英语博客：The Blue Bees.

 　　The Spring season brings all sorts of life and activity to this valley. You see people out on the streets, walking their dogs, in the parks with friends, and the school fields are full of sporting activities. For the first time, my daughter is in soccer. There was a big build up to this(1) as we had to register¹ a long time ago, and she has been waiting, counting the days(2), for the sport to begin. It's also her first time playing a team sport. Previously², she has done swimming, gymnastics, and tennis. But her excitement for soccer is much greater than anything else. Being the youngest(3) in the family, she has watched her brothers play team sports for years, and has cheered for them. But now, finally, it's her turn. She made her debut³(4) yesterday with her team, The Blue Bees. And gosh, are they cute! You can imagine a team of little eight year old girls, in a blue uniform, with their hair in ponytails(5), running around and trying to score goals. They played against a green team, and they won. It was a wonderful first experience for Domini; she even scored two out of(6) the winning four goals. I jumped up and down, and cheered and clapped so much that my husband moved about ten metres away from me. But I didn't care; it was so much fun to watch. One thing that I realized, is that all the girls were polite, and would kick the ball, then allow others to have a chance. Unfortunately, that gave the opposing team lots of chances to take the ball. The girls haven't learned⁵ to be aggressive yet, but they will. Judging by(7) the older girls who were playing soccer close by, they will learn to be aggressive quite soon.

　　1. 'A build up' is like saying 'anticipation⁶', 'excitement', 'expectancy⁷' when you are waiting for something to happen.

　　a. There is always such a build up towards Christmas; you can feel it in the air.

　　b. There was an orchestral build up to the main speaker.

　　2. 'Counting the days' also adds to the idea of a 'build up' of emotions. When you are impatient⁸ for something to happen, you count the days that are left before the event. We also use the expression 'to be on the count down.' A count down is said before a rocket takes off into space 5-4-3-2-1 blast⁹ off!

　　a. It's his birthday in three weeks, and he's counting the days/ he's on the count down.

　　b. They'll marry in May, so they're counting the days/ they're on the count down.

　　3. 'Being the youngest, ....' Using a gerund at the beginning of a sentence allows you to make a 2 part sentence and avoid an 'and'. Listen to the two sentences:

　　She's the youngest, and for years has watched her brothers play sports.

　　Being the youngest, for years she has watched her brothers play sports.

　　Both are perfect sentences, but it's worth noting the use of the gerund to create variety in your sentences.

　　a. Being an honest man, he gave the lady the money that she had dropped.

　　b. Seeing the bus in the distance, he ran fast to the bus stop.

　　4. 'Debut' is used in English, as are many other French words. It means 'the beginning' or 'the first show'.

　　a. The magician¹⁰ made his debut performance last night in Las Vegas.

　　b. The singer's debut album will come out in July.

　　5. 'Ponytail' is a hair style. All the hair is pulled up towards the back of the head, and held by an elastic¹¹ band at the scalp, the hair hanging down freely¹². It looks like the tail of a pony⁴ or horse.

　　Another common hair style is a braid or platt. The hair is divided into 3 parts which are woven together to make one rope-like patter.

　　A 'bun' is also a common hair style. All the hair is placed near the top of the head in a secured¹³, round shape, like a bread bun.

　　6. 'She scored two (out) of the winning four goals.'

　　a. He ate seven (out) of the ten cookies that I had made.

　　b. We saw three (out) of the six houses that were for sale.

　　7. 'Judging by' economises your sentences. It enables¹⁴ you to make one sentence out of two:

　　I saw that the older girls were aggressive. I think the younger girls will learn to be aggressive soon.

　　Judging by the older girls, the younger ones will learn to be aggressive soon.

　　This second sentence sounds more fluid¹⁵ and natural.

　　a. Judging by the restaurants popularity¹⁶, the food or prices must be good.

　　b. Judging by his behavior yesterday, we won't invite him to dinner.

　　Join me on FACEBOOK at Anna Fromacupofenglish; you're all invited. Check out the app A Cup Of English in iTunes for convenience. Questions? Comments? Do you want to have lessons via Skype with me? Let me know at [email protected].

1 register   

n.登记簿，花名册，注册员；v.登记，注册

参考例句：

• Please list your name in the attendance register.请在点名册上登记你的名字。
• He was looking over a hotel register.他正在仔细检查旅馆住宿登记表。

2 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

3 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。

4 pony   

adj.小型的；n.小马

参考例句：

• His father gave him a pony as a Christmas present.他父亲给了他一匹小马驹作为圣诞礼物。
• They made him pony up the money he owed.他们逼他还债。

5 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

6 anticipation   

n.预期，预料，期望

参考例句：

• We waited at the station in anticipation of her arrival.我们在车站等着，期待她的到来。
• The animals grew restless as if in anticipation of an earthquake.各种动物都变得焦躁不安，像是感到了地震即将发生。

7 expectancy   

n.期望，预期，（根据概率统计求得）预期数额

参考例句：

• Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
• The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。

8 impatient   

adj.不耐烦的，急躁的；热切的，急切的

参考例句：

• He was so impatient that I could hardly hold him back.他是那样急躁，我简直拉不住他。
• With an impatient gesture he thrust the food away from him.他不耐烦地把吃的东西猛地推开。

9 blast   

v.炸毁，摧毁；n.爆炸，爆破，一阵，汽笛声

参考例句：

• A huge bomb blast rocked central London last night.昨晚一次剧烈的炸弹爆炸震动了伦敦市中心。
• Not until last week was the project in full blast.工程直到上星期才全部开工。

10 magician   

n.魔术师，变戏法的人，术士

参考例句：

• With a wave of his hand,the magician made the rabbit vanish.魔术师手一挥兔子便不见了。
• The magician transformed the man into a rabbit.魔术师把那个人变成了兔子。

11 elastic   

n.橡皮圈，松紧带；adj.有弹性的；灵活的

参考例句：

• Rubber is an elastic material.橡胶是一种弹性材料。
• These regulations are elastic.这些规定是有弹性的。

12 freely   

adv.自由地，随便地，无拘无束地

参考例句：

• She was unable to keep back her tears,and wept freely.她抑制不住泪水，痛痛快快地哭了起来。
• A liquid flows freely and has no fixed shape.液体能自由流动，无固定形态。

13 secured   

adj. 无虑的, 安心的, 安全的 adj. 牢靠的, 稳妥的 vt. 固定, 获得, 使...安全 vi. (海上工作人员)停止工作 vi. (船)抛锚, 停泊

参考例句：

• He secured the appointment of professor of English literature in the university. 他获聘为该大学的英国文学教授。
• By strengthening the embankments they secured the village from floods. 他们加固河堤让村子免受洪水之灾。

14 enables   

v.使能够，提供做…的权利[措施]( enable的第三人称单数 )；使可能

参考例句：

• The software enables you to access the Internet in seconds. 这种软件使你在几秒钟内便可访问互联网。
• This pass enables me to travel half-price on trains. 我用这张通行证可以半价乘火车。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 fluid   

n.流体，液体；adj.流体的，流动的

参考例句：

• Fluid includes both gasses and liquids.流体包括气体和液体。
• The weather is fluid in summer.夏天天气多变。

16 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。