Larry和李華一起去看職業(yè)棒球賽。今天我們要學(xué)兩個常用語:a drop in the bucket和a flash in the pan.
LH: Larry, 世界杯結(jié)束了,咱們該看棒球了吧?我估計(jì),棒球比賽肯定沒有世界杯那么緊張。
L: I agree. Baseball games are much slower, and each game isn't very important.
LH: 對。每個隊(duì)一年要打162場比賽,所以輸個一兩場的沒什么問題。不像世界杯,輸一場比賽就被淘汰!
L: You're exactly right. Each game is just a drop in the bucket.
LH: A drop in the bucket? 這是什么意思?
L; You can say that something is just a drop in the bucket if it is only a very small or insignificant part of something else.
LH: 哦,a drop in the bucket就好比一桶水里的一個水滴,指無關(guān)緊要。我們中文里把這個叫滄海一粟。
L: Right! Here is another example. Joe donated $20 to help people in Haiti after the earthquake, even though $20 was just a drop in the bucket.
LH: 海地地震后,Joe給災(zāi)民捐了20美元,盡管這只是很小的一筆錢。
L: Exactly. So Lihua, you're going to support the Nationals, right? They've got a great new pitcher named Stephen Strasburg.
LH: 我聽說這個新投手特別棒! 不過 Larry, the Nationals去年打得那么差,換個新投手真能管用么?
L: Yeah, he is probably just a drop in the bucket, but if the Nationals can get some more good players they might be better in a couple years.
LH: 這么說,我們買票的錢就可以被用來聘請優(yōu)秀的棒球隊(duì)員嘍?
L: I guess that's true, but of course, the price we paid for our tickets is just a drop in the bucket.
LH: 可不是么。The Nationals要想簽下身價(jià)幾百萬美元的球星,可不能只靠咱倆這門票錢。哎?為了在經(jīng)濟(jì)上支持他們,你給我買一件有他們隊(duì)標(biāo)的T恤衫吧!
L: Well sure! But you have so many clothes, one more shirt is just going to be a drop in the bucket.
******
比賽結(jié)束了,Larry和Lihua從棒球場往外走。
LH: Larry, 這個新的投手可真棒!
L: Yeah, he played really well. If he keeps pitching like that, he is going to have an amazing career. I sure hope he's not just a flash in the pan.
LH: A flash in the pan? 什么意思?
L: A flash in the pan is something that starts out really well, but lasts for only a very short amount of time.
LH: 哦,就是曇花一現(xiàn)!你是說,你希望這個新投手不要在開始的時(shí)候表現(xiàn)很出色,但很快就默默無聞了。
L: Right. Here is another example. The new author's first book got a lot of praise from critics, but he turned out to be a flash in the pan because his other books were terrible.
LH: 我明白了。這位作家的第一本書一鳴驚人,可這只是曇花一現(xiàn),因?yàn)樗髞韺懙膸妆緯己懿睢?/p>
L: That's right.
LH: Larry, 你注意到了么?這片地方自從蓋了新棒球場以來,漂亮多了!飯館、商場什么的都多起來了!
L: Yeah, a lot of people thought it would be a flash in the pan, but there is still a lot of development even a few years later.
LH: 是啊,這個地區(qū)的發(fā)展可不是曇花一現(xiàn),而是持續(xù)下來的。雖然現(xiàn)在經(jīng)濟(jì)不景氣,但我還是希望他們能堅(jiān)持下去。
L: Well, there were some signs that the economy was improving a few months ago. But unfortunately, it looks like they may have just been a flash in the pan.
LH: 是啊,當(dāng)時(shí)那些經(jīng)濟(jì)指標(biāo)似乎都挺鼓舞人心的,誰知沒過多久情況又變壞了。
L: Well spending $5 on dinner will only be a drop in the bucket for the economy. But a hamburger does sound great.
LH: 好啊!咱們雖然不能改善全國的經(jīng)濟(jì),但總可以先滿足一下自己的胃吧!
今天李華學(xué)了兩個常用語。一個是a drop in the bucket,表示無關(guān)緊要,滄海一粟。另一是a flash in the pan,意思是曇花一現(xiàn)。