A: 美語訓練班上課啦! 大家好，我是楊琳!

B: 我是Kat! 楊琳，快説説咱們今天都要學什麼?

A: 好! 今天，咱們要去party上吃個大餐，看看接受媒體採訪要注意些什麼，看看怎麼説船到橋頭自然直，還要告訴大家怎麼用這個流行的BFF!

B: Yanglin, you are totally my BFF!!….the kind of real BFF that would get me a new Macbook Pro 3 for my birthday…

A: 大家瞧Kat的夢做得多美呀! 好了好了，言歸正傳，我們趕快先來進入第一個單元，Learn a Word!

Learn A Word mandatory

今天我們要學的詞是mandatory. Mandatory is spelled m-a-n-d-a-t-o-r-y, mandatory. Mandatory指“強制性的，必須的”。比如，mandatory retirement age 強制退休年齡。Bulgaria’s Minister of Regional Development is calling for the introduction of mandatory insurance for private residencies and all privately-owned buildings. 保加利亞地區發展部部長提出，應要求該國的私人住宅和全部私有建築一律購買保險。The New York City Council is considering a new bill that will make it mandatory for all bikers to wear helmets.紐約市市議員正在考憚7b一項新議案，硬性要求紐約市每個騎自行車的人都必須佩戴頭盔。好，今天我們學習的詞是mandatory, mandatory, mandatory…..

B: Ugh- mandatory things stress me out! I hate mandatory classes in school, I’d rather be more flexible and do what I want when I want!

A: 我也不喜歡上有些必修課，就像什麼毛澤東思想鄧小平理論的….太無聊了!!不過我倒是覺得，像數學啊，物理阿什麼的，雖然我都不喜歡，可是畢竟對以後還是有用的嘛!

B: Well, as I always say, all the hard questions are for FUTURE KAT! I just don’t think it’s worth it to worry about things- if there’s a problem, I will just cross that bridge when I come to it….

A: 你真是個隨性的人呀! 不過你剛才提到了一個很好的詞兒，cross that bridge when one comes to it, 咱們一起來聽聽這個習慣用語的用法!

Words and Idioms cross that bridge when one comes to it

現在播送第 968講。我是楊琳。

M：我是 Steve Baragona.

我的小侄女很喜愛動物，而且做事很認真。最近她宣佈，長大後要當獸醫! 我們都覺得這個職業蠻適合她的，不過她父母並不打算現在就開始為她成為獸醫做任何投資和計劃，因為孩子畢竟還小，很可能以後改主意! 她父母的這種做法讓我想到一個習慣用語，那就是:

M: Cross that bridge when one comes to it. Cross is spelled c-r-o-s-s, and bridge;b-r-i-d-g-e. Cross that bridge when one comes to it.

Cross that bridge when one comes to it 字面的意思是“到了橋邊再過橋”，其實就是指“等事情發生了再應對”，“船到橋頭自然直”。我侄女的父母就是這個態度，They don’t want to start thinking about how to finance their daughter’s veterinarian training yet. They prefer to cross that bridge when they come to it. 他們不要現在就開始為孩子上獸醫學校準備學費，而是打算等孩子真上了再説。在下面的例子中，有個女孩為自己的未來做打算，嗯，其實也可以説是沒做什麼打算。我們來聽一聽:

M: “Carrie is determined to move to New York City next fall. At the moment, she doesn’t know what she’s going to do for a job once she gets there. Still, she’s not worried. She says that she will CROSS THAT BRIDGE WHEN SHE COMES TO IT. The way she figures it, she’ll be able to find work after she gets settled.”

這段話意思是説：[Carrie下決心秋天到了就搬到紐約去住。現在，她還不知道搬過去之後要做什麼工作。不過，她也不擔心。她説，船到橋頭自然直。等她到了紐約，一切都安頓好了，再找工作也不遲。]

這種隨遇而安的心態真不錯，不過，很多人都沒Carrie這麼大松心，不願意走一步算一步。很多人都是儘量避免可能出現的問題，這樣的話， They don’t have to cross that bridge when they come to it. 他們就不用等問題發生了，再急切著想法子應對了。好的，言歸正傳，我們再來聽聽剛才那段話:

M: “Carrie’s determined to move to New York City next fall. At the moment, she doesn’t know what she’s going to do for a job once she gets there. Still, she’s not worried. She says that she will CROSS THAT BRIDGE WHEN SHE COMES TO IT. The way she figures it, she’ll be able to find work after she gets settled.”

企業家常被人們認為是務實、有遠見、有計劃的人，可實際上真是這樣麼？咱們來聽聽下面這段話：

M: “So far, the company presidents have agreed that they’ll sign the contract with Mexico. Beyond that, they haven’t really decided what they’ll do next. The reality is that they’ll deal with the situation when it happens. They’re CROSSING THAT BRIDGE WHEN THEY COME TO IT.”

這段話是説：[到目前為止，公司總裁已經同意和墨西哥方面簽合同，可除此之外，公司決策層並沒有決定下一步的工作。事實上，他們打算走一步算一步。他們的態度就是等問題出來了再去想怎麼辦。]

Cross the bridge when one comes to it 在口語裏的另外一個説法是Wing it. Wing is spelled w-i-n-g; and it, i-t. Wing it，也是“到時候再説”、“隨機應變”的意思。 好的，讓我們再來聽聽剛才那段話:

M: “So far, the company presidents have agreed that they’ll sign the contract with Mexico. Beyond that, they haven’t really decided what they’ll do next. The reality is that they’ll deal with the situation when it happens. They’re CROSSING THAT BRIDGE WHEN THEY COME TO IT.”

今天我們學習的習慣用語是 Cross that bridge when one comes to it，意思是“走一步算一步，船到橋頭自然直”。好的，這次[美國習慣用語]就到此結束，我是楊琳，我是 Steve Baragona。謝謝各位的收聽。

A: Well, I’m the exact opposite. I need to plan things to a T! 什麼事兒我都得詳細計劃好，不然我就特別緊張!

B: HE-LLO. Talk about a control freak! But Yanglin, things always change- it’s hard to plan ahead!

A: 也是! 今天早晨就是! 本來上班只要15分鐘，我足足走了一個小時! 就是因為路上出了起事故，大家都看熱鬧，結果路上堵的不行!

B: See, that’s my point! You just need to go with the flow! 不過你剛才提到看熱鬧，咱們今天來看看這個詞兒用美語怎麼説!

How to say it in American English

Donny 在北京學漢語，他的中國朋友要是遇到了不知道用美語怎麼説的詞，就會來請教他。今天是吳瓊要問的：看熱鬧。

Donny: Wuqiong, I heard you got your driver’s license !

WQ: 是啊，昨天我已經開車上路啦!

Donny: So how did it go?

WQ: 唉，別提了! 我開的那條路上出車禍，結果，開車的、騎車的、走路的，都想看熱鬧，最後，整條街都堵住了! 對了Donny，這些看熱鬧的人，用英文怎麼説呢？

Donny: 英文叫 rubberneck.

WQ: rubberneck? 我知道 rubber 是橡膠，neck 是脖子。那rubberneck不就是橡膠脖子麼？

Donny: 你想啊，那些看熱鬧，圍觀的人，they stretch their necks to watch what’s happening, right?

WQ: 哦……我明白了，伸長脖子看熱鬧的人好像長了橡膠脖子，所以叫他們rubberneck! 哈哈，真形象!

Donny: Right! rubberneck 也可以當動詞。你剛才説，大家看熱鬧，整條街大堵車，在英文裏就是 The traffic was bumper-to-bumper because of rubbernecking.

WQ: bumper-to-bumper? b-u-m-p-e-r， bumper, 不是汽車保險杠麼？

Donny: Exactly! So bumper-to-bumper means cars are moving so slowly that their bumpers are almost touching.

WQ: 我明白了，bumper-to-bumper， 汽車一輛緊挨著一輛，慢慢往前拱。這□ ‘5c説，I was stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic，鬱悶死了!

Donny: Wuqiong, 那車禍到底嚴不嚴重？

WQ: 特嚴重! 六輛車撞在一起了!

Donny: Ouch… a six-car pileup!

WQ: pileup? p-i-l-e, pile, 再加上 up, pileup 就是連環車禍麼？

Donny: That’s Right!

WQ: 我跟你説，這個pileup裏，有兩輛奧迪，一輛賓士，一輛寶馬，好像還有…

Donny: Wuqiong, 你看得這麼清楚，真不愧是 a good rubberneck! Okay, new driver, tell me what you’ve learned today!

WQ: 第一，看熱鬧的人叫rubberneck；

第二，堵車可以説bumper-to-bumper；

第三，連環車禍是pileup, p-i-l-e-u-p!

這次的美語怎麼説 就到這裡。如果你也有不會説的詞，請寫信給 Donny, 電郵請寄meiyu@voanews.com

A: Bumper to bumper, 太形象了! 北京三環上的那個堵絕對可以稱得上是bumper to bumper! 保險杠貼著保險杠!

B: Yeah…this is one of the biggest reasons why I don’t want to live in big cities forever…I hate being stuck in traffic! I feel like a caged animal!

A: That’s true! 不過我已經習慣了，現在呢，我就會買各種好吃的早餐，被堵的時候可以吃個好吃的嘛….

B: 哈哈，Yanglin, if the world was ending but I gave you a cupcake, I don’t think you would care. Sometimes I forget how much you love to eat.So, this should interest you: in today’s Go English, we are going to check out all the delicious food served at a potluck!

A: Mhmm yummy- Let’s listen!

GoEnglish Food (Advanced)

今天我們為您播出“美語三級跳”節目“食物”單元的高級課程。

Professor: Today Robert is going over to Liz and Doug’s apartment for dinner party, but he is about to find out that his tastes in food are very different from theirs.

Robert: Hey Doug! Hey Liz! Thank you so much for inviting me over for dinner.

Liz: Oh, it’s our pleasure! We haven’t had company in a long time so we’re really excited you could make it. Hey, what’s that dish you brought?

Robert: Well, Doug told me we were going to have a potluck dinner, so I cooked up some of my famous steak and brought it over. I hope you like it.

Liz: Oh my gosh Doug! He brought a dead animal into our house! What are we going to do?

Robert: Uh …. Doug? What’s the problem? Doesn’t Liz like steak?

Doug: Jeez…. I totally forgot to tell you. Liz is a vegetarian because she thinks eating meat is like murdering animals. Don’t worry honey, tomorrow I’ll take the steak outside and bury it.

原來Liz是個vegetarian–素食主義者，覺得吃肉就是謀殺動物。難怪她看到Robert帶牛排來那麼生氣。

Professor: Exactly, Winnie. And did you hear Liz talk about “having company”? When you have company, that means you invite guests over to your house. For example, “I can’t go to the movies on Friday night because I’m having company.”

哦，have company 就是“有客人在”的意思。對了，professor, potluck dinner 是什麼意思？

Professor: At some dinner parties the host prepares all the food for the guests. But at a potluck dinner, all the guests each bring a dish to share with the other guests.

我明白了，potluck dinner就是客人都自己帶菜，大家一起吃的聚餐。

Doug: Don’t worry Robert! Even though we can’t eat the steak, we’ve got lots of other good stuff to eat. Come and sit down at the table.

Robert: Great! I’m starving. What are we having?

Liz: I really hope you like it! I’ve prepared a three-course meal for you. For our appetizer we’re having carrots, for the entree we’re having chicken, and for the desert we’re having chocolate cake.

Robert: Well that sounds great …. but did you say we’re having chicken for the main course? I thought you didn’t eat meat!

Liz: Oh don’t be ridiculous! It’s not real chicken. It’s fake chicken, made from tofu.

Robert: Doug, did she say we’re having fake chicken made from tofu?

Doug: That’s right. Trust me, it sounds pretty weird, but I’m sure you’re going to love it.

Professor Bowman, 什麼叫 three-course meal?

Professor: When you go to dinner in America, each dish is served one after another. Each dish is called a “course,” so if there is a three-course meal, that means three dishes are being served and they are “appetizer”, “entree”, and “desert”.

哦，原來這就是由“頭臺”“主菜”和“甜點”這三道菜組成的大餐。對了， Liz還説，主菜是豆腐做的素雞，這個菜可不好做!

Professor: Well now they have finished eating, so let’s see what Robert thought.

Liz: So Robert, how did you enjoy your meal? It looks like you barely touched any of your chicken.

Robert: It was … umm …. interesting. It’s just that I’m not feeling so well. I think tofu chicken might be an acquired taste.

Doug: Believe me buddy, that’s what I said when I first had it. But I’m telling you, once you get used to it you’ll never go back to eating real chicken.

Liz: You know Doug, if tofu chicken really is an acquired taste, we should just put the leftovers in a doggie bag to give to

Robert to take home. Then he can keep eating it all week!

Professor, 什麼叫acquired taste?

Prof: It means a preference that is only acquired after considerable experience.

我明白了，acquired taste 就是慢慢培養出來的愛好。

哈，Robert 客氣地説，吃素雞是 acquired taste，其實就是表示自己不愛吃這道菜。

Prof: That’s right! But Liz offers to let him take the leftovers home so he would fall in love with it someday!

A: 其實説到吃，my dream is to open a bakery one day! I LOVE baking cakes just as much as I love eating them! 我就不愛老坐在辦公室前面對著電腦，特別無聊!

B: I’m the same! Luckily, I’m horrible with interviews, I always panic- so no office jobs for me. Instead, I’ll have a fulfilling career as your professional cupcake taster! eh? eh?

A: 我看可以! 不過面試呀，接受採訪呀，都是挺讓人緊張的事。這不，在下面的business etiquette裏，這個公司主管就特地為接受媒體採訪搞培訓呢!

B: 咱們趕快來聽聽吧!

禮節美語 Preparing for a Media Interview II

公司主管 Lenny 要接受媒體採訪，請媒體諮詢公司的Carl幫他準備。Carl告訴Lenny, 記者一上來會問幾個簡單問題，但不能因此而放鬆警惕。Carl説：

C: Remember to keep your game face on. It’s really important not to seem surprised when they ask the first difficult question. You don’t want to have a moment where it seems you’re on the defensive.

L: All right…I’ll be expecting tough questions. What kind of controversial topics do you think they might cover?

C: I’d be ready to answer questions about anything. Your company’s stock price has recently taken a dip, your CFO left your company and joined a rival firm, there was a product recall last year and sales for your latest gadget have been disappointing.

L: Wow…I see what you mean. So overall, what do you think my response strategy should be?

Carl告訴Lenny要 keep your game face on. 保持戰鬥姿態。game face 原指球員場上比賽時的面容表情，引伸為志在必得的樣子。 這樣做是因為，軟問題過後，記者出其不意，提出第一個刁難性問題時，you don’t want to seem on the defensive. 你不想讓人看出你處於被動防守的狀態。記者什麼樣的問題都可能問，比如：公司股票最近下跌，take a dip; 公司首席財務長官跳槽到對手的公司；跳槽在英語裏可以用 jump ship. 如，Your CFO jumped ship to join a rival firm. 另外，公司最近有産品因為品質問題被召回，而且最新推出的産品銷量也不盡人意。遇到這樣的問題，Lenny該怎樣回答呢？

C: The main thing is to focus on the positive. Yes, our stock price has been a little volatile… but we are on course for a third quarter rebound. Yes, it was unfortunate that our CFO chose to join our rivals, but the opening has given us a chance to hire fresh blood and incorporate new ideas.

L: I see your point: don’t evade the question, but try to twist it towards the positive.

C: Exactly! And you need to appear confident and strong.

L: What kind of tone would you recommend I take with the interviewer? Friendly? A little distant?

Carl説，被問到這種難堪問題時，關鍵是要 focus on the positive. 強調積極的一面。比如，公司股票價格最近是有些波動，但是 we are on course for a third quarter rebound. 第三季度預計會出現反彈；雖然高管跳槽，但這樣我們才有機會 hire fresh blood 雇傭新人。歸根結底一句話，不能回避問題，但要從積極的一面來回答問題。接受採訪時採取什麼樣的態度最合適呢？Carl回答説：

C: Stay friendly but remember: they’re not on your side.

L: I guess that’s the same as when I’m at any business negotiation.

C: Yes. Use the interviewer’s first name…especially at the beginning of the interview. But don’t overdo it, because that sounds insincere.

L: These are all really good points, Carl. Maybe we could meet again next week. I think I need a little bit more practice.

C: Sure. I’ll have your secretary set up the appointment. See you next week, Mr. Lee.

L: Goodbye, Carl.

Carl説，態度必須友好，但是要記住，they’re not on your side. 採訪你的人不是站在你這邊的。Carl還建議Lenny從採訪一開始就用記者的first name名字稱呼對方，這樣顯得親切，但 don’t overdo it. 也不要顯得過份熱絡。Lenny跟Carl約定，下星期再演練一次。

A: 你看看你看看，接受個採訪，還得準備這準備那的，真麻煩! 要是以後我真有一個蛋糕店，就能天天吃自己烤的蛋糕，多棒呀!

B: I’d give up boys for cupcakes in a heartbeat! and I’m not afraid to admit it!

A: That’s why we are BFFs!

B: Hahaha, exactly. Alrighty guys, let’s learn how American youth use this term: BFF!

How to say it in American English

Jessica 在北京學中文，她的中國朋友要是遇到了不知道用美語怎麼説的詞，就會來請教她。今天是于苗要問的：閨蜜。

Jessica: Wow, 于苗! What are you doing all dolled up!

YM: 我今天要去見我最最好的朋友! 她是我大學同學，我們都兩年沒見了!

Jessica: Oh wow, sounds like you guys go way back!

YM: 可不! 她可是我的標準閨蜜! My best friend!

Jessica: Actually in English, you can call her your BFF. BFF stands for Best Friend Forever. People use this term to refer to their best friends.

YM: 原來BFF就是永遠的好朋友! Yes, she’s definitely my BFF! We were college classmates and lived in the same dorm for four years. 我們特別鐵，無話不談。咦，這個”鐵”用英文要怎麼説呢?

Jessica: You can say: we are tight! Tight是關係緊密的意思，也就是説你們特別鐵!

YM: 可不! 話説來跟我們一塊吃飯的還有另外一個人! 我們吧，也挺好的, 不過吧， She’s super competitive. She always wants what I have! 你説這種人該怎麼説? Partial BFF? Partial tight?

Jessica: 哈哈…. that sounds like a frenemy of yours. Frenemy consists of friend and enemy, it is basically half friend and half enemy!

YM: 原來如此! This girl is a frenemy. 我們倆表面不錯，但是暗地裏好象老是在明爭暗鬥的。

Jessica: Sounds like a love-hate relationship to me!

YM: That’s so true, 我對她絕對是又愛又恨，你看，今天我跟我閨蜜見面，她又跟來了! 哎。。。

Jessica: 哈哈，開心點！Before you go, tell me what you’ve learned today!

YM: 今天我們學到的內容包括:

第一，閨蜜是best friend forever, 也就是BFF,

第二，關係很鐵可以用 tight;

第三，亦敵亦友，叫做frenemy;

第四，愛恨交加是 a love-hate relationship!

這次的”美語怎麼説”就到這裡了。如果你也有不會説的詞，請寫信給Jessica, 電郵請寄meiyu@voanews.com

B: A love-hate relationship? I think that describes my relationship with that three layer chocolate cake I ate last night….

A:哈哈我也一樣! 不過説歸説，吃還是要吃的嘛! Alright! 同學們，

這次節目時間就到這裡。 如果你對我們的節目有什麼建議，或者想提什麼問題，請發電子郵件到meiyu@voanews.com.

B: And in your email, tell us with whom or what you have a love-hate relationship! Cupcakes? Dinosaurs? Troublesome co-hosts??

A: 您還可以關注新浪微薄@ Moo愛説英語的牛，收聽更多課程!

B: And don’t forget to tune in next time for American English Mosaic!

A: Bye bye!