美国之音《流行美语》 352(在线收听

  李华和Larry要去听演唱会。今天我们要学两个常用语:run-of-the-mill和roll the dice。
  LH: Larry,今天晚上的演唱会好听么?那个乐队是什么类型的啊?
  L: Well ... they're kind of hard to describe. Their music is a mixture of many different styles.
  LH: 各种音乐的混合?听着很有新意! 现在很多乐队都没有自己的风格,跟别的乐队差不多,没意思。
  L: I totally agree, Lihua. Luckily, they are not just some run-of-the-mill rock band.
  LH: Run of the mill? 是什么意思?
  L: When you say that something is run-of-the-mill, that means that it is very average, or just like all the others.
  LH: 哦,run-of-the-mill就是没特色的,千篇一律的。你的意思是,这个乐队并不是那种毫无特色的乐队。
  L: Exactly! For example, the makers of Avatar said it would not be just another run-of-the-mill action movie, and would be like nothing anyone had seen before.
  LH: 对,电影“阿凡达”当初宣传的时候,就说自己是非同寻常的,观众从没看过的新类型电影。对了,Larry, 这个乐队我怎么从没听说过啊?
  L: Well, they still aren't very well known, so only music magazines write about them. You won't read about them in the standard, run-of-the-mill newspapers.
  LH: 哦,主流媒体没报道他们,只有在比较专业的音乐杂志上才会看到关于他们的介绍。Larry, 我有点饿,咱们去演唱会前是不是先吃点东西?
  L: Sure, where do you want to eat?
  LH: 不知道......麦当劳吧!
  L: McDonalds? I don't want to eat at some run-of-the-mill fast food restaurant.
  LH: 可是演唱会还有半个小时就开始了。吃麦当劳快啊。
  L: Don't worry, we can be a little late. I think the opening band is just some run-of-the-mill pop band.
  LH: 你是说,负责暖场的乐队没什么特色,不看也没关系。那咱们去吃寿司吧。
  L: Sounds good! Let's go.
  *****
  Larry and 李华在谈论刚结束的演唱会。
  LH: Larry, 这个乐队太棒了! 他们肯定会红!
  L: Do you think so? It takes a lot of luck to become a famous band. There is a lot of competition out there.
  LH: 你说得也对。不过要想成名,就得努力抓住机会,试试看嘛!
  L: Right, even though the chances aren't very good, sometimes you just have to roll the dice.
  LH: Roll the dice? 你是说掷骰子么?
  L: Right. When you roll the dice, that means that you take a chance, just like when you make a bet gambling.
  LH: 哦,roll the dice和掷骰子一样,表示碰碰运气! 你是说,虽然很多乐队最终红不了,但是想出名的人还是应该碰碰运气,说不定就能成功?
  L: Exactly. Here's another example. Terrence wasn't sure he would like living in New York, but he decided to roll the dice and move there anyway.
  LH: 哦,Terrence并不知道自己会不会喜欢纽约,不过他还是决定先搬过去,住住试试。Larry, 如果是你,你想住在什么地方?
  L: Definitely Hawaii! I'm not sure that I could find a job there, but it's such a beautiful place that sometimes I think it's worth rolling the dice.
  LH: 哈哈,即使冒着找不到工作的危险,你也想搬去夏威夷?我和你不一样,我想去罗马,而且我肯定能有工作,我要去当意大利菜大厨!
  L: Wow, that is definitely a roll of the dice. You don't know how to cook Italian food!
  LH: A roll of the dice? 你是说我希望渺茫?我不管,不会可以学嘛!对了,说到意大利菜,咱们去你家附近那个餐馆吃点宵夜吧。
  L: I don't know ... I read in the newspaper that it's just boring, run-of-the-mill Italian food.
  LH: 别听报纸的,咱们自己试试去!
  L: Well alright, let's roll the dice and see what happens.
  LH: 好! 吃完了咱们再去看个午夜场电影! 最近有什么好片么?
  L: I'm not sure ... Let's just roll the dice. We'll just go to the theater and watch whatever movie happens to be playing.
  LH: 这样也不错! 走吧!
  今天李华学了两个常用语。一个是run-of-the-mill, 表示没有特色,千篇一律。另一是roll the dice, 意思是碰运气。

  原文地址:http://www.tingroom.com/lesson/liuxmy/137477.html