英语访谈对话 504 Family Members

 　　Akane: Hey, Ruth.

　　Ruth: Hi, Akane.

　　Akane: So, um, how big is your immediate¹ family?

　　Ruth: Ah, there are four of us.

　　Akane: Four people, OK. Whose in it?

　　Ruth: Not big really. Well, there's my mum and my dad and my older brother and then there's me.

　　Akane: Oh, I see....Does everybody still live together?

　　Ruth: Well, actually at the moment my brother lives in London and my parents live in Darbyshire and I live in Japan but very soon we are all going to move back in together.

　　Akane: Ooh, are you looking forward to that?

　　Ruth: I'm looking forward to it but I think it could be interesting.

　　Akane: Yeah, for sure.....So who is the oldest person in your family?

　　Ruth: The oldest person is probably my great aunt and she's 80.

　　Akane: Oh, and who is the youngest person in your family?

　　Ruth: Actually, my cousin was born about two weeks ago. She's called Ema. She's two weeks old.

　　Akane: Wow! Did you see a picture of her?

　　Ruth: I have seen a picture of her, yes. She lives in Sweden.

　　Akane: That's really exciting.

　　Ruth: Yes, it was nice.

　　Akane: And how big is your extended² family?

　　Ruth: Well, I'm not from a really big family actually. My dad has got three sisters and my mom has just got one brother, so you know, some people are from families and somebody has ten children, and they have lots of aunties³, and uncles. It's not like that in my family.

　　Akane: Oh, OK. And where is your family originally⁴ from?

　　Ruth: Originally, my parents, and their parents,and their parents I think , are all from Yorkshire in England. It's in the North of England.

　　Akane: Everybody in your family is from there?

　　Ruth: I think so, although my family have since moved, and so some live in Sweden now, some live in Australia and some live in America.

　　Akane: Oh, that sounds really interesting......So when does your entire family ever get together?

　　Ruth: Well, that's a good question. Well, a lot of people get together at Christmas, but even then not everybody does. I think really we only see the entire family at weddings and at funerals⁶.

　　Akane: Oh, OK, and when was the last time there was a wedding or a funeral⁵?

　　Ruth: Um, I think it was about eight years ago, so quite a long time ago, now.

　　Akane: Oh, I see. OK, well thanks for that story, Ruth.

　　Ruth: Oh, no problem. Thanks, Akane.

1 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

2 extended   

adj.延伸的；伸展的；延长的；扩大的v.延伸(extend的过去式和过去分词)；伸展；延长

参考例句：

• an extended lunch hour 延长了的午餐时间
• France has greatly extended its influence in world affairs. 在世界事务中，法国的影响已大大地扩大了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 aunties   

n.(aunt的昵称)伯母( auntie的名词复数 )；婶母；姑母；姨母

参考例句：

• God couldn't be anywhere, that's why he made aunties. 上帝不可能无处不在，所以他创造了女人。 来自互联网
• Spindly Austin 7's of the' 20s are venerated like doddering old aunties. 修长的奥斯汀7世以及20世都已经是人们喜欢的老爷车。 来自互联网

4 originally   

adv.本来，原来，最初，就起源而论，独创地

参考例句：

• Originally I didn't want to go.我本意不想去。
• After much discussion they settled on the plan originally proposed.他们讨论了很久，然后确定了原来提出的那个计划。

5 funeral   

n.丧葬，葬礼；adj.丧葬的，出殡的

参考例句：

• Her bright clothes were not appropriate for a funeral.她那身鲜艳的衣服不适合参加葬礼。
• A funeral is a somber occasion.葬礼是个忧郁的场合。

6 funerals   

葬礼，丧礼( funeral的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Dad, nominally a Methodist, entered Churches only for weddings and funerals. 爸名义上是卫理公会教徒，可只去教堂参加婚礼和葬礼。
• They danced at weddings and wailed at funerals. 他们在办喜事的时候跳舞，在办丧事的时候哭泣。