单身狗的双11为何全民都在买买买

 　　As the name suggests, Singles' Day began as a day for single people - apparently¹ a chance to celebrate for the singletons, or "bare sticks", symbolised by the four number ones in the date of 11 November - 11/11.

　　顾名思义，光棍节是一个献给单身者的节日——显然这是一个单身者，或称“光棍”相互庆贺的日子，11月11日这个日期的四个数字就象征着光棍们。

　　But in 2009 the online retail² firm Alibaba adopted the day to promote a massive online shopping sale. It said the date was easy to remember, and conveniently placed in a consumer spending lull³ between National Day and Chinese New Year holiday.

　　然而在2009年事情发生了变化，在线零售公司阿里巴巴开始利用这个日子举行大型的网购促销活动。据说这个日期很容易被人们记住，而且恰好又正处在国庆黄金周和中国新年假期之间的销售淡季，正好可以刺激销售。

　　单身狗的双11为何全民都在买买买

　　Singles' Day rapidly became a hit. Other online retailers⁴ began cashing in, and Alibaba copyrighted the term "Double 11".

　　光棍节很快就成为热门话题，其他的在线零售商也开始从中分羹，阿里巴巴为“双十一”这个称谓申请了版权。

　　It says that since 2009, year-on-year sales of Alibaba growth has averaged 640%.

　　据说自2009年来，该公司的营业额的年比增长率平均高达640%。

　　And with a total population of 1.3 billion people, there's still plenty of room for growth.But Alibaba also has global aspirations⁵. It says more than 200 overseas merchants from more than 20 countries had confirmed participation⁶ in its Singles' Day sales this year, with multinational⁷ brands taking part in the "11.11 shopping festival" for the first time.

　　中国有13亿人口，网购营业额还有充足的上升空间。不过阿里巴巴可是有国际野心的哟。据称已经有来自全球20多个国家超过200个海外电商承诺参加今年双十一的促销活动，许多品牌是第一次参与“双十一狂欢节”。

　　Even in China, however, Singles' Day has begun to draw some criticism.

　　不过，即使就在中国，双十一也已经开始引起了不少质疑之声。

　　Another user complained: "I don't know why people are so excited about the 'Double 11'. It's meaningless as they all hike prices before offering a discount."

　　还有网友吐槽道：“我不明白人们为什么对‘双十一’如此热切，这一点意义也没有，因为所有的电商都是先把价格暴涨起来，再提供优惠折扣的。

1 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

2 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

3 lull   

v.使安静，使入睡，缓和，哄骗；n.暂停，间歇

参考例句：

• The drug put Simpson in a lull for thirty minutes.药物使辛普森安静了30分钟。
• Ground fighting flared up again after a two-week lull.经过两个星期的平静之后，地面战又突然爆发了。

4 retailers   

零售商，零售店( retailer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• High street retailers reported a marked increase in sales before Christmas. 商业街的零售商报告说圣诞节前销售量显著提高。
• Retailers have a statutory duty to provide goods suitable for their purpose. 零售商有为他们提供符合要求的货品的法定义务。

5 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

6 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

7 multinational   

adj.多国的，多种国籍的；n.多国籍公司，跨国公司

参考例句：

• The firm was taken over by a multinational consulting firm.这家公司被一个跨国咨询公司收购。
• He analyzed the relationship between multinational corporations and under-developed countries.他分析了跨国公司和不发达国家之间的关系。