VOA慢速英语2021--母亲节的特别说法

And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning¹ English.

Mothers have been celebrated² around the world since the days of ancient Greeks³ and Romans.

In the United⁴ States, Mother's Day became a national holiday after an effort by Anna Jarvis "as a way of honoring⁵ the sacrifices mothers made for their children." U.S. President Woodrow Wilson signed a measure in 1914 to officially set Mother's Day on the second Sunday of May.

Americans celebrate mothers by buying them gifts, taking them out for a meal, or surprising them with their favorite treat. Mother's Day cards, either bought or made, are a big part of this special day.

Mothers are important in so many ways, too many to count. In some families, the mother is the leader. She is called the matriarch.

The importance of mothers can be seen in words like mother tongue. This is the language you speak at home. And your mother country is the country where you were born. Sometimes, we also call this the motherland.

Then there is Mother Nature, Mother Earth, and Earth Mother. We use these words to describe the beginning and the guiding force of the whole world – humans included.

There is even a saying "necessity⁶ is the mother of invention." It means⁷ that new ways to do things are found or created when there is a strong need for them.

In any culture, the worst thing you could do would be to insult⁸ someone's mother, especially calling her ugly. That could get you into a fight very quickly.

In the U.S. a children's rhyme⁹ goes this way: "Step on a crack¹⁰, break your mother's back." It means if you step on a crack, for example on the sidewalk, it will cause your mother's back to break. Nobody would want that. So, children turn this rhyme into a game and jump over cracks¹¹ on the sidewalk.

For this Mother's Day, we will learn another saying that uses the word mother: "Diligence is the mother of good luck."

First, what does diligence mean? Diligence is careful and continued hard work. So, this saying means that hard work produces chances for success – not luck.

Let's hear it used in this example:

Did you hear the great news! Sam's book is going to be published this summer!

That is wonderful. He is SO lucky.

In his case, diligence is the mother of good luck. He spent two years non-stop writing that book.

Oh. I guess, luck had little to do with it.

So, if someone you know has had success after working diligently¹², you can use this saying. It's like telling them that their hard work has paid off.

For example, if you got a great job using your wonderful English and a friend says to you, "Wow, you're really lucky." You can say, "Diligence is the mother of good luck."

After all, your speaking English has nothing to do with good luck, but rather your hard work.

And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.

Words in This Story

matriarch – n. a woman who controls a family, group, or government

rhyme – n. one of two or more words or phrases¹³ that end in the same sounds

crack – n. a thin line in the surface of something that is broken but not separated¹⁴ into pieces

diligence – n. careful and continued hard work

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

3 Greeks   

希腊人( Greek的名词复数 )； 希腊语； 对我来说太难懂了； 像天书一样

参考例句：

• The ancient Greeks sacrificed lambs or calves before engaging in battle. 古希腊人在打仗前用羊和小牛作祭品。
• Troy was besieged by the Greeks for ten years. 特洛伊城被希腊人围攻了十年。

4 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

5 honoring   

v.尊敬，给以荣誉( honor的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They sat in silence, honoring the clan Jordache for a moment. 他们默默地坐了一会儿，对乔达虚家族表示了一番敬意。 来自辞典例句
• Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check. 美国没有履行这项神圣的义务，只是给黑人开了一张空头支票。 来自辞典例句

6 necessity   

n.必要性，需要；必需品

参考例句：

• I look upon this as an absolute necessity.我认为这是绝对必要的。
• You must understand the necessity of education.你必须懂得教育的必要性。

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 insult   

vt.侮辱，凌辱；n.侮辱的言词或行为

参考例句：

• You will insult her if you don't go to her party. 你要是不去参加她举办的聚会，就对她太无礼了。
• I can't sit down with that insult.我不能忍受那种侮辱。

9 rhyme   

n.韵，押韵，韵文；vi.押韵，作诗；vt.使押韵，用韵诗表达

参考例句：

• I cannot find a rhyme to " hiccups ".我不能找到和 “hiccups”同韵的词。
• The last two lines of this poem don't rhyme properly.这首诗后两句不怎么压韵。

10 crack   

vi.发破裂声；噼啪地响；vt./vi.（使）开裂；破裂；n.裂缝，缝隙；爆裂声，破裂声，劈啪声

参考例句：

• There's a crack in this cup.这个杯子上有个裂缝。
• There's a crack on the underneath of the bowl.碗底有一道裂缝。

11 cracks   

v.打开( crack的第三人称单数 )；（使…）开裂；说（笑话）；开瓶

参考例句：

• Check the container for cracks or leaks. 检验容器是否有裂缝或者漏的地方。
• cracks in the metalwork 金属件上的裂缝

12 diligently   

ad.industriously;carefully

参考例句：

• He applied himself diligently to learning French. 他孜孜不倦地学法语。
• He had studied diligently at college. 他在大学里勤奋学习。

13 phrases   

n.短语( phrase的名词复数 )；成语；说法；乐句

参考例句：

• Sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 体育解说员翻来覆去说着同样的词语，真叫人腻烦。
• Television sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 电视体育解说员说来说去就是那么几句话，令人厌烦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 separated   

adj.分开的v.分开(separate的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• Her parents are separated but not divorced. 她父母分居但没离婚。
• No child should ever be separated from his mother by force. 绝不能强行使任何一个孩子与母亲分开。 来自《简明英汉词典》