Larry 和李华正在为他的朋友 Laura 担心．他们两人都觉得Laura好像有甚么心事．今天李华会学到两个常用语： clam up 和 to tank。
LL: Laura has been acting really strange lately, but every time I try to ask her what's bothering her, she just clams up.
LH: 我也注意到了， Laura 最近是有点怪怪的．我也问过她怎么回事，她就是不肯说 .... 对了， Larry，你刚才说 clam up，那是甚么意思啊？
LL: To clam up is to become silent and refuse to talk about something.
LH: To clam up 就是闭紧了嘴巴，不肯把心里的事告诉别人．疑？可是 Larry， clam 不是一种蛤蜊吗？这跟说不说话有甚么关系啊？
LL: Yes, in fact, that's where the expression comes from. Clams can close their shells very tightly. If a person refuses to talk, his lips are closed just like a clam's shell.
LH: 喔～，对吔．一个人嘴巴闭得紧紧的时候，就好像蛤蜊闭上壳，怎么也不打开．这个说法太形象了！
LH: The problem is that Laura has clammed up about whatever is bothering her, which means that we have no way of helping her out.
LH: 那倒也是喔．她要不说，我们又怎么能帮她呢．也许我们应该让她一个人静一静，等她想说的时候啊，自然会告诉我们到底是怎么回事儿。
LL: That's probably the only thing we can do.
LH: 其实啊我爸爸也是一样呢．心里如果有事啊，从来不肯说．有的时候把我妈急的一直生气。
LL: A lot of people clam up when something is bothering them. I tend to clam up when I'm really nervous.
LH: 我也是吔！我只要一紧张啊，我就不说话了．每个人都不一样，像我妹妹啊，她一生气就可以几天都不说话．别人也不知道她在生甚么气。
LL: That's like my mother. She could clam up for days when she is angry with my father.
LH: 你妈妈跟你爸爸生气的时候几天不说话啊．那，你爸爸怎么办呢？
LL：Whenever my mother clams up, he clams up too.
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LL: I found out what was bothering Laura. She was upset because the last play she wrote tanked. Everyone criticized it.
LH: 大家都批评她最近写的剧本．为甚么啊？你说她写的那个剧本 tanked，那是甚么意思啊？ Tank，不就是打仗用的坦克吗？
LL: No, this has nothing to do with the tank used in a war. This “tank” is a verb. When something “tanks” that means that it is a complete failure.
LH: 哦～，这个 tank 和军用坦克啊毫无关系．这里说的 tank 是个动词，意思就是完全失败．所有的剧评家都批评 Laura 的舞台剧啊，那真是太惨了．可怜的 Laura!
LL: Yeah, no wonder she clammed up. I wouldn't want to talk about it if one of my projects tanked, either.
LH: 就是啊，自己的成果啊被别人这样批评，心情一定不好受．对了， Larry，为甚么大家不喜欢 Laura 的剧本呢？
LL: I have no idea. I haven't seen or read her play, so I have no way of judging her work. Laura is a good playwright, I don't understand why her work tanked.
LH: 嗯，没有看过她的剧本啊我们是很难判断．不过， Laura 确实是一个很好的剧作家．也许啊我们应该去看看她写的舞台剧，说不定没有这么糟么嘛。
LL: Even if the play really is terrible, we could at least show our support by going to see it.
LH: 你说的对，不管啊是好是坏，我们去看就代表我们对 Laura 的支持．好！我去问她在哪儿可以买票． Larry，那你甚么时候有空去看呢？
LL: Let's go this Friday. Originally, I had planned to see a movie this Friday, but the movie I wanted to see tanked, so I might as well go and see Laura's play.
LH: 怎么就这么巧啊？你要看的电影也失败啦．好，就这么说定了．我去买票，星期五啊我们就去看 Laura 的舞台剧啰！
今天李华学到两个常用语．第一个是： clam up，是指“一个人不肯把心里的话告诉别人”．另一个常用语是： to tank，也就是“失败”的意思。
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