赖世雄读英语笑话学英语之高尚职业笑话(1):不费吹灰之力(双语)
Unit 1 No Sweat! 不费吹灰之力
There were four passengers in the small aircraft as it sputtered over the Andes; a businessman, an inventor, a priest and a laid-back budget traveller.
一架正飞越安第斯山脉的小飞机上坐着四名乘客:一名商人,一名发明家,一位神父和一个靠预算过日子、看起来懒懒散散的旅行者。
Suddenly the pilot entered the cabin and told them the horrible news: “Gentlemen, the plane is going down. I’m going to try to crash-land it, but you must all jump.”
突然,驾驶员走进舱告诉他们可怕的消息“:各位先生,这架飞机正失控下降中,我要设法迫降,但你们必须先跳下飞机。”
Naturally, the men were horrified, and even more so when they discovered that there were only three parachutes.
当然,那几个人都吓得目瞪口呆,尤其是当他们发现只有三个降落伞可以使用时,更是心惊胆战。
The businessman said, “Sirs, I employ thousands of people. Their lives and those of their families depend on me . I think you’ll agree that I must survive.” He promptly put on a parachute and leaped.
那名商人说道“:各位先生,我雇用好几千名员工,他们都要靠我养家活口,我想你们都同意我必须活着回去。”说着他便穿上一具降落伞跳出飞机去。
The inventor rose, already adjusting the straps. “I’m the smartest man in the world. My inventions have transformed the lives of millions. There’s no telling how much good I may yet do. Goodbye.” And he, too, jumped from the plane.
接着发明家站了起来,调整了肩带说道“:我是世界上最聪明的人,我的发明改变了成千上万人的生活。我还会对大众造多少福难以估计。再见了,各位!”他也跟着跳出机舱。
The priest was serene, and interrupted his prayers to speak to the traveller. “I am a man of God, my son; I have no fear of death. Take the last parachute and save you life.”
神父心平气和,中断祷告,对旅行者说道“:小伙子,我是信奉上帝的人,我对死并不畏惧,剩下的降落伞你就拿去用,逃命去吧!”
“Hey, it’s cool, Father. There’re still two parachutes left. The smartest man in the world just jumped out of the plane wearing my backpack.”
“嘿,神父,真是太棒了!我们还有两个降落伞。那个自称世界上最聪明的人背了我的背包跳出去了。”
英语知识点解说:
1.passenger n. 乘客
2.aircraft n. 航空器(飞机、飞艇、飞船的总称),单、复数同形,即an aircraft, two aircraft 。但 airplane 一字复数要加 s 。
3.sputter vt. 发啪啪声;嘎嘎作响
4.laid-back a. 懒散的;松弛的
例:People in California are said to be laid-back, and it certainly seems to be a relaxed place.
(据说加州的人都很懒散,那个地方也的确像是个休闲的去处。)
5.budget n. 预算 & vt. 预计;安排时间
budget one's time 有效安排某人的时间
例:You should budget your time. In fact, you don't have much time to waste.
(你应有效安排你的时间。事实上,你能浪费的时间并不多。)
6.cabin n. 机舱
7.horrible a. 可怕的;令人毛骨悚然的
例:Peter let out a horrible cry when he saw his wife's credit card bill.
(彼得看见他老婆的信用卡账单时,大声惊叫了出来。)
8.crash-land vt. 使迫降
9.parachute n. 降落伞
10.survive vt. 比……活得久;撑过
survival n. 生还
例:I swear, Lord, if I survive this hangover, I'll never drink again.
(主啊!我发誓,要是我能撑过这次宿醉,我就再也不会喝酒了。)
11.promptly ad. 迅速地
例:Remove that illegal structure promptly or legal action will be brought against you.
(立即把那个违章建筑拆掉,否则你将受到法律的制裁。)
12.adjust vt. & vi. 调节;适应
adjust(oneself) to... 适应……
例:You either have to adjust (yourself) to your surroundings or be overwhelmed by them.
(你要调整自己去适应环境,要不然就只有随波逐流了。)
13.strap n. 皮带;肩带
14.There's no telling... 没有人知道…… ;无法得知…
=It's impossible to tell...
例:There's no telling how fat Fat Freddy will eventually become.
(实在没有人会知道胖子佛瑞迪最后会变得多胖。)
15.do good 行善
本文 how much good I may yet do 为名词从句,其中当 how much good 当 do 的宾语,yet 则为副词,表“尚会”。
例:Everyone means well, but to actually do good is rather more difficult.
(每个人的心地都是善良的,但要真正行善却是相当困难。)
16.serene a. 安详的;宁静的
例:What could be more valuable than a serene heart?
(还有什么要比宁静的心情更可贵呢
17.interrupt vt. 中断;阻止
例: We interrupt this program to bring you a special announcement from the White House.
(本节目现在要插播一段白宫发布的特别报道。)
18.prayer n. 祈祷;请愿
say one's prayers 念祈祷文
例:"Say your prayers, cowboy. You're about to meet your Maker," said Black Bart as he drew his gun.
(“快祷告吧,牛仔。你马上就可以见到你的主子。”布莱克·巴特掏出手枪时说道。)
19.cool a. 凉的;冷静的;了不起的;很棒的
现今青少年的口头语“酷”,就源自 cool 一字。
例:If you try too hard to look cool, you won't.
(如果你刻意装扮成酷模样,结果会适得其反。)
20.backpack n. 背包
本文地址:http://www.dioenglish.com/writing/humor/7118.html