在线英语听力室

VOA慢速英语--What Is Your Body Language Really Saying?

时间:2017-07-09 16:38:52

搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号:tingroom,领取免费英语资料大礼包。

(单词翻译)

 

Now, the VOA Learning English program, Words and Their Stories.

On this program we explore words and common expressions in American English.

We communicate most commonly, of course, with our words. But we also speak with our bodies. We call it body language.

Sometimes, though, we need to describe our body language with words. That is what today’s show is about – talking about body language.

Two types of body language have made their way into text messaging and social media language.

The most common is LOL. If we are LOL-ing, we are laughing out loud. That is what l-o-l stands for. And it is easy to know when to use this. If a friend writes something to you that is extremely funny – or hilarious1 – you can reply with a “LOL.” In conversation, though, it sounds weird2 to say the letters “L-O-L.”

Here’s another one you might see in a text message from a friend.

So, when someone nods their head up and down, that means they are in agreement. And if they shake their heads back and forth3, it means they are disagreeing.

Well, sometimes it does. Sometimes shaking one’s head means something completely different.

For example, I might say I could only shake my head at his arrogance4. This means that I couldn’t believe that he had said or done something so arrogant5. In a text, email or social media post, you can simply type SMH. But just as with LOL, it doesn’t sound right in spoken English.

Here is an example of how to use the full phrase “shake my head” in a conversation.

I can’t believe how your friend acted at the funeral! When the preacher began speaking, she laughed out loud. It was so disrespectful.

How do you think I felt? I was standing6 with her! I could only shake my head and cringe inside. It was so embarrassing!

If your friend is always behaving badly, you may just have to throw your hands up. This body language expression means that you realize that you cannot do anything to make a situation better.

For example, let’s say you are teaching a roomful of young children when suddenly a dog runs through the classroom! The children jump up and start laughing and chasing the dog. You can’t do anything to quiet them down. So, you just throw your hands up and let them have fun.

Shrugging your shoulders is when you raise and lower them. As body language, it shows that you don’t care about something. But it can also mean that you are uncertain or perhaps just bored.

For example, let’s say I am babysitting a friend’s child. At dinnertime, I ask the child, “So, do you want pasta or rice for dinner?” He doesn’t say anything. He just shrugs7 his shoulders. So, I made my favorite – pasta with tomato sauce!

Rolling your eyes is another way to show you don’t care. This body language says that you don’t care AT ALL about what someone is saying. Eye-rolling is even more disrespectful than shoulder-shrugging. So, teachers and parents often criticize children for eye-rolls by simply saying, “Don’t roll your eyes at me!”

Staying with the eyes, we come to raising eyebrows8. Usually when we raise our eyebrows, our faces look as if we are surprised or shocked by something. But raising your eyebrows can also show that you disapprove9 of something. There is a certain amount of judgement in eyebrow-raising.

Let’s hear it used in a short dialogue.

Did you hear about Jack10? During the weekly meeting with staff, he wore a head-to-toe clown costume.

Oh, that’s nothing. He lost a bet with his son and had to wear it.

Well, it raised some eyebrows around the office. People are saying he isn’t serious enough to be manager.

Wearing a clown costume is nothing to raise your eyebrows at. People should really lighten up!

Now, when some people are nervous, they bite their nails. It may not be a good habit, but it has given us a useful word.

Something, such as a game or a movie, that causes you to feel nervous because the ending is not known until the final moment is called a nail-biter!

When talking about a sporting event, the opposite of a nail-biter is a blow-out. A blow-out is a game where one team out scores the other by a lot!

Did you watch the basketball game last night?

I did! What a great game.

I know. I haven’t seen a game that close in a long time. It was a real nail-biter! The score was tied until the last 10 minutes!

It was a much better game than last week. That game was a blow out. One team scored 68 points in the first quarter while the other didn’t even score one. Boring.

And that’s all for this Words and Their Stories.

Even though this program is not a nail-biter, we hope you’re not rolling your eyes or shrugging your shoulders with boredom11. And we certainly hope your eyebrows aren’t raised in disapproval12. But we do hope you give us a thumbs up, which -- of course -- means “good job.”

I’m Anna Matteo.

Words and Their Stories

hilarious – adj. very funny

arrogance – n. an insulting way of thinking or behaving that comes from believing that you are better, smarter, or more important than other people : arrogant – adj.

cringe – v. to feel disgust or embarrassment13 and often to show this feeling by a movement of your face or body

boredom – v. the state of being weary and restless through lack of interest : bored – adj. filled with or characterized by boredom

habit – n. a usual way of behaving : something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way


分享到:


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 hilarious xdhz3     
adj.充满笑声的,欢闹的;[反]depressed
参考例句:
  • The party got quite hilarious after they brought more wine.在他们又拿来更多的酒之后,派对变得更加热闹起来。
  • We stop laughing because the show was so hilarious.我们笑个不停,因为那个节目太搞笑了。
2 weird bghw8     
adj.古怪的,离奇的;怪诞的,神秘而可怕的
参考例句:
  • From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来,他好像有点怪。
  • His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。
3 forth Hzdz2     
adv.向前;向外,往外
参考例句:
  • The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
  • He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。
4 arrogance pNpyD     
n.傲慢,自大
参考例句:
  • His arrogance comes out in every speech he makes.他每次讲话都表现得骄傲自大。
  • Arrogance arrested his progress.骄傲阻碍了他的进步。
5 arrogant Jvwz5     
adj.傲慢的,自大的
参考例句:
  • You've got to get rid of your arrogant ways.你这骄傲劲儿得好好改改。
  • People are waking up that he is arrogant.人们开始认识到他很傲慢。
6 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
7 shrugs d3633c0b0b1f8cd86f649808602722fa     
n.耸肩(以表示冷淡,怀疑等)( shrug的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany shrugs off this criticism. 匈牙利总理久尔恰尼对这个批评不以为然。 来自互联网
  • She shrugs expressively and takes a sip of her latte. 她表达地耸肩而且拿她的拿铁的啜饮。 来自互联网
8 eyebrows a0e6fb1330e9cfecfd1c7a4d00030ed5     
眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • Eyebrows stop sweat from coming down into the eyes. 眉毛挡住汗水使其不能流进眼睛。
  • His eyebrows project noticeably. 他的眉毛特别突出。
9 disapprove 9udx3     
v.不赞成,不同意,不批准
参考例句:
  • I quite disapprove of his behaviour.我很不赞同他的行为。
  • She wants to train for the theatre but her parents disapprove.她想训练自己做戏剧演员,但她的父母不赞成。
10 jack 53Hxp     
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克
参考例句:
  • I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
  • He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。
11 boredom ynByy     
n.厌烦,厌倦,乏味,无聊
参考例句:
  • Unemployment can drive you mad with boredom.失业会让你无聊得发疯。
  • A walkman can relieve the boredom of running.跑步时带着随身听就不那么乏味了。
12 disapproval VuTx4     
n.反对,不赞成
参考例句:
  • The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
  • They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。
13 embarrassment fj9z8     
n.尴尬;使人为难的人(事物);障碍;窘迫
参考例句:
  • She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
  • Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。

本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎 点击提交 分享给大家。