美語訓(xùn)練班089

A: 歡迎大家來到這期的美語訓(xùn)練班! 我是楊琳!

B: 我是Mike! 楊琳，趕快來告訴大家今天都要學(xué)什么?

A: 沒問題! 今天我們要聊聊湊份子給同事買禮物，看看如何跟別人攤牌，還要告訴你怎么說地下交易!!

B: Yeah, contributing to an office birthday present for a co-worker is always a pain in the neck, especially if you don't know the person that well. But I mean, sometimes you just have to bite the bullet, you don't want to be a party pooper.

A: That's a catch-22, 進(jìn)退兩難的局面. My dad is always telling me I should set aside some money to build and maintain business ties. Around 10% of your income...

B: True, but all the gourmet food in this town often cause me go over my budget!

A: Haha, that's understandable...because you are Mike! (B:What's that supposed to mean?) 哈哈， 言歸正傳，現(xiàn)在我們趕快來進(jìn)入第一個單元，learn a word!

Learn A Word 1652 big-box store

今天我們要學(xué)的詞是 big-box store, big, b-i-g, big; box, b-o-x, box, store, s-t-o-r-e, store, big-box store. Big-box store 超級商場，一般是連鎖店，比如沃爾瑪。Compared to big-box stores, Amazon's prices are cheaper because of lower overhead. 跟超級商場相比，亞馬遜網(wǎng)站商品的價格更低廉，因為他們的管理費用沒那么高。Due to their convenience and cheaper prices, big-box stores are becoming a popular alternative to local stores even for grocery shopping. 由于超級商場的便利和低廉價格，跟當(dāng)?shù)氐男∩痰晗啾?，消費者越來越愿意選擇去超級商場購物，甚至到那里去買菜。好的，今天我們學(xué)習(xí)的詞是 big-box store, big-box store, big-box store....

A: Big-box store, 就是超級市場! 我覺得這個詞兒特別形象，在沃爾瑪買的東西包裝都是超大盒的! 我要是買了，一個人根本吃不完!

B: Well, you can always ask for my help if you can't finish your cookies...I don't mind, that's what friends are for...

A: Why I'm not surprised...Actually there was this one time I nearly took a job as a Walmart Cashier. I only had a student visa at that time, so I had to give it up since I didn't want to get paid under the table.

B: That's a smart move. You don't want to be caught doing something illegal. You just mentioned a really good term, under the table, let's check out today's words and idioms and see what it means!

Words and Idioms #804 Under the Table

美國習(xí)慣用語第八百零四講。

我是楊晨。我是 Douglas Johnson。

我有個朋友不久前從中國來美國旅游，后來想留下來。現(xiàn)在的問題是，他沒有工作許可，所以不能合法工作。最好的辦法當(dāng)然是申請工卡。不過，美國其實也有不少非法移民，他們找的都是支付現(xiàn)金的工作，所以不用交稅。英語里有個習(xí)慣用語，專門指這種交易：

M: Under the table. Under is spelled u-n-d-e-r. Under. Table is spelled t-a-b-l-e. Table. Under the table.

Under the table 在桌子下面進(jìn)行的交易，也就是不能見人的，而且往往是非法的。下面這個例子里的商人懷疑，他的競爭對手之所以很快就拿到了賣酒的許可，可能是私下里賄賂了管事的人。讓我們聽聽他是怎么說的。

M: "I've been waiting for over a year to get a liquor license for my restaurant, and this guy comes along and gets one in two months. I'm sure he must have paid the official UNDER THE TABLE. How else could he have gotten one so fast?"

他說，[我的餐館申請酒牌已經(jīng)一年多了，但是這個人剛來兩個月就拿到了，我敢肯定，他一定是私下里給了管事的官員什么好處，也不然，他怎么能那么快就拿到呢?]

雖說見不得人，但是很多生意都是通過 under the table 辦成的。有趣的是，中國人說在飯桌上談事，意思是酒足飯飽后就好說話了，但是西方人卻說，under the table 在飯桌下面辦事。好的，讓我們再來聽聽上面那段話。

M: "I've been waiting for over a year to get a liquor license for my restaurant, and this guy comes along and gets one in two months. I'm sure he must have paid the official UNDER THE TABLE. How else could he have gotten one so fast?"

在一個高度廉潔、高度透明的體制中，公司為了得到政府的合約，應(yīng)該通過公平競爭，而不需要私下里打通門路，行賄受賄。They should not have to compete under the table with kickbacks.

雖說 under the table 聽上去在生意場上應(yīng)該是由來已久了，但事實上，這個習(xí)慣用語最早出現(xiàn)于二十世紀(jì)二十年代，歷史并不久遠(yuǎn)。當(dāng)時，合法交易都是在桌面上完成的，所以，在桌子下面 Under the table 進(jìn)行的交易，就是指不光明磊落的。

在下面這個例子中，我們要看看美國一個最可能從 under the table 得到的收入來源。你能猜到嗎?讓我們一起聽聽看。

M: I run a restaurant and I get a lot of young people asking me for part-time waitering jobs, and they all want to be paid UNDER THE TABLE, you know, cash. This way they can avoid paying taxes. It's easier for me because I don't have to put them in my books.

這個人說，[我有一家餐館，很多年輕人都想在我的餐館里打零工，做服務(wù)員，而且都希望我能付給他們現(xiàn)金。這樣他們就不用交稅了。這樣做其實我也愿意，因為我報帳的時候不用把他們包括進(jìn)去了。]

對呀，在餐館當(dāng)服務(wù)員賺的小費也是現(xiàn)金，難怪那么多年輕人喜歡在餐館打工，賺的錢可以全部進(jìn)入自己的腰包。而且呀，還有很多學(xué)生放假專門跑到旅游景點去打工呢!好，讓我們再聽一下上面的例句。

M: I run a restaurant and I get a lot of young people asking me for part-time waitering jobs, and they all want to be paid UNDER THE TABLE, you know, cash. This way they can avoid paying taxes. It's easier for me because I don't have to put them in my books.

這也讓我想起，很多墨西哥人為什么會愿意背井離鄉(xiāng)到美國來打工，原因很簡單，An American salary, even if below minimum wage and paid under table, would be much higher than what they can earn at home. 在美國賺的工資，即使低于政府規(guī)定的最低工資，而且是私下里的現(xiàn)金交易，也要比他們在家鄉(xiāng)賺到的多得多。

M: This has been Words and Idioms.

A: I heard a lot of people in America work as waiters as a part time job because you can get paid under the table. Is it true?

B: It depends. Sometimes you can get paid in cash, and tips can be very generous.

A:哈! 我原來特別羨慕西餐廳的女服務(wù)生，覺得她們又能在高級餐廳工作，小費還特別多!

B: Yeah, but the downside is that if IRS caught you not paying taxes, you could be in serious trouble.

A: Exactly. 在美國交稅可是頭等大事，要是你哪次逃了稅，不管隔了多久, IRS 都會找到你的....好了，剛才Mike提到了downside, 咱們來聽聽這個詞怎么用!

Learn A Word 1654 downside

今天我們要學(xué)的詞是 downside, downside is spelled d-o-w-n-s-i-d-e, downside. Downside 是指某件事情不利的方面。One of the downsides of being a celebrity is the loss of privacy. 做名人的代價之一是，你的隱私會受到損傷。The downside of working from home is being forgotten by your boss for work and promotion. 在家上班的缺陷是，很容易被老板遺忘，不光是布置工作的時候，提拔的時候也是一樣。The biggest downside of owning a cell phone is that you can never truly get away from it all. 帶手機(jī)最大的不利之處是，你再也不能徹底擺脫周圍的一切了。好的，今天我們學(xué)習(xí)的詞是 downside, downside, downside...

A: Yeah, I love telecommuting. But the downside is that you might be forgotten by your boss...

B: You definitely don't want her to forget you when it comes time for a promotion! Working from home is really efficient though. It saves up on time and gas.

A: 我覺得吧，如果你想遠(yuǎn)程工作，就要跟老板先都談好，讓他知道你每天都在做什么，both sides need to lay their cards on the table so you know what to expect.

B: Exactly. I also feel like you need to go into the office from time to time. I can't stand working from home all the time, I need to talk to people!

A: Yeah I noticed....(sarcastically) (B: You...) 哈哈，好了,我剛才提到了lay your cards on the table, 再來聽聽今天的words and idioms, 來學(xué)學(xué)這個習(xí)慣用語的用法!

Words and Idioms 805 to lay or put your cards on the table

美國習(xí)慣用語第八百零五講。我是楊晨。我是 Douglas Johnson。

在上次節(jié)目中，我告訴過大家，我的一個朋友因為沒有工卡，所以想找那種能支付現(xiàn)金的工作。我告訴他，這么做太懸了，如果被抓住，不僅他自己，而且雇用他的老板也要倒霉。所以他最好坦白地告訴別人，自己沒有工作許可，英語里有個習(xí)慣用語，專門指開誠布公地說明事實，叫：

M: To lay your cards on the table. Lay is spelled l-a-y. Lay. Cards is spelled c-a-r-d-s. Cards. To lay your cards on the table.

Lay 是動詞，放的意思。To lay your cards on the table 就是攤牌，和盤托出的意思。我們也可以用 put 代替 lay, 說 To put your cards on the table. 在下面這個例子里，一個男人在向女朋友求婚前，主動交代了自己的經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況，讓我們聽聽他是怎么說的。

M: "I don't want to keep any secrets from you. So, I'm going TO LAY MY CARDS ON THE TABLE and tell you that I'm no millionaire, and that if you marry me, you'll have to work for a while─at least until my business starts to grow."

他說，[我不想對你有任何保留，所以我現(xiàn)在全都告訴你。我不是什么百萬富翁，你如果嫁給我，可能還得工作一段時間，起碼要等到我的生意開始有些起色為止。]

出去工作對大多數(shù)美國女性來說可能并不是什么難以接受的事情，除非這個女性出身在一個極其老式，極其保守的家庭。好的，讓我們再來聽聽上面那段話。

M: "I don't want to keep any secrets from you. So, I'm going TO LAY MY CARDS ON THE TABLE and tell you that I'm no millionaire, and that if you marry me, you'll have to work for a while─at least until my business starts to grow."

起碼這個男人很老實，婚前就警告未婚妻婚后不會馬上過上闊夫人的日子，恐怕還要辛苦一段時間。確實，很多專家都建議，婚前要把各自的財政狀況告訴對方，to lay all your cards on the table 其中包括學(xué)生貸款、信用卡債務(wù)等等，還要看雙方在理財方面是否看法一致，否則一個省吃儉用，一個大手大腳，肯定過不到一塊兒去。

大家肯定已經(jīng)想到，to lay one's cards on the table 這個習(xí)慣用語是從打牌來的。打牌的時候，牌是不給別人看得，所以說，to lay one's cards on the table or to put one's cards on the table 就是指把原來保密的東西公開出來。這個習(xí)慣用語大約有100年的歷史。在下面這個例子中，兩家公司的老總正在就一項交易討價還價。讓我們一起聽聽看。

M: "I think we should just LAY OUR CARDS ON THE TABLE and tell each other exactly what we're here for."

"Okay then, our international business is failing and we need cash to keep it going."

其中一個人說，[我覺得我們應(yīng)該把底牌都亮出來，告訴對方我們到底想到得到些什么。]另外一個人說，[那好，我們公司的國際業(yè)務(wù)很失敗，我們現(xiàn)在需要現(xiàn)金支撐。]

我就不相信上面這兩位公司老總會和盤托出。他們肯定會對對方有所保留，這樣才能討價還價嘛!讓我們再聽一下上面的例句。

M: "I think we should just LAY OUR CARDS ON THE TABLE and tell each other exactly what we're here for."

"Okay then, our international business is failing and we need cash to keep it going."

最近，我們附近一家公司的勞資雙方圍繞工資問題陷入了糾紛。Both sides need to put their cards on the table for any progress to be made. 要想在談判上取得進(jìn)展，糾紛雙方必須坦誠相見。與此同時，我認(rèn)識的一個朋友就在那家公司上班。他覺得形勢不好，所以馬上就找到了一份新工作。He laid his cards on the table and told his boss about the job offer. 他坦率地把準(zhǔn)備換工作的消息告訴了自己的老板。

好的，這次[美國習(xí)慣用語]就到此結(jié)束。我是楊晨，我是 Douglas Johnson。這次節(jié)目的制作人是胡小玲。謝謝各位的收聽。

M: Until next time.

下次節(jié)目再見。

M: This has been Words and Idioms.

A: Before a couple decide to get married, they need to lay their cards on the table and talk about things such as financial habits, living styles and so on.

B: Exactly. Being candid can prevent a lot of future unhappiness. Speaking of which, you owe me ten bucks.

A: What are you talking about?

B: I got a gift for me on your behalf since you didn't give me a Christmas present this year. So you owe me ten bucks for the gift.

A: 好無語...不過有時候，同事湊份子確實是個讓人頭疼的事兒。 在今天的Business Etiquette里，Amanda就跟老同事Sarah抱怨起新辦公室里的一些事兒，咱們一起來聽聽吧!

Sarah 轉(zhuǎn)到新部門工作不久，在去吃午飯的路上遇到原來的同事 Amanda.

S: Hi Amanda, how are you? I've missed working with you and the whole gang since my transfer last week.

A: We've missed you too. The office just isn't the same without you. How is your new job?

S: It's great. I really get to focus on what I like to do and everyone has been very nice and welcoming. However, I'm having a small problem with my new colleagues.

A: What happened?

Sarah告訴Amanda她很想念原來的同事，I missed working with you and the gang. 大家都知道，Gang 有團(tuán)伙的意思，在這里指常聚在一起的一群人。 Amanda 也說，The office just isn't the same without you. Sarah走了，辦公室好像就不一樣了。雖然Sarah很喜歡她新的工作， 但是在跟新同事相處時卻遇到了一些小麻煩，我們繼續(xù)聽。

S: Well, three people are celebrating their birthdays this month and the policy here is for everyone to contribute ten dollars to a card and cake for each person.

A: Wow, so you'll be out thirty dollars on your first week at work!

S: I know. It is a lot of money and I haven't gotten to know any of the people celebrating their birthdays well enough yet. At our old department, it was only three dollars for each birthday and there were only ten of us.

原來，這個月有三個新同事過生日，Sarah 不得不跟著一起湊份子，買卡片和蛋糕為同事慶祝。They want her to contribute to the card and cake. Contribute is spelled c-o-n-t-r-i-b-u-t-e, contribute 是貢獻(xiàn)的意思。這樣一來，She will be out thirty dollars. 一下要出三十塊。Sarah 跟這些同事還不熟，所以覺得有點虧。Amanda 安慰她說，

A: Well, every department is different. You wouldn't want your new co-workers to think you're a Grinch, right?

S: What is that? It doesn't sound like a good thing to be.

A: A Grinch is a person who spoils the mood at a happy occasion by being selfish or unenthusiastic. You know -- a party pooper.

S: I definitely don't want to be that! But, I still think it's unreasonable for them to ask me for such a big sum of money when we don't know each other very well. What should I do?

Amanda 警告Sarah，如果她不出份子錢的話，同事會認(rèn)為她是 Grinch, Grinch is spelled g-r-i-n-c-h, grinch 專門用來形容自私，而且沒有情趣的人。Sarah當(dāng)然不想讓新同事覺得她是個敗興的人，a party pooper， 可她還是很不甘心，覺得新同事的要求不合理 unreasonable. reasonable 是有道理的，前面加上 un, unreasonable 就變成了沒有道理的。這筆份子錢，Sarah最后會出嗎?我們下次繼續(xù)聽。

A: Sarah 跟Amanda抱怨，說剛到新辦公室，同事就要她出30塊錢來給其它同事慶祝生日。Sarah覺得she will be out 30 bucks， 一下出30塊錢，有點多，可是又不想人家覺得她是 grinch, 自私的人，或者 party pooper， 敗興的人。

B: It's a catch-22. On the one hand, you don't want to go over the budget; on the other hand, no one wants to have the reputation of being a grinch.

A: Especially if you are in a new team! First impressions are extremely important.

B: Let's see if Amanda can offer Sarah some good advice!

Sarah 向原來的同事 Amanda訴苦，說剛換了新工作，就趕上三個人過生日，都要湊份子，感覺心理很不平衡。Amanda 勸她說，

A: If I were you, I would just bite the bullet and hand over the money. First impressions are important and it's not worth getting a reputation for being a Scrooge. Think about it this way: when your birthday comes around, you'll have at least one card and cake to look forward to.

S: A Scrooge is someone who is stingy with his money even though he has plenty, right? I wouldn't want my colleagues to think I am refusing to contribute to the pool even though I can, but this would put me way over my weekly budget.

Amanda 建議Sarah硬著頭皮湊份子， Bite the bullet 意思是硬著頭皮接受自己不愿意做的事情。她說，first impressions are important, 第一印象很重要，不能為了這點錢給別人留下“守財奴”的印象。 It's not worth getting a reputation for being a Scrooge. Scrooge is spelled s-c-r-o-o-g-e, scrooge 意思是討厭的守財奴。Sarah 說自己不是不肯出錢，contribute to the pool, 這里的pool, p-o-o-l, pool 指的是大家湊的錢，可如果出錢，一星期的預(yù)算就會超出很多。

A: What about a compromise? Maybe you could sit down privately with the person in charge of collecting the money and explain that coming from a smaller department you've never had to deal with so many birthdays at once. Offer to give her five dollars for each birthday instead, and promise that you will make your famous brownies for the celebration.

S: That sounds like a good plan. I hope they understand where I'm coming from and don't hold it against me.

Amanda 建議Sarah去找負(fù)責(zé)收錢的同事商量，try to make a compromise. 看能不能找到一個居中的妥協(xié)方案，把份子錢從十塊減少到五塊，但同時保證烤自己拿手的蛋糕，來慶祝同事的生日。Sarah覺得這個辦法不錯，希望同事能 understand where I'm coming from. 意思是能明白和理解我的本意，don't hold it against me 不要記恨我。

A: I'm sure they will understand. Lots of people have been in the same position before. And, maybe once you get to know them better, ten dollars won't seem like such a big deal anymore.

S: Thanks so much for your advice, I feel a lot better about the situation.

A: You're welcome. Let's make sure we keep in touch, Sarah!

S: Sure, I'll talk to you again soon and let you know how it goes. Enjoy your lunch!

Amanda 叫Sarah放心，一定有很多人遇到過這種情形，lots of people have been in the same position before. 她還說，等Sarah和同事們熟了以后，湊十塊錢的份子錢可能也就沒什么大不了的了。

A: Yeah! It would be great if she can find a compromise! Speaking of which, since I compromise everyday by working with you, I should get some compensation....

B: Working with me everyday IS your compensation!

A:哈哈， 好了同學(xué)們，這次節(jié)目時間就到這里了。