生活英语对话 Episode 5: Helen at home

本单元是关于海伦在家对话

Helen: Hello?
Mum: Hello? Helen? It's mum here. How are you my dear? Studying hard? You know how much your degree means to your father and me.
Helen: I was studying before you phoned me! Listen, I need your advice. I'm in love! But he doesn't even notice me. He only has eyes for Alice. What can I do?
Mum: Love? Love! There's plenty of time for that later. Get your head out of the clouds and back into your books. Do you hear me?
Helen: Yes, yes mum.
本单元的语言点是习语，习语是语言比喻的运用，而不是字面的意思，比如：'She put her foot in her mouth' 意思是她说说了愚蠢的话，很尴尬，不是她吃脚趾头。

Idioms use language metaphorically² rather than literally⁴. 'She put her foot in her mouth' means that she said something stupid and was embarrassed by it (the metaphorical¹ meaning) not that she ate her toes (the literal³ meaning).
Idioms are also fixed⁵ groups of words so you can't change the wording of an idiom. For example, you can say 'They get on like a house on fire' to describe how much two people like each other but you can't say 'They get on like a hospital on fire'.

Idioms of the head:

Get your head out of the clouds.
Stop daydreaming⁶. Concentrate on what your should be thinking about instead.

I laughed my head off at that film.
That film was very funny and it made me laugh a lot.

I don't know the answer off the top of my head.
I can't answer the question immediately. I don't have the answer memorised.

Don't bite his head off for that tiny mistake.
Don't shout at him for making a small mistake.

We should put our heads together to solve this puzzle.
We should work together to find the answer.

I'm so happy! I'm head over heels in love with that woman!
I'm completely in love!

Idioms of the heart:

Have a heart!

Be sympathetic⁷. Think about other people's feelings, not just your own.

We had a real heart-to-heart and now she knows exactly how I feel about her.
We were completely honest with each other about our feelings.

He seems unfriendly at first but honestly his heart's in the right place.
Although he appears cool and distant, he is a good person.

I really adored⁸ my grandmother and when she died, it broke my heart.
I was very sad when my grandmother died.

Some students like to learn irregular verbs by heart.
They like to learn things by rote⁹, by saying or writing them again and again.

He wears his heart on his sleeve, you always know exactly how he's feeling.
He doesn't hide his emotions. If he's angry he shows it. If he's happy, he shows it.

Vocabulary:

To only have eyes for someone (眼中只有某人): To be interested only in that person and to ignore (or not notice) everyone else

1 metaphorical   

a.隐喻的，比喻的

参考例句：

• Here, then, we have a metaphorical substitution on a metonymic axis. 这样，我们在换喻（者翻译为转喻，一种以部分代替整体的修辞方法）上就有了一个隐喻的替代。
• So, in a metaphorical sense, entropy is arrow of time. 所以说，我们可以这样作个比喻：熵像是时间之矢。

2 metaphorically   

adv. 用比喻地

参考例句：

• It is context and convention that determine whether a term will be interpreted literally or metaphorically. 对一个词的理解是按字面意思还是隐喻的意思要视乎上下文和习惯。
• Metaphorically it implied a sort of admirable energy. 从比喻来讲，它含有一种令人赞许的能量的意思。

3 literal   

adj.照字面的，原义的，逐字的

参考例句：

• This word should not be taken in its literal sense.这个词不能按本义去理解。
• He made a literal interpretation.他逐字解释。

4 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

5 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

6 daydreaming   

v.想入非非，空想( daydream的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Stop daydreaming and be realistic. 别空想了，还是从实际出发吧。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Bill was sitting and daydreaming so his mother told him to come down to earth and to do his homework. 比尔坐着空想， 他母亲要他面对现实，去做课外作业。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 sympathetic   

adj.有同情心的；表示好感或赞同的

参考例句：

• He is a sympathetic person.他是一个有同情心的人。
• They were quite sympathetic to our proposals.他们很赞同我们的建议。

8 adored   

爱慕，崇拜( adore的过去式和过去分词 )； 非常喜欢

参考例句：

• For all her faults, Tallulah's friends tolerated and even adored her. 尽管塔卢拉有缺点，她的朋友们却宽容她，甚至崇拜她。
• They adored her as a living goddess. 他们把她当作活女神崇拜。

9 rote   

n.死记硬背，生搬硬套

参考例句：

• Learning by rote is discouraged in this school.这所学校不鼓励死记硬背的学习方式。
• He recited the poem by rote.他强记背诵了这首诗。