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7. Staying
Home
*(love) affair: an intense enthusiasm for
sth, or a sexual relationship outside of marriage
announcer: someone who describes an
activity or sports match on TV/radio
army academy: a school for training army
officers
*arrangements: plans or preparations for
something
*bachelor: an unmarried man (bachelorette
is for women)
cocktail party: a party at which alcoholic
drinks (cocktails) and snacks are served (guests often wear formal
clothes, and the main reason is to meet and chat with others at your
social or income level)
*comedy: a funny story/movie/book
*commercials=advertisements
composer: someone who writes music
costume party: a party (fun meeting) where
people dress up in funny clothes, often to look like someone else
(Halloween parties are often costume parties, where people may dress as a
ghost, vampire, monkey, famous person, alien, etc.)
*crime: illegal activities; an act that
breaks a law
*detective: [c] sb whose job is to discover
information about crime (many work as police officers, though
“private
detectives”
like Sherlock Holmes [福尔摩斯]
work independently)
*documentary: a film or special that talks
about real events (history, trends, etc.), instead of presenting a drama
about those events [documentaries often seem like “news” shows; and of
course the documentary tells the “facts” from the perspective of the
people who sponsor the film—not necessarily “objective” facts]
heiress: a woman who receives money from a
relative when the relative dies
*macho: very masculine [a
男子汉is
considered macho]
nuclear power plant: a place that contains
all the machinery and materials necessary to make nuclear energy [核动力]
*pilot: sb who drives an airplane; the
first show in a new series (often like a movie in length, to see if the
public will be interested in a show like this)
*RSVP: “please respond” (from French);
please reply to this invitation
*signature: your name, signed in an
official way, such as on a bank document or application
*(TV) special: a TV program that is not a
regular program, such as a special holiday cartoon or news show about a
crisis
*sponsor: the company or people who pay for
a TV show or film (often through advertisements)
*technician: someone who is skilled at
fixing or operating a complicated machine
(to have a) temper: to easily become angry
*thriller: an exciting story/movie/book,
which is normally about crime
toast: a wish expressed while drinking
alcohol with others [干杯?];
a slice of bread that is intentionally “overcooked” in an oven [烤面包]
8. Going Out
BLT: Bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich
barbeque/BBQ: food cooked over an open
fire or hot coals, and often treated with a tangy (sweet/sour) sauce or
spices
club sandwich:
A sandwich of meat, tomato, lettuce, and mayonnaise, with two layers of
filling between three slices of toast or bread.
*concert=performance;
an artistic show given by musicians or singers
*entrée=main dish; the main part of
a western meal (often made with meat)
*espresso: strong black coffee made by
forcing hot water under pressure through finely ground coffee beans
frizzed out (hair): curly, and sticking
out all over the head
*genre: films, music, etc., that share
certain features (popular movie genres include comedy, drama,
fantasy, horror, musical, sports, romance, crime, historical, suspense &
documentary)
gruesome: something that causes horror or
that seems terrible
*Grammy: an annual American prize for the
best song, singer, etc.
*groceries/grocery (bill): food or related
things, sold in a supermarket or grocery store
Gypsy: an ethnic group of people who traveled from town to town, often
working as entertainers, but historically distrusted by “settled” people
[movies like this one show them as thieves as well as singers/dancers]
illusion: something that seems to be
different from the way it really is
*latte: strong espresso coffee with a topping of bubble-filled,
steamed milk
loin cloth: a cloth worn around the body
between the waist and the legs (such as used by Sumo wrestlers or some
primitive people groups)
*match=contest;
a game or sport with two or more players
milk tea (also known as bubble tea and
pearl milk tea): an Asian drink made with tea (often black tea), sugar and
evaporated milk (the “pearls” in “pearl tea” are made of chewy tapioca
balls)
orchestra: a large group of musicians
playing different instruments together to create music
*Oscar: an annual American prize for the
best movie, actor, etc.
pigtail: long hair worn in a braid (i.e.,
long hair that has been twisted)
preserved (food): food that has been
processed so that it can be eaten a long time later (by treating it with
salt/brine, vinegar, sugar, high temperatures, chemicals like BHT, etc.)
rare/medium/well-done: 3-6-9分熟
(“How do you want that cooked?”=
几分熟)
煮熟=well
done
*ritual: a set of required actions, as in
a religious or social ceremony (e.g., a wedding, baptism, tea ceremony)
*scar: the mark left after a cut or a
wound heals
*scary=frightening
*sequel: a continuation; a movie sequel
starts where the first movie stopped
*side(s): side dish; a serving of food
that you eat with the main dish (e.g., potatoes, salad, beans, toast)
“special” (or value meal):
套餐
(“Do you have any specials today?”)
special effects: the illusions used when
making movies/shows, that make remarkable things look real (e.g., burning
buildings, life on distant planets, a flying man, etc.)
take away or "to go":
带走
(“Is that for here or to go?”)
*toppings: things you put on food to make
it look nicer or taste better (e.g., nuts, candy, berries, cheese)
food terms
(be able to “match” the English and *Chinese terms)
*baked:
烤
*boiled:
煮开过的
*chocolate:
巧克力
chowder:
海鲜浓汤
*dressing (salad dressing):
沙拉酱
(e.g., French, 1000 Island, mayonnaise)
fried:
油炸的
*ketchup (BrE tomato sauce):
番茄酱
pepper/curry/chili:
胡椒/咖喱/辣椒
pickled:
泡菜
preserve:
腌,
罐头
ribs:
排骨
shrimp/prawn:
虾/对虾
*spicy:
辣;
麻辣
steak:
牛排
*steamed:
蒸气的
*stir-fried:
炒(菜)
*vanilla:
香草
veal:
小牛肉
*veggie: vegetable
蔬菜
9. One of these days
middle class: the social class of people
who are neither rich nor poor, usually educated and working in
professional jobs (including government positions) or running businesses;
sometimes we also talk about the upper and lower middle class
*residence: [formal] the place where
you live; your home. The adjective is residential (so
区
is “residential area” or “residential district”) “What kind of
residence do you live in, a rented apartment (公寓),
a privately-owned condo in a multi-story building (i.e., condominium;
共管), a private house with a yard (房子),
or an expensive villa in the suburbs (别墅)?”
(These are AmE terms)
apartheid: the former political system in
South Africa, wherein non-white people were denied equal legal status, and
had to attend separate schools, live in separate areas, etc.
*shortage=a lack of something
*soybean: a high-protein, healthy
Asian source of food and oil (大豆)
pollutants: the things (smoke & other
waste) that make our air and water dirty (i.e, polluted)
greenhouse effect: the gradual increase in
earth’s average temperatures, because of pollution; also called global
warming (a greenhouse is a glass or plastic building in which
plants are grown, especially when the temperature outside is too cold to
allow plants to grow)
*prediction: an educated guess
(forecast) about what will happen (in one’s life, sports, the weather, the
stock market, international politics, or just about anything, etc.)
[notice that “prediction” can be used to talk about a wider range of
things than “forecast”]
*conveniences: [plural, often
“modern conveniences”] things that make life easier and more convenient,
like cars, indoor running water, and electricity
[better definition!] -- *conveniences: [plural, often “modern
conveniences”] things that make life easier and more convenient,
especially indoor running water, plumbing (toilets), electricity, and
electric appliances
equator: the “line” around the center of
the earth, half way between the north and south poles (赤道)
*tropical: related to or happening
in the hottest parts of the world (e.g., around the equator)
*climate: the normal weather
conditions in an area (rainy, cold, dry, etc.)
*commerce: related to
buying/selling/trading goods and services; a government department
responsible for regulating business and trade
10. Staying Healthy
*nutrition: the content of food from
a health point of view (good nutrition means eating the right mix of food
to get plenty of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and everything else needed for
good health)
*nutritious: describes food that is
healthy, or the health-aspects of food
*garbage: trash, esp left-over food
that has been thrown away [BrE rubbish]
*alcohol: [u] the general term for
any drink that can make you drunk (e.g., beer, wine, mao-tai, vodka,
etc.); also used for a chemical that can be used to sterilize or clean
wounds, skin, medical instruments, etc. [BrE surgical spirit]
alcoholic: [adj] related to alcohol or
someone who is addicted to alcoholic drinks (i.e., someone who often gets
drunk)
brandy: a strong alcoholic drink made from
wine
heating pad: an electric pillow used to add
warmth to a sore back/leg/etc.
board: a stiff flat piece of wood, usually
not too small (e.g., floor boards, a cutting board); such a piece of wood,
plastic or other material that you can use for displaying information
(e.g., a display panel) or on which you play a game (e.g., chess or
multi-player games); a group of people who manage or oversee an
organization/hospital/charity/etc.
*insomnia: the inability to sleep
ice cube: a (usually square) piece of ice
that you put into drinks to make them cold (an alcoholic drink so served
is said to be “on the rocks”)
*to
drown: to die by being under
water too long
*to
get drunk: to drink so much
alcohol that you lose some of your normal ability to think clearly
(getting drunk also has a negative affect on your liver and other parts of
your body) (喝醉)
*to
jaywalk: to cross a street where
you are not supposed to, that is, not at a corner or through a crosswalk (人行横道).
[Jaywalking is a crime in US cities, and jaywalkers can be
fined by the police, so it is rare.]
*unstable: likely to suddenly move,
fall, or change for the worse
*a
runny nose: what happens when you
have a cold, and you can’t control the watery stuff that “runs” out of
your nose
*irritable: describes someone who
quickly gets angry or upset about things
*persistent: not giving up, in spite
of problems or set backs
Collocation
[when talking about the body, some things “ache” while others are
“sore”—here is how we put these terms together in English]
I have a terrible…
…tooth/back/head/stomach/ear
ache.
…leg/ muscle
cramp.
…sore
throat/nose/foot/toe/hand/finger/arm/leg/ shoulder/neck.
A pain pill /a massage/ acupuncture /aroma
therapy /gargling salt water /doing stretching exercises…
works for me. [notice that “works” can be used with a singular
noun (plus article), a non-countable therapy, or a gerund (-ing term)]
My back/head/arm/stomach/foot/etc
is killing me.
*Get
off my back. = Stop giving me a
hard time; stop making me feel bad with your words.
to give sb a hard time means to annoy
someone or make his life difficult (often by complaining about a bad habit
or continually suggesting a change in lifestyle)
I’m starving! = I’m very, very hungry.
*I’m
at the end of my rope. = I am
so anxious/worried about something that I really don’t know what to do;
I’ve tried every solution I can think of but I still have this problem
11. All in a day’s work
*to
get a promotion: to be moved up
to a better job, higher pay, more responsibility, etc., especially within
the company you already work for
*to
deal with: to handle or solve
sth like a problem or need
to pick or pick out: to choose or select
*to
be bad for (your
back/career/health/relationship/etc): to have a negative effect on
*to
come up with (an
idea/solution/plan/etc): to creatively think of or find sth
*routine: a series of repeated
actions (such as a dance act or sth you do over and over at work)
to contact: to communicate with (“I need to
contact the manager to get an answer.”)
to negotiate: to talk about something from
more than one perspective, trying to reach an agreement
*figures: numbers (“I’m not very
good with figures, but I’m good at remembering names.”)
*the
books: a company’s financial
records (“An accountant keeps his company’s books.”)
manager: someone who directs a group of
people or supervises some aspect of a company’s work
*benefits/benefit package: what you
get for doing your job, including pay, insurance, and perks
*perks:
special benefits companies give to certain employees, often to attract
them to work there, such as the use of a car, free travel or food, free
housing, product samples for personal use, etc.
*résumé (notice the accent marks): a
favorable summary of your educational background, employment history, and
other information of interest to potential employers
15. The persuaders
snide comment: an amusing statement, often
spoken softly, meant to hurt someone’s feelings or make them look bad
terminal: a place where airplanes or buses
arrive and depart from
*miracle: something very good that
happens when you didn't expect it; a good thing that God does, and that is
normally impossible (奇迹?)
*portable: easy to move
*insane: crazy, but sometimes used
to say that something is offered at a great price (“We have insane prices
and unbeatable service.”)
*commercial: (in this context) an
advertisement; a written or spoken attempt to persuade you to buy or do
something
campaign: a series of meetings, ads, or
activities with a specific end in mind
to orient: to design or direct (“You must
orient your ad to appeal to certain people.”); to make sb familiar with
his/her surroundings (“This note will help me get oriented to my new
schedule.”); to get sth to face in a certain direction
*slogan: an easy-to-remember phrase
that should help customers think positively about your product (“Good to
the last drop” “Just do it” “Finger-licking good”)
night shift: work hours that start after it
gets dark outside
