【话匣子英语】回首2016

三个主持人齐聚一堂，回首2016，展望2017！

Andrew:           Today we have a very special episode¹ for everyone. Not only are all three Culips hosts here together at the same time, but it is our last episode of 2016! So, today we’re going to take a look back at the year. This episode will be a Chatterbox episode and, in a Chatterbox episode, we just chat. We pick a specific topic and discuss it. And today’s topic is 2016, a year in review. So, guys, 2016. Big year, right?

 

Morag:              Oh yeah!

 

Suzanne:        Yeah. It’s been a year of big ups and big downs, I would say.

 

Morag:              I would definitely² agree. It was a pretty big year for the news.

 

Andrew:           Yeah, so without going into the details, some of the big news stories that stand out to me this year, first of all, is Brexit.

 

Suzanne:        Ugh, Brexit.

 

Andrew:           Brexit! Do you remember Brexit? And of course Brexit, for all our listeners out there, is the event where the UK decided³ to separate from the European Union. So this is a blended⁴ word: Britain, the UK, Britain and exit. Together: Brexit. So we had Brexit. We had the American election⁵, that was a huge, huge news story.

 

Suzanne:        And all of the things that led up to that election, too. There were a lot of news stories throughout that whole period, right? Even leading up to that.

 

Andrew:           Big time.

 

Morag:              It was a long 8 months of constant news, yes. We also had things like the Olympics.

 

Suzanne:        Yes, that was fun.

 

Andrew:           I love the Olympics. And this year was especially good, Canada won a couple of really nice track and field medals, so I was happy this year with the Olympic results.

 

Suzanne:        Yeah, and also my favourite event is the gymnastics.

 

Morag:              Me too!

 

Suzanne:        And I got to really enjoy some of the US gymnastic girls. Simone Biles, she was pretty rock and roll, that was cool to watch.

 

Andrew:           She’s really good, isn’t she?

 

Suzanne:        Yeah, yeah, she was quite phenomenal, yeah.

 

Morag:              It’s my favourite set of events as well, because I just don’t understand how you can do that with your body. It’s just kind of amazing, so.

 

Suzanne:        Right? It defies⁶ gravity and rules of physics.

 

Morag:              Yeah, how do you do that?

 

Andrew:           All right, so looking back, evaluating 2016, is there a special moment or special thing that you’ll always remember? And maybe I’ll ask this question to Suzanne first. What do you think, Suzanne?

 

Suzanne:        Yeah, I … I think that for me, a really big event that happened that I will always remember is where the Cubs⁷ won the World Series this year, this past early November. And they hadn’t won the World Series in 108 years! So this was a really big deal, that they finally broke the baseball curse⁸ and won the World Series.

 

Andrew:           Wow. The Chicago Cubs. The professional baseball team.

 

Suzanne:        Yes, the Chicago Cubs. They’re a Major League Baseball team, the Chicago Cubs. And they’re, like, what’s called the underdog in their city because the Chicago White Sox are the, kind of, big, famous team from that city. And the Cubs are sort of the underdogs, the ones that never win. So it was really cool to root for the underdog team and see them rise up and finally win the big World Series match.

1 episode   

n.（作品的一段）情节，插曲，系列事件中之一

参考例句：

• The episode was a huge embarrassment for all concerned.这段小插曲令所有有关人员都感到非常尴尬。
• This episode remains sharply engraved on my mind.这段经历至今仍深深地铭刻在我的心中。

2 definitely   

adv.一定地，肯定地；明确地，确切地

参考例句：

• The team will definitely lose if he doesn't play.如果他不参加比赛，这个队肯定会输。
• I shall definitely be home before six o'clock.6点以前，我一定回家。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 blended   

v.（使）混合( blend的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）混杂；（使）调和；协调

参考例句：

• Yes, I think they are blended together. 是的，我认为他们很和谐。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The two feelings blended in him--neutralised one another and him. 这两种感觉在他心里混为一体，相互抵消，使他采取了中立的态度。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

5 election   

n.选举，选择权；当选

参考例句：

• There is no doubt but that he will win the election.毫无疑问，他将在竞选中获胜。
• The government will probably fall at the coming election.在即将到来的大选中，该政府很可能要垮台。

6 defies   

不服从( defy的第三人称单数 )； 公然反抗； 蔑视； 向…挑战

参考例句：

• This defies to be explained. 这难以解释。
• His strange behaviour defies understanding. 他古怪的举止使人难以理解。

7 cubs   

n.幼小的兽，不懂规矩的年轻人( cub的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lioness guarding her cubs 守护幼崽的母狮
• Lion cubs depend on their mother to feed them. 狮子的幼仔依靠母狮喂养。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 curse   

n.祸因，祸根；诅咒，咒骂；骂人话

参考例句：

• His wealth proved a curse to him.他的财富成了祸根。
• The rabbits are a curse in this part of the country.兔子在这一带农村是一种祸害。