大学英语听力第一册 lesson 13

　　Apologies I
PART A Micro-Listening
Numbers Teens¹ and Tens
I. Directions: Listen carefully and repeat the number you hear. Then underline² the correct number. 10 points
1. The dress cost me 30 / 13 pounds.
2. You have to pay 19 / 90 dollars for the night.
3. Tom was 14 / 40 minutes late for class this morning.
4. It usually takes me about 50 / 15 minutes to walk to the school.
5. Ellie lost 18 / 80 dollars on her way home.
6. Bill is young but he has been to 16 / 60 countries.
7. I went to the post office for 30 / 13 fifty-cent stamps.
8. This happened in the year 1916 / 1960.
9. The Johnsons live at 1017 / 1070, 5th Avenue³.
10. Her room number is 1418 / 1480, Park Hotel.
II. Directions: You will hear five sentences. Each one will be read three times. Listen carefully and write down what you hear. 10 points
1. ___________.
2. ___________.
3. ___________.
4. ___________.
5. ___________.
PART B Macro-Listening
Dialogue 1
It Wasn't My Mistake
I. Tapescript
Miss Smith Good morning, Mr Sharp. I'm awfully⁴ sorry I'm late.
Mr Sharp You're late every morning, Miss Smith. You were late Tuesday, yesterday... Don't you have a watch?
Miss Smith Yes, but it wasn't my mistake. I stood in the rain for an hour this morning. I waited and waited for a bus, and then when one came, it was full.
Mr Sharp How about yesterday and the day before yesterday?
Miss Smith Well, I came by taxi yesterday and...
Mr Sharp And you were still late! And Tuesday?
Miss Smith Tuesday I went to see the doctor and I waited for my turn for about two hours. It was terrible!
Mr Sharp And tomorrow, Miss Smith?
II. Language and Culture Notes
1. Awfully sorry is used in colloquial⁵ English, meaning 'Very sorry'. 'I'm awfully sorry' is a useful expression in making an apology. Some other apologetic expressions are: 'Oh, I'm sorry', 'It's my fault', 'Sorry to trouble you', 'I'm afraid I can't...', etc. Answers to apologies are: 'That's quite all right', 'It doesn't matter', 'Not at all', etc.
2. I wailed⁶ for my turn for about two hours. It means⁷ Miss Smith had to wait for her chance to see the doctor for a long time.
III. Exercises with Key
1. Directions: Listen to the dialogue and choose the best answer to each question you hear. 10 points
1
a. Monday morning.
b. Tuesday morning.
c. Wednesday morning.
d. Thursday morning.
2
a. Three times.
b. Four times.
c. Five times.
d. Six times.
3
a. The bus service was very bad.
b. It was raining.
c. She didn't have a watch.
d. She wasn't feeling well.
4
a. She was very ill and had to go and see the doctor.
b. She was kept waiting for a long time at the clinic.
c. She couldn't get a taxi.
d. The bus was late.
5
a. Miss Smith was very sorry because she was always late for work.
b. Miss Smith was unlucky.
c. Miss Smith was always late for work.
d. Miss Smith always had some excuses for not coming on time.
2. Directions: Listen to the dialogue again and fill in the blanks with what you hear. 10 points
1 — Good morning, Mr Sharp. ___________ I'm late.
2 — ... I stood ___________ for an hour this morning.
3 — I waited and waited for a bus, and then when one came, ___________.
4 — Well, I came ___________ yesterday and...
5 — Tuesday I went to see the doctor and I ___________. It was terrible!
Dialogue 2
This Isn't the First Time
I. Tapescript
Customer I'm afraid I have a complaint⁸ to make.
Manager Oh, dear. Please take a seat.
Customer I'm sorry to say the bill you sent me was incorrect⁹.
Manager Incorrect, madam? That's very strange.
Customer Yes, I know, and what's more, this isn't the first time.
Manager Really, madam? I find it hard to believe.
Customer Look, it's happened five or six times in the past three months.
Manager Ah. Well, I must apologize, madam. It's the new computer.
Customer Well, don't you think it's about time you got it working properly? It's most inconvenient¹⁰.
Manager I agree entirely¹¹. I'm awfully sorry about it. I assure¹² you it won't happen again.
II. Language and Culture Notes
1. The bill In many large department stores it is possible for customers to buy goods without paying cash for them immediately. The store keeps a record of the cost of all the things the customer buys, and then sends him / her a bill for the total amount at the end of the month.
2. The new computer Since its first use in 1946, the electronic¹³ computer has played a very important role in people's life. Nearly every company or store uses computers to do calculation¹⁴ work. But sometimes they get out of order and cause trouble.
3. Oh, dear is an interjection used to express the speaker's surprise or annoyance¹⁵.
III. Exercises with Key
1. Directions: Listen to the dialogue and choose the best answer to each question you hear. 10 points
1 What was the woman complaining about?
a. The bill was not clear enough.
b. The bill was sent to a wrong address.
c. Incorrect bills were sent to her now and then.
d. The clerks were rather rude to her.
2 Why did the same kind of mistakes occur¹⁶ again and again?
a. The manager was careless.
b. The computer was too old to be used.
c. The new computer was not working properly.
d. The clerks did not know how to use the new computer.
3 What did the sales manager agree to do?
a. To fire the rude clerks.
b. To give back the money to the woman.
c. To get a better computer.
d. To get the computer working correctly.
4 Which of the following statements¹⁷ is NOT mentioned in the dialogue?
a. The customer asked the manager to punish the rude clerks.
b. The computer was a new one.
c. A customer came to complain about incorrect bills.
d. The sales manager was sorry for the incorrect bills sent to the customer.
5 What does the dialogue mainly suggest?
a. Incorrect bills should not be sent to customers.
b. Some customers complain too much.
c. Computers are less efficient than men.
d. Computers are not always reliable¹⁸.
2. Directions: Listen to the dialogue again and supply the missing¹⁹ words. 10 points
1 I'm afraid ___________.
2 Oh, dear. Please ___________.
3 Yes, I know, and ___________, this isn't the first time.
4 Look, it's happened ___________.
5 Ah. Well, I must apologize, madam. ___________.
PART C Oral Practice
I. Directions: Work in pairs and find all the expressions of apology in the two dialogues you've just heard.
II. Directions: Use the above expressions in the following situations and make a dialogue with your deskmate.
1. You're late for class. Make an apology to the teacher.
2. You failed to return a book to your friend on time. Apologize for it.

1 teens   

n.13至19岁的年龄；青少年

参考例句：

• His son is in his teens.他的儿子十几岁。
• She's not yet out of her teens.她还不到二十岁。

2 underline   

n.下划线；加下划线；vt.在…下面划线；强调

参考例句：

• Underline all the sentences you do not know.在你不懂的所有句子下面划一条线。
• Please underline the noun clauses in the passage.请用线画出短文中的名词性从句。

3 avenue   

n.林荫道；大街；途径，手段

参考例句：

• This is a shady avenue.这是条林阴大道。
• He drove slowly.The avenue was crowded with people.他慢慢地开车，因为大街上挤满了人。

4 awfully   

adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地

参考例句：

• Agriculture was awfully neglected in the past.过去农业遭到严重忽视。
• I've been feeling awfully bad about it.对这我一直感到很难受。

5 colloquial   

adj.口语的，会话的

参考例句：

• It's hard to understand the colloquial idioms of a foreign language.外语里的口头习语很难懂。
• They have little acquaintance with colloquial English. 他们对英语会话几乎一窍不通。

6 wailed   

v.哭叫，哀号( wail的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She wailed over her father's remains. 她对着父亲的遗体嚎啕大哭。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The women of the town wailed over the war victims. 城里的妇女为战争的死难者们痛哭。 来自辞典例句

7 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

8 complaint   

n.诉苦，抱怨，牢骚，委屈，疾病

参考例句：

• This is a cause of complaint.这是抱怨的原因。
• He has a heart complaint.他有心脏病。

9 incorrect   

adj.不正确的，错误的

参考例句：

• Your answer is incorrect.你的回答不正确。
• The method is incorrect.方法不对头。

10 inconvenient   

adj.不方便的，令人感到麻烦的

参考例句：

• You have come at a very inconvenient time.你来得最不适时。
• Will it be inconvenient for him to attend that meeting?他参加那次会议会不方便吗？

11 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

12 assure   

vt.使确信；向…保证，使有保证

参考例句：

• The only ladder to assure success is to work hard.确保成功的惟一途径是刻苦努力。
• I assure you that she can be trusted to do the job.我担保她能做好这项工作。

13 electronic   

adj.电子的；n.[-s]电子学，电子设备

参考例句：

• It is an electronic device with many uses.这是一部具有多种用途的电子仪器。
• Father needs a new electronic shaver.爸爸需要一个新的电子剃须刀。

14 calculation   

n.计算；计算结果

参考例句：

• The machine will read out the result of the calculation.机器将读出计算结果。
• He is absorbed in the calculation of that difficult maths problem.他全神贯注地在算那道数学难题。

15 annoyance   

n.恼怒，生气，烦恼

参考例句：

• Why do you always take your annoyance out on me?为什么你不高兴时总是对我出气？
• I felt annoyance at being teased.我恼恨别人取笑我。

16 occur   

vi.发生，想到，存在

参考例句：

• Didn't it occur to you to close the window?难道你没有想到去关窗户吗？
• I hope this won't occur again.我希望不要再发生这种事情。

17 statements   

n.声明( statement的名词复数 )；（思想、观点、文章主题等的）表现；（文字）陈述；结算单

参考例句：

• We are faced with two apparently contradictory statements. 我们面前这两种说法显然是矛盾的。
• The report is inconsistent with the financial statements. 这个报告与财务报表内容不一致。

18 reliable   

adj.可信赖的；可靠的

参考例句：

• I'm afraid the information is not reliable.恐怕消息不可靠。
• Do you think she's reliable?你看她这个人可靠吗？

19 missing   

adj.遗失的，缺少的，失踪的

参考例句：

• Check the tools and see if anything is missing.检点一下工具，看有无丢失。
• All the others are here;he's the only one missing.别人都来了，就短他一个。