VOA慢速英語(yǔ): 出什么事了？（雙語(yǔ)）

發(fā)生什么事了？

Now, the VOA Learning English program, Words and Their Stories.

這里是美國(guó)之音慢速英語(yǔ)的詞語(yǔ)掌故。

The English language has a number of hard-working words. People use these words in many different ways and in many different expressions.

英語(yǔ)中有很多多詞義的詞匯。不同的使用方式、不同的短語(yǔ)中單詞表達(dá)的意思也不同。

One such example is the word matter. As a matter of fact, matter can mean just about anything. When talking about science, matter is the material or substance that things are made of.

用“matter”來(lái)舉例說(shuō)一下，實(shí)際上，matter 可以指代任何事情。我們談到科學(xué)時(shí)，matter就是構(gòu)成萬(wàn)物的物質(zhì)。

In fact, matter could be one of the most useful words in the English language. But that is just a matter of opinion. Actually, it is more than that. Matter is one of those words that matter a lot.

實(shí)際上，在英語(yǔ)中，matter是最有用的一個(gè)詞匯之一。這只是一種觀點(diǎn)而已，不僅僅如此，matter確實(shí)是個(gè)非常有用的詞匯。

Let us take a minute and really get to the heart of the matter – in other words, let’s get to the most important part. Or it could be what we call a matter of principle.

讓我們花點(diǎn)時(shí)間來(lái)真正地了解matter的核心內(nèi)容部分，換句話說(shuō)，我們進(jìn)到最重要的部分，或者可以說(shuō)是原則性的問題。

Let’s say someone claims that you owe them $50. But you don’t. A friend might say, “Well, you could pay him the $50. It’s not that much money. Then you won’t have to hear him complain anymore. But if you do not owe him the money, do not pay him the money. It’s a matter of principle.”

假如有人聲稱你欠他們50美元，但事實(shí)上你并沒有欠他們錢。一個(gè)朋友或許會(huì)說(shuō)：“好，你給他50美元，錢數(shù)目也不是很多，然后就不用再聽他抱怨你欠他錢了。但是假如你不欠他錢就不用給他錢，這是原則性問題。”

Your friend raises a good point. It’s not the amount of money that is important. It’s a matter of principle.

你的朋友提出一個(gè)不錯(cuò)的觀點(diǎn)，這不是錢多錢少的問題，這是個(gè)原則性問題。

Now, let us get back to two more scientific meanings of matter. Scientists say that dark matter makes up most of our universe. And when people talk about gray matter, they are talking about the brain.

現(xiàn)在我們來(lái)看看關(guān)于matter在科學(xué)領(lǐng)域的兩個(gè)詞義。科學(xué)家說(shuō)黑暗物質(zhì)是構(gòu)成宇宙的最主要的物質(zhì)。人們談?wù)摶野踪|(zhì)時(shí)，則是指大腦。

Be Careful How You Ask, "What's The Matter With You?"

但是要小心這個(gè)詞匯：“你是不是有問題？”

There is another way to use the word matter. But be careful with your choice of words.

單詞matter還有另一種用法，所以要小心詞匯的選擇。

If you ask someone “What’s the matter?” it shows you are concerned about the other person. You usually ask someone “What’s the matter?” if the person looks angry or worried.

如果你問某人“你怎么了？”這表示你關(guān)心另一個(gè)人。倘若一個(gè)人看起來(lái)生氣或者擔(dān)心，通常你會(huì)問“出什么事了？”

But saying, “What’s the matter with you?” has a completely different meaning. And it usually sounds rude or offensive.

但是說(shuō)：“你是不是有問題？”意思則完全相反，通常包涵粗魯或者冒犯的意思。

In fact, when you say, “What’s the matter with you?” you are not really asking what is wrong with the person. You are suggesting that the individual did something wrong or stupid. So be careful with that one!

實(shí)際上，當(dāng)你說(shuō)：“你有什么問題？”時(shí)，真正的意思不是問這個(gè)人出什么事了，你的意思是在暗示別人出了些問題或者做了些蠢事。所以要小心使用這個(gè)句子。

Another expression that could sound rude is to say, “It doesn’t matter to me.” Here, it depends on the context, or situation, and how you say it.

另一個(gè)聽起來(lái)粗魯?shù)谋磉_(dá)是：“對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)沒什么關(guān)系。”這取決于語(yǔ)境、情境還有你表達(dá)的方式。

Here are two examples. Let’s say you tell someone that a friend just got a big raise at work and will be making a lot more money. That person answers with, “It doesn’t matter to me.” Here, it means he or she does not care. And it sounds rude.

這里有兩個(gè)例子。假如你告訴某人：一個(gè)朋友剛升職了，會(huì)掙更多的錢，那個(gè)人就會(huì)回答：“這跟我有什么關(guān)系。”這里他的意思就是這件事與他無(wú)關(guān)。而且聽起來(lái)有點(diǎn)粗魯。

But saying, “Oh, you pick where we eat dinner. It doesn’t matter to me.” does not sound rude or offensive.

但是說(shuō)：“你選擇在哪兒吃飯吧，這對(duì)我來(lái)說(shuō)都行。”這句話就沒有粗魯或者冒犯的意味了。

In this context and tone of voice, “it doesn’t matter” shows you are easy-going and are willing to do what the other person wants.

這個(gè)對(duì)話內(nèi)容中：“怎么著都行”表明你很容易相處，可以遷就別人的意愿。

No matter how you slice it … no matter how you look at it … no matter what you say … matter is a very hard-working word.

不管你怎么你怎么看…不管你怎么想…不管你怎么說(shuō)…matter 是個(gè)使用非常廣泛的詞。

Now, it is time to take matters into your own hands. Try using these expressions with the word matter.

現(xiàn)在需要你自己來(lái)掌握一下matter的使用表達(dá)。試著用帶matter的詞語(yǔ)來(lái)練習(xí)。

It’s only a matter of time before you will become an expert on the use of matter. And as for this program … this matter is closed.

只是時(shí)間的問題，經(jīng)過一段時(shí)間的練習(xí)，你就能熟練使用帶matter的各種短語(yǔ)、句子。今天的節(jié)目就結(jié)束了。

You can find more Words and Their Stories on our website,learningenglish.voanews.com. I’m Jonathan Evans.

你可以訪問我們的,learningenglish.voanews.com網(wǎng)站，來(lái)學(xué)習(xí)更多的詞語(yǔ)掌故。我是喬納森·伊凡斯。

And I’m Anna Matteo.

我是安娜·馬特奧。

Go to our website and practice using these matter expressions in the comment section. Or simply practice by saying what matters most to you.

訪問我們的網(wǎng)站，在評(píng)論留言版塊用這些有關(guān)matter的短語(yǔ)練習(xí)?；蛘哂脀hat matters most to you句型說(shuō)一下對(duì)你最重要的事來(lái)練習(xí)。