李華和Larry在夏威夷渡假。今天我們要學兩個常用語:pale in comparison 和 blown away。
LH: Larry, 我簡直不能相信今天是我們在夏威夷的最后一天了!真舍不得走。
L: I know! I feel like we just got here, and now we already have to think about going back home.
LH: 所以我們得珍惜這最后一天,咱們來點刺激的,空中跳傘怎么樣?
L: Sky diving? Wow, that would be really crazy! All of our other activities would pale in comparison with sky diving.
LH: Pale in comparison? 什么意思?
L: You can say that something pales in comparison when it is much smaller or less significant than something else.
LH: 哦,pale in comparison就是遠遠不如,遜色很多。你是說,和空中跳傘相比,我們在夏威夷玩兒的其它東西就遜色多了,簡直太沒勁了。
L: Exactly! Or for another example, I could say that John decided to accept a new job at a different company because his old salary paled in comparison with the one he was offered.
LH: 你是說, John跳槽到一家新公司,因為人家給他的薪水比原來公司的高得太多了。
L: Right! But I don't know about sky diving Lihua. It sounds really dangerous.
LH: 不用害怕! 你就是走在大馬路上,也可能摔跟頭??!難道你因為擔心這個就不出門走路了?
L: True, but I think the danger of walking down the street pales in comparison to the danger of sky diving.
LH: 好吧。那咱們?nèi)プ鄙龣C好了,可以鳥瞰美麗的夏威夷!
L: I agree. I think the natural scenery back home pales in comparison with the incredible natural scenery here.
LH: 那當然了! 不過,雖然夏威夷景色怡人,但物價也比其它地方貴。咱們坐直升機肯定得花好多錢。
L: You're right. The prices of things back home really pale in comparison with the prices in Hawaii.
LH: 但是咱們都來了,不去肯定會遺憾的!
L: I think you're right. Let's do it!
******
LH: Larry, 怎么樣?這趟直升機之旅很棒吧?
L: Yeah, that was great! I was really blown away by how beautiful the natural scenery was.
LH: Blown away? 被風吹走?你沒被吹走啊。
L: Actually Lihua, when you say that you were blown away by something, that means that you were really amazed.
LH: 哦,原來be blown away就是感到震驚的意思。你是說,咱們在空中看到的美景徹底讓你瞠目結(jié)舌。
L: Right! Here is another example. When I went to the Sichuan restaurant, I knew that the food would be a little spicy. But I was really blown away by just how spicy it was!
LH: 哦,雖然你本來就知道四川菜辣,但直到真把川菜吃到嘴里后,才發(fā)現(xiàn)它們可比你想象的辣多了。對了,Larry, 那天咱們?nèi)メ烎~,我的垂釣技術(shù)有沒有讓你blown away, 對我刮目相看呢?
L: Lihua, I'm sorry to say that I was not blown away by your fishing skills. Just catching one big fish on your first try is beginner's luck.
LH: 抓到魚是我運氣好?才不是呢!對了,我還聽人說過"blow their mind"這也是一個意思么?
L: Exactly. For example, I had seen pictures of the Grand Canyon in books. But when I finally went there, seeing it in person really blew my mind.
LH: 大峽谷的美景的確會讓人嘆為觀止!對了,上次我做的麻婆豆腐也讓你驚艷了吧!
L: Absolutely! When I tasted your mapo tofu for the first time, it completely blew my mind. I couldn't believe how delicious it was.
LH: 你還挺會說話。對了,我們下午得早點出發(fā)去機場,別遇到堵車。
L: I know! I was blown away by how crowded the airport was when we landed.
LH: 不過比起紐約的交通,這里就算不錯了。
L: Oh sure, the lines at the airport here pale in comparison to big US cities.
LH: 說到紐約,馬上就要回去了,又得上班了,真煩人。
L: Lihua, I have just one rule for going on vacation: never mention work!
今天李華學了兩個常用語。一個是pale in comparison, 表示不能比,遜色很多。另一個是blown away, 意思是大吃一驚。