实用英语:一个让英美人无比纠结的小词

 　　Hello everyone， this is Rosalyn from HJ English. Welcome to Brits vs Yanks， Written by a Brit.

　　【Spot the Difference 差异点播】

　　Something that I’ve realized recently while talking to my American friends is that difference of usage¹ in the word ‘pissed’。 British people use this word all the time， generally talking about their weekend. Americans have a much different usage however.

　　最近和美国朋友聊天时发现对于pissed”这个词的用法，我们俩存在分歧。英国人提起周末时经常会用到这个词，而美国人的用法大不同。

　　【Interaction Time 互动时间 】

　　Here is a little test for you…。 Try to work out the difference in meaning of the word ‘pissed’ from the 2 sentences below.

　　下面有一个小测试……请通过以下两个句子判断“pissed”的意思有什么不同。

　　Brits： “What a night！ We started out at Sarah’s house and made some cocktails²， then had some drinks at a couple of bars in town. Sarah and I were quite pissed by the end of the night， we couldn’t stop laughing in the taxi on the way home！

　　那晚真是太棒了！我们先在莎拉的家里调配鸡尾酒，接着去镇上几家酒吧喝酒。深夜，我和莎拉都喝醉了，打了辆的士禁不住一路高歌着回家！

　　Yanks： “My mom is really pissed. She thinks that I could work harder at college， and wants me to spend less time with my friends. She’s mainly pissed that my grades are lower³ this term！

　　我老妈很忿怒，她觉得我在大学里可以更勤奋些，少和朋友浪费时间。尤其当得知我这个学期的分数更糟糕的时候，她彻底愤怒了。

　　大家可以看出，英国人口中的“pissed”指的是“喝醉”，而这个词在美国人看来是“愤怒的”的意思。

1 usage   

n.惯用法，使用，用法

参考例句：

• I am clear about the usage of this word at last.这个词的用法我算是弄明白了。
• The usage is now firmly established.这种用法现已得到确认。

2 cocktails   

n.鸡尾酒( cocktail的名词复数 )；餐前开胃菜；混合物

参考例句：

• Come about 4 o'clock. We'll have cocktails and grill steaks. 请四点钟左右来，我们喝鸡尾酒，吃烤牛排。 来自辞典例句
• Cocktails were a nasty American habit. 喝鸡尾酒是讨厌的美国习惯。 来自辞典例句

3 lower   

adj.较低的；地位较低的，低等的；低年级的；下游的；vt.放下，降下，放低；减低

参考例句：

• Society is divided into upper,middle and lower classes.社会分为上层、中层和下层阶级。
• This price is his minimum;he refuses to lower it any further.这个价格是他开的最低价，他拒绝再作任何降价。