VOA慢速英语2020--很难破解

Hard Nuts to Crack

Now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English.

During autumn in many parts of the United States, you can watch squirrels gathering¹ nuts for the winter. The squirrel puts the nut in its mouth, runs to a place it considers safe, digs a hole, and then drops the food in the ground. Hopefully, the animal will remember where it hid the nut weeks later.

And all the while they do this, they look really funny. But it seems like a wise thing to do. Nuts are a healthy food source. They provide healthy fats and nutrients². That is, if you can break off the shell around the nut. The part of the nut we eat is protected by the shell -- or nutshell.

And that word is the basis for a common saying: in a nutshell.

The expression "in a nutshell" means to provide important details in a short statement. If I give you information in a nutshell, I am describing the important parts of something in only a few words. We call this a summary. And that is the definition of "in a nutshell" ... in a nutshell.

Now, let's talk a little more about those shells. They are usually hard to break open. Unless you are a squirrel, you need some sort of tool or device for cracking open the shells. And sometime this is not very easy.

In American English, the saying a hard nut to crack means something hard to understand. It can also describe an individual whose actions are perplexing. Why did she do that? What is he doing? How are they going to fix that?

The expression a hard nut to crack can also describe someone who is simply difficult to deal with. Maybe her actions are confusing or perhaps his behavior is unpredictable. Or we simply do not know how to deal with them. So, we can say she or he is a hard nut to crack.

You can use this expression for people, problems, or situations that are difficult to understand, solve, or deal with.

When we use the expression, we can say "tough" instead of "hard." Here the two words mean the same thing: difficult.

The English language has some great words that mean the same thing. Mysteries, riddles⁴, and enigmas⁶ are all hard nuts to crack. In 1939, then British Prime Minister Winston Churchill used these words to describe Russian intentions in World War II.

On October 1st, 1939 Winston Churchill gave his first broadcast during the war to the British people. It was during this broadcast that he shared his now famous comments about Russia, which was then part of the Soviet⁷ Union. He likened it to "a riddle³ wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma⁵." In other words, very difficult to figure out.

"I cannot forecast to you the action of Russia. It is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma; but perhaps there is a key. That key is Russian national interest." (BBC Broadcast, London, October 1, 1939)

These days we also use his expression to describe something very secretive and nearly impossible to know or predict.

And that is our show for this week.

In a nutshell, our intention here at VOA Learning English is to help you learn English. As you know, some English expressions can be tough nuts to crack.

Words in This Story

source – n. someone or something that provides what is wanted or needed

perplexing – adj. difficult to understand : causing confusion

confusing – adj. to make (something) difficult to understand

tough – adj. difficult to accomplish, resolve, endure, or deal with

riddle – n. a puzzling question to be solved or answered by guessing

enigma – n. something hard to understand or explain

intention – n. the thing that you plan to do or achieve : an aim or purpose

forecast – v. to say that (something) will happen in the future : to predict (something, such as weather) after looking at the information that is available

key – n. something extremely important

1 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

2 nutrients   

n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a lack of essential nutrients 基本营养的缺乏
• Nutrients are absorbed into the bloodstream. 营养素被吸收进血液。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 riddle   

n.谜，谜语，粗筛；vt.解谜，给…出谜，筛，检查，鉴定，非难，充满于；vi.出谜

参考例句：

• The riddle couldn't be solved by the child.这个谜语孩子猜不出来。
• Her disappearance is a complete riddle.她的失踪完全是一个谜。

4 riddles   

n.谜（语）( riddle的名词复数 )；猜不透的难题，难解之谜

参考例句：

• Few riddles collected from oral tradition, however, have all six parts. 但是据收集的情况看，口头流传的谜语很少具有这完整的六部分。 来自英汉非文学 - 民俗
• But first, you'd better see if you can answer riddles. 但是你首先最好想想你会不会猜谜语。 来自辞典例句

5 enigma   

n.谜，谜一样的人或事

参考例句：

• I've known him for many years,but he remains something of an enigma to me.我与他相识多年，他仍然难以捉摸。
• Even after all the testimonies,the murder remained a enigma.即使听完了所有的证词，这件谋杀案仍然是一个谜。

6 enigmas   

n.难于理解的问题、人、物、情况等，奥秘( enigma的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The last words of Night Haunter stand as one of the great enigmas of Imperial history. 暗夜幽魂最后的临死前的话成为了帝国历史上的最大谜团之一。 来自互联网
• Heraclitus saith well in one of his enigmas, Dry light is ever the best. 赫拉克里塔斯在他的隐语之一中说得很好，“干光永远最佳”。 来自互联网

7 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。