Amir正在申請成為美國公民,今天,他要去見移民律師John, 聽聽他的建議。
John: Hi Amir, it's nice to meet you. I'm happy you want to become a US citizen.
Amir: Thank you, John. I'm very excited, but I'm also a little worried about how long and complicated the process can be.
John: Don't worry, I will be here to help you through it and explain what's going on.
Amir: Great, that's really helpful for me. When you aren't a native English speaker, it can be hard to read all the documents and understand the naturalization process.
哈,John 當(dāng)然希望Amir申請入籍啦,這樣他的生意就來啦!
Professor: Well, I guess you could look at it that way. But Winnie, why does Amir say the application process can be hard?
Amir說,他不是"native English speaker" - 英語不是母語,所以在填表的時(shí)候會遇到困難。對了,professor, Amir提到一個(gè)詞 - naturalization,這是什么意思?
Professor: Naturalization is the process of becoming a citizen of another country.
哦,naturalization就是入籍,變成另外一國的公民。
John: So Amir, how did you come to America originally? Did your company sponsor your visa?
Amir: Actually, no. I got married to an American while living in Iran, and we decided to settle in the United States.
John: Oh, you have an American spouse. Where do you live?
Amir: I really like city life so New York is my favorite city. But my wife has some family in Virginia, so we live there.
Professor: So Winnie, did Amir first come to America on a work visa?
Amir并不是拿工作簽證來美國的,而是在伊朗時(shí)和美國人結(jié)婚,然后到美國定居。我猜,spouse就是配偶的意思吧?
Professor: That's right.
Professor, John問Amir是不是有公司"sponsor him for a visa",這是什么意思呢?
Professor: When a company "sponsors" you for a visa, they ask the government to give you a visa. Usually you need a sponsor in the US to get a visa.
哦,公司可以作為擔(dān)保人,替雇員向政府申請工作簽證,這個(gè)過程就叫"sponsor"。
Professor: So if you are applying for a job in America, you might ask the company, "Can you sponsor me for a visa?"
John: Well there are some things you should do to start preparing for the interview. You should learn about US civics and the constitution.
Amir: Don't worry, I've already lived in the US for three years and know all about its history and politics.
John: Good, then the interview and test won't be a problem. Do you have any dependents?
Amir: No, my wife and I don't have any children.
Professor: So Winnie, does Amir have to prepare a lot for his citizenship test?
申請入美國籍需要參加citizenship test - 公民考試,所以要了解美國的civics - 公民知識,還有constitution - 憲法。不過,Amir說他已經(jīng)在美國生活三年了,這些知識他都懂,所以不需要做太多準(zhǔn)備。
Professor: That's right. John also asked Amir if he had any "dependents". A dependent is anyone who depends on you to take care of him.
對,dependent就是需要供養(yǎng)的親人,比如小孩,年邁的父母等等。Amir和妻子沒有孩子,所以沒有dependent.
Amir: So John, do you think there will be any problems with my application?
John: It definitely sounds like you are eligible to become a US citizen. I think that before too long, you won't have to be an alien anymore!
Amir: Yeah, I can't wait! Hopefully I will become a citizen in time to vote in the next election.
John: I sure hope so! Good luck!
Professor Bowman, alien不是指外星人么?我不懂為什么美國人把來美移民也稱為"alien",我又不是從火星來的!
Professor: Really? Sometimes I doubt that.
哈,被你發(fā)現(xiàn)了! 言歸正傳,Amir希望自己能盡快入籍,這樣,他就能享受公民獨(dú)有的投票權(quán)了!
Professor: Let's listen next time to see if Amir is able to vote in the next election!
這次的美語三級跳就播送到這里。