英语听力精选进阶版 7017

Finn: Hello and welcome to Authentic¹ Real English. I'm Finn.

Feifei: And I'm Feifei.

Finn: Worms are great - don't you think they're really interesting?

Feifei: Erm, yeah? Kind of. But what's today's phrase?

Finn: Yeah, yeah, yeah, we'll come to that in a minute. But, did you know earthworms, the kind you normally² find in the soil, are both male and female³ in one body?

Feifei: 一只蚯蚓的身体既是公的也是母的 - that is quite interesting.

Finn: And if you cut a worm in half - only one part of the worm will die?

Feifei: 如果蚯蚓身体末端的一部分被切掉或断掉，剩下的一边一样能存活，而且在一段时间后它自己能复原，也就是说它们的再生能里很强。I knew that.

Finn: It's fascinating isn't it? And... earthworms can be really short - from only one millimetre - to a massive⁴ three metres! And, another one, worms can...

Feifei: Finn, Finn, hang on a second, why are we talking about worms so much?

Finn: Sorry, yes, I was doing some research for today's programme... The phrase, today, is - a can of worms!

Feifei: Well 'a can of worms' 这个短语用来表达当你开始解决一个问题时，这个问题会带出一连串的其它问题。

Finn: Yes, sometimes you want to deal with a problem, but you realise that by dealing⁵ with that problem it will open up a whole set of new problems.

Feifei: Like in these examples:

A: Charles, have you finished writing that report about our fantastic sales figures this month?

B: No, because actually I realised our sales figures are all wrong. Someone has been giving us false information for months...

A: Oh no, what a can of worms.

Well, when Frank⁶ asked why his brother arrived late to the party, his brother started telling Frank all about the problems in his life: why his car wasn't working and that he had to taking it to the garage on his way, after visiting the doctor because, yes, his foot was very painful, because he hurt it playing tennis, which he didn't want to play anyway but did because his friend loved playing it so much, even though he didn't like the friend anymore, because the friend still owed him money... Frank realised he'd opened a can of worms.

Feifei: That was possibly the longest example we've had on Authentic Real English.

Finn: Yes, well anyway - I hope everyone listening understands the phrase now. I think I'll get back to my reading. 34,000 different kinds of worm, wow... They can live for up to 10 years! Fascinating... They eat their own weight every day...

Feifei: OK, well I think we've lost Finn there. I think I've had enough of worms for one day. Do join us again for more Authentic Real English! Bye.

Finn: ...worms have existed for about 600 million years, and they breathe through their skin, cool!

1 authentic   

a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的

参考例句：

• This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
• Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。

2 normally   

adv.正常地，通常地

参考例句：

• I normally do all my shopping on Saturdays.我通常在星期六买东西。
• My pulse beats normally.我脉搏正常。

3 female   

adj.雌的，女(性)的；n.雌性的动物，女子

参考例句：

• We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
• The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。

4 massive   

adj.巨大的，大规模的，大量的，大范围的

参考例句：

• A massive sea search has failed to find any survivors.经过大规模的海上搜救仍未找到幸存者。
• He drank a massive amount of alcohol.他喝了大量的烈酒。

5 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

6 frank   

adj.坦白的，直率的，真诚的

参考例句：

• A frank discussion can help to clear the air.坦率的谈论有助于消除隔阂。
• She is frank and outgoing.她很爽朗。