(xiàn)在看來說不定還做多了!
LL: I don't know about that. Some people are really chowing down. Hey, look at Jim, he's eating one hot dog after another!
LH: 就是啊,我也注意到Jim挺喜歡吃熱狗的,可是你說什么? 這兒有的人是在chowing down? 什么是chow down?。?/p>
LL: Well, "chow" is slang for "food" and to chow down is to eat a lot and to do it enthusiastically.
LH: 噢,chow這個字在口語里可以表示“食物”。那么chow down就是“吃得很多,而且還興致勃勃的”。那不就有點兒像我們中文里說的“狼吞虎咽”嗎?
LL: Yep. Look, Jim has finished his hot dog. He's now moved on to eating a piece of cake. He's definitely chowing down. He acts as though he hasn't eaten in days.
LH: 對,Jim他剛吃完熱狗,現(xiàn)在又在吃蛋糕了 - He is really chowing down. 好象幾天沒吃飯一樣的。哎,對了,Larry, 這也說明我們準備的東西受歡迎哪!
LL: That's right! See, Li Hua, I told you that the party will go off without a hitch.
LH: 哎,Larry, 說了這么半天了,你都吃什么啦?
LL: What have I chowed down? Well, I have been busy helping you and haven't got time to eat yet.
LH: 哎喲,真是抱歉,你光顧著幫我招待客人,自己都還沒顧上吃呢!
LL: That's OK. I think we should chow down now before all of the good stuff is gone!
LH: 好啊,那我們趕緊開吃吧,要不然好東西都沒了!
今天李華從Larry那兒學到兩個常用語。一個是without a hitch, 表示事情“進展順利”。另外一個是chow down, 相當于中文里所說的“狼吞虎咽”。