2014年ESL之商务英语 18 Describing Order and Sequence

 

Describing Order and Sequence

Patrick: Okay, your first task is to put all of these files in order. 

Maya: Wow, there must be hundreds of files in this storeroom. How am I supposed to organize them? 

Patrick: Create a basic filing system. Put things in sequence. If they’re labeled with dates, put them in chronological¹ order. If they’re labeled with names, put them in alphabetical² order by last name. 

Maya: Okay, but what about this file? It’s labeled with a four- digit³ number, but it’s not a date. 

Patrick: Those are case numbers. Put those in ascending⁴ or descending⁵ numeric order, whichever makes sense. 

Maya: But this file has letters followed by numbers. 

Patrick: Then put those in alphanumeric order, first by letter and then by number. Simple, right? 

Maya: Yeah, but have you ever considered a more random⁶ filing system, something that embraces chaos⁷? 

Patrick: No, I haven’t. If I wanted chaos, I’d just go home to my 11 children! 

 

Script by Dr. Lucy Tse 

1 chronological   

adj.按年月顺序排列的，年代学的

参考例句：

• The paintings are exhibited in chronological sequence.这些画是按创作的时间顺序展出的。
• Give me the dates in chronological order.把日期按年月顺序给我。

2 alphabetical   

adj.字母（表）的，依字母顺序的

参考例句：

• Please arrange these books in alphabetical order.请把这些书按字母顺序整理一下。
• There is no need to maintain a strict alphabetical sequence.不必保持严格的字顺。

3 digit   

n.零到九的阿拉伯数字，手指，脚趾

参考例句：

• Her telephone number differs from mine by one digit.她的电话号码和我的只差一个数字。
• Many animals have five digits.许多动物有5趾。

4 ascending   

adj.上升的，向上的

参考例句：

• Now draw or trace ten dinosaurs in ascending order of size.现在按照体型由小到大的顺序画出或是临摹出10只恐龙。

5 descending   

n. 下行 adj. 下降的

参考例句：

• The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。
• The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。

6 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。

7 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。