口语进阶07 | 美国常用idioms及表达方式

　　访问学者、博士后初到美国，在沟通和交流方面往往会遇到各种问题，正如中国有各种成语谚语，美国人日常生活中也有很多常用俗语和词组搭配。提前掌握这些知识点可以让各位学者更容易理解美国人的日常对话，融入当地工作生活环境。知识人网整理相关情景对话，介绍美国人常用惯用语（idiom）及表达方式，希望能对大家有所帮助。请看Lesson 07：

　　LESSON 07: CINDY ASKS MARK TO GET BACK TOGETHER

　　Over dinner, Cindy tells Mark that she wants to start dating him again. Mark reminds her that they didn't get along well, but Cindy tells him he looks good in comparison to the other men she's dated recently.

　　Mark:         So, Cindy, what did you find out for me?

　　Cindy:       I'm not ready to talk shop! We haven't even had our drinks yet.

　　Mark:         You know what they say: business before pleasure!

　　Cindy:       Okay, then let's talk turkey. You and I should get back together.

　　Mark:         What? We fought like cats and dogs! Why would you want to get back together?

　　Cindy:       To make a long story short, I've dated a lot of losers* lately; stuffed shirts, two-timers — you get the picture.

　　Mark:         So after dating all these losers, you've decided I'm Mr. Right?

　　Cindy:       Maybe not exactly, but you are a good catch.

　　Mark:         Well, perhaps you should hold out for Mr. Right. Why settle for me?

　　◆     loser − a failure; somebody who is unsuccessful in life; a jerk

　　IDIOMS & EXPRESSIONS

　　(To) talk shop – 非办公场所谈论工作；或三句话不离本行

　　Example: Sorry to talk shop at a party, but what do you think we should do about the contract? 非常抱歉在派对上谈论工作，但是你觉得我们应该怎么处理这个合同？

　　Business before pleasure –俗语，表示先工作，后娱乐

　　Example: At our holiday party, the boss stood up and said, “Before we start eating and drinking, I'd like to announce our recent sales results. Business before pleasure.”假日派对上，老板站起来说，“开饭前，我先来公布下我们最近的销售业绩。事业在先，享乐在后。”

　　(To) talk turkey – 直言不讳、直率地说，或谈正经事

　　Example: Let's talk turkey. If you'd be willing to lower the price of your house by 20%, we might be interested in buying it. 不绕弯子了，如果你的房子愿意降价20%，我们也许有意愿买下来。

　　小贴士：这种表达的来源有多种说法，可追溯到19世纪40年代。有一种说法认为该表达来源和感恩节的火鸡有关。曾经有一个印第安人和殖民地定居者一起去打猎。捕获了火鸡和秃鹰后，当他们讨论如何分享猎物时，印第安人说，“就直接和说分火鸡吧”。

　　(To) fight like cats and dogs –相处不融洽，经常意见不一，形容人与人之间的争吵非常激烈、吵得不可开交

　　Example: I don't know how Scott and Lisa stay married. They fight like cats and dogs! 我真的不理解斯科特和丽萨怎么会结婚，他们经常吵得不可开交。

　　To make a long story short −长话短说，简而言之

　　Example: To make a long story short, I've decided to quit my job and move to Prague to open a coffee shop. 长话短说，我已经决定辞职去葡萄牙开一家咖啡店。

　　Stuffed shirt −一本正经的人; 古板的人; 保守的人

　　Example: Brenda's boss takes himself very seriously and never makes jokes. He's a real stuffed shirt. 布伦达的老板为人非常严肃，从来不开玩笑。他可真是一个古板的人。

　　小贴士：19世纪，生意人经常在T恤内部塞满纸，用于向人们展示T恤上身的效果。这一行为后演变为表达一个人很严肃，英文用“stuffed shirt.”表示。

　　Two-timer –出轨者；劈腿；脚踏两条船的人

　　Example: Joan's ex−husband was a two-timer. She caught him in bed with his administrative assistant. 琼的前夫出轨了，他和他的助理被琼捉奸在床。

　　You get the picture −理解、明白、认识或明白对自己的利害

　　Example: My roommate throws dirty laundry on the floor, leaves old food in the refrigerator, and, well, you get the picture. 我的室友把脏衣服仍在地上，把剩饭搁置在冰箱里，额，你懂的。

　　Mr. Right −真命天子、白马王子、如意郎君

　　Example: “Is Liz married?” — “No, she's still looking for Mr. Right.” “莉兹结婚了吗？”—“没呢，她还在寻找自己的真命天子。”

　　Good catch – 合适的恋爱对象、很般配

　　Example: Amanda got a good catch. Her fiancé is a successful investment banker, good−looking, and a nice guy. 阿曼达和她对象很般配。她的未婚夫是一个很成功的投资银行家，仪表堂堂，为人和善。

　　(To) hold out for –坚持，不妥协

　　Example: We've received several offers on our house, but we're holding out for a price we think is fair. 有好几家愿意买我们的房子，但是我们还想等一个我们认为合适的买家出现。

　　(To) settle for – 选择、勉强接受、将就

　　Example: José dreamed of becoming a professional football player, but he settled for becoming a high school football coach instead. 虽然何塞曾经梦想成为一名职业足球运动员，但是他觉得现在成为高中足球教练也凑合。

　　PRACTICE THE IDIOMS

　　Fill in the blank with the missing word:

　　1) You should marry Sam. He's a good ______.

　　a) catch

　　b) hook

　　c) grab

　　2) Rachel is 40 years old and still not married. Hopefully, she'll find ______ Right soon.

　　a) Sir

　　b) Dr.

　　c) Mr.

　　3) It's not surprising that Keith and Marie broke up. They fought like cats and ______.

　　a) puppies

　　b) dogs

　　c) mice

　　4) Jenny's boss is no fun at all. He's a real stuffed ______.

　　a) suit

　　b) pants

　　c) shirt

　　5) I won't go into the details now, but to make a long story ______, Jake and Tina are getting divorced.

　　a) interesting

　　b) shorter

　　c) short

　　6) Don't settle ______ someone who you're not really in love with. Keep looking and you'll find someone.

　　a) by

　　b) for

　　c) in

　　7) Let's talk ______. If you're not ready to marry me now, I'm going to look for somebody else.

　　a) chicken

　　b) goose

　　c) turkey

　　8) Business before ______. Let's work out the details of our agreement, and then we can go get out for a drink.

　　a) fun

　　b) anything

　　c) pleasure

　　9) Joe was always flirting with other women, coming home late, and well, you get the ______ .

　　a) picture

　　b) image

　　c) story

　　10) Adam is 39 and still single. He says he's holding ______ for the right woman.

　　a) on

　　b) out

　　c) up

　　ANSWERS: 1. A;   2. C;   3. B;   4. C;   5. C;   6. B;   7. C;   8. C;   9. A;   10. B