英语听力精选进阶版 20141

To make a monkey out of me 捉弄我

内容简介

有人让Rob¹ 装扮成一只猴子去参加聚会，结果根本没有聚会，Rob 被人捉弄，他十分恼怒自己竟然做了一次“傻猴子”。不过Li 的一句智慧提示，让 Rob 破涕为笑。

文字稿

（关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。）

Li：大家好欢迎收听《地道英语(精品课)》我是杨莉…

Rob：And hello, I'm Rob

Li：Sorry, I didn't hear that.

Rob：If I just take this head off… you can hear me. Hello!

Li：That's better but why are you wearing a life-size monkey costume² Rob?

Rob：Well my friend said I should wear it to his son's birthday party this morning – his son loves monkeys and it would make his birthday really special if he saw one!

Li：原来 Rob 的一个朋友为儿子举办聚会，他让 Rob 装扮成一只猴子去凑热闹。

Well, that's very kind of you Rob – and how did the party go?

Rob：Well that's the problem. As you can see, I dressed up like a monkey, travelled across London on the bus and there was no party!

Li：Ha ha – no party! 听上去你好像是被朋友当猴子一样给耍啦！ 这叫'making a monkey out of you'!

Rob

Making a monkey out of me? Yes, it's a good phrase³. You mean he's trying to make me look foolish or to humiliate⁴ me.

Li：He's certainly done that! 短语 'to make a monkey out of someone' 意思就是愚弄某人，让某人出洋相，也就是我们常说的被人耍（猴）啦！下面我们听几个例句：

Examples

Mary made a monkey out me by telling to me to ask her best friend out on a date – she said no!

My boyfriend's always making a monkey out of himself by getting drunk⁵ at parties.

Sid made a monkey out of Paul by telling him to wear a suit to the party – everyone else was wearing jeans!

Li：这个词的意思很清楚了。不过，愚弄别人或被别愚弄都不是好事儿。我记得，好像还有一个类似的表达， 'making a fool out of someone'. So Rob, you're angry because he's made a fool out of you?

Rob：Yes! This phrase doesn't just apply to people who dress up like monkeys. It can apply to any situation where somewhere has been made to look foolish or ridiculous⁶ – like me!

Li：是的，这个表达的使用面儿更宽一些，而不仅仅限于装扮猴子式的捉弄或取笑。

Rob：But Li, this phrase compares someone to a monkey because monkeys look like they are fooling around. And that makes me look really stupid!

Li：Rob 越说越觉得自己像个傻猴子，可猴子一点儿都不傻呀! Ah but Rob, in Chinese culture, a monkey is seen as a clever animal and is often compared with a clever person.

Rob：Oh really? Well, in that case I might wear this monkey costume for a little bit longer. How does it make me look? Clever, smart?

Li：Quite smart and quite handsome too.

Rob：Oh thanks very much!

Li：Bye.

Rob：Bye.

1 rob   

v.抢劫；vi.抢劫，盗窃；vt.非法剥夺，使丧失，抢劫

参考例句：

• Two men formed a plot to rob the bank.两人制定了抢劫那家银行的秘密计划。
• They were scheming to rob the bank.他们在密谋抢劫银行。

2 costume   

n.装束，服装

参考例句：

• She had excellent taste in costume.她对衣着特别讲究。
• The kimono is part of the national costume of Japan.和服是日本民族服装的一部分。

3 phrase   

n.短语，词组；成语，习语

参考例句：

• The phrase was caught on and immediately became popular.这个短语被采用后很快就流行了。
• That's exactly the phrase I was looking for.这就是我一直找的那个短语。

4 humiliate   

v.使羞辱，使丢脸[同]disgrace

参考例句：

• What right had they to bully and humiliate people like this?凭什么把人欺侮到这个地步呢？
• They pay me empty compliments which only humiliate me.他们虚情假意地恭维我，这只能使我感到羞辱。

5 drunk   

adj.醉酒的；(喻)陶醉的；n.酗酒者，醉汉

参考例句：

• People who drives when they are drunk should be heavily penalised.醉酒驾车的人应受重罚。
• She found him drunk when she came home at night.她晚上回家时，经常发现他醉醺醺的。

6 ridiculous   

adj.荒谬的，可笑的；荒唐的

参考例句：

• It is simply ridiculous to attempt such a thing.试图干这种事，简直可笑。
• It's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard in my life.这是我有生以来听到的最为荒唐可笑的事。