【正文】 Elvin: What39。s it like to work with her?艾文： 跟她共事是啥感覺？Mary: She39。s 2) demanding. But I like that. I mean, I know our timeline is tight.瑪莉： 她的要求很高。但我喜歡那樣。我是說，我知道我們的時間很緊。Elvin: Tell me about it.艾文： 這還用說。Mary: You guys are working around the clock, I know. That guy Dave next to Zina never leaves.瑪莉： 我知道你們都在二十四小時趕工。那個坐在吉娜隔壁叫戴夫的人從沒離開過。Elvin: Vince wants us to have everything 3) debugged and ready to go by the end of the month.艾文： 文斯要我們把程序錯誤全部修正，準備在月底前上線。語言詳解A: Your mother is so demanding!你媽媽的要求真高！B: That39。s what my dad always says.我爸爸也總是這么說?！綼round the clock 日以繼夜】由clock 組成的成語除了around the clock 之外，另有一個against the clock“趕時間”。A: Frank, why does your factory have to work around the clock this month?佛蘭克，為什么你們工廠這個月要日以繼夜地趕貨？B: Well, we have got quite a lot of orders for shipment this quarter.我們最近收到相當多訂單，都要這一季出貨。A: In other words, you are all working against the clock now.換句話說，你們現在全都在趕時間。B: You39。re right.你說對了。1) megaintense intense是指“緊張的、一觸即發(fā)的”，字首(prefix) mega是“非常，相當多”的意思，亦指 “百萬的”，如 megabyte“百萬位元組”。2) demanding (a.) 要求很高的3) debug (v.) （電腦）除蟲，指修正電腦程序中的錯誤。1我們得要搶先完成Mary: Is it true that one of our 1) petitors is planning to 2) launch their 3) tracking service next month?瑪莉： 聽說我們有個競爭對手打算下個月推出監(jiān)測流量的服務，這是真的還是假的？Elvin: That would be WebTracker. We39。re heard they39。re almost ready. That39。s why we have to finish first.艾文： 你說的是“網路搜尋家”。聽說他們幾乎準備好了。所以我們得要搶先完成。Mary: Or they39。ll take over the market before we even get started.瑪莉： 否則在我們還沒來得及開始之前，他們就會占去整個市場。Elvin: Right. And that would be a total 4) gigabummer.艾文： 沒錯。到時就一敗涂地了。Mary: I guess we39。d better get back to work.瑪莉： 我猜我們最好趕快回去工作吧語言詳解A: You have such a strange accent. Where are you from?你的口音奇怪。你是哪里人？B: Take a guess.猜猜看。【take over 接掌、占據】take over 表達商務上或軍事上的“接掌、占據”。A: Once again, the military has taken over the African country.又一次軍方接管了那個非洲國家。B: Do you think that39。ll interrupt your plan of taking over the market there?你想這會干擾到你要掌控該地市場的計劃嗎？A: Maybe and maybe not. I just have to wait and see.或許會，或許不會。我只有等著瞧了。1) petitor (n.) 競爭者2) launch (v.) 事業(yè)登場，投入市場3) tracking service 監(jiān)控服務，此指“監(jiān)控網站流量的服務”。4) gigabummer bummer是指“倒霉、不幸的遭遇”， giga這個“字首” 是指“十億”，意即“非常巨大，非常多”。SCENE③ A 吉娜去她老板的隔間看他1我就不拐彎抹角了Zina: Vince. We39。re both busy, so I39。m not going to beat around the bush. I need a 1) raise.吉娜： 文斯。大家都很忙，我就不拐彎抹角了。我要加薪。Vince: I can39。t do that, Zina. You know I can39。t.文斯： 辦不到，吉娜。你知道我無能為力的。Zina: 2) Bull. I39。re done my 3) research. I know you still 4) control more than 65 percent of InfoKing 5) options.吉娜： 胡扯。我做了研究。我知道你仍掌握了“資訊王”百分之六十五以上的股權。Vince: Who told you that?文斯： 誰跟你說的？Zina: That doesn39。t matter. I want 6) at least 4 percent.吉娜： 那不重要。我少說要百分之四。語言詳解A: I have done extensive research on the French Revolution.我對法國大革命做過廣泛的研究。B: Then you must have been to Paris.那你一定去過巴黎?！綽eat around the bush拐彎抹角】beat around the bush原意是指獵人在打獵時，先在草叢附近拍打，以讓鳥類獵物受驚而現出蹤跡，引申出藉由迂回的方式，不針對問題回答，猶如中文里的“拐彎抹角”：A: Stop beating around the bush, and tell me what you want.別拐彎抹角，告訴我你要什么。B: I want a divorce.我要離婚。A: What did Tom want to tell you?湯姆那時想要跟你說什么？B: I39。m not sure. He kept beating around the bush.我不確定。他一直在拐彎抹角。1）raise (n.) 加薪2) bull 原意是“公?！保@里是用作 bullshit 委婉說法。3) research (n.) 研究4) control (v.) 控制5) option (n.) 選擇，此指“股票選擇權”6) at least 至少，起碼我得要有動力Vince: Your percent 1) share is going to be worth at least a million.文斯： 你那百分之三五的股權，將會值個百萬以上。Zina: I need to be 2) motivated, Vince. 3) Multimotivated. As in multimillion.吉娜： 我得要有動力，文斯。多重動力，多重百萬的多重。Vince: What if I said no?文斯： 要是我說不呢？Zina: Ever hear of WebTracker?吉娜： 有聽過“網路搜尋家”嗎？Vince: You wouldn39。t! If you leave, you39。ll make nothing.文斯： 你不會那樣吧！你若是離開，連半毛都賺不到。Zina: I might make nothing even if I stay. For that kind of risk, I want to get rich.吉娜： 我留下搞不好也賺不到半毛。 基于這種風險，我要發(fā)財。Vince: OK. If you sign the 4) account before WebTracker does, we39。ll talk next week.文斯： 好吧。若是你早“網路搜尋家”，我們就等下星期再談。語言詳解A: Don39。t you want to go and exercise?你不想在運動嗎？B: Yes, but I can39。t seem to get motivated.想，可是我沒有動力?！居?as in... 做補述】as in這個短語是用來補述，好讓意思能讓人更明白，常用在解釋拼字的時候：A: My name is Meg.我叫做梅格。B: Is that M as in Mary, E as in elephant, and G as in girl?那是Mary的m、elephant的e，girl的g嗎？as in可以用來進一步解釋情況，猶如中文里的“像……那種”：A: I just ate a Chinese buffet for only dollars.。B: As in the allyoucaneat kind? That39。s so cheap!是吃到飽的那種嗎？還真便宜！你也可以用as in來提問，以確定自己沒有誤會對方的意思:A: I made a million last year.我去年賺了一百萬。B: Is that as in dollars?你說的一百萬是美元嗎？1) share (n.) 股份2) motivate (v.) 給予……動力3) multi “多重的”字首4) account (n.) 客戶，尤指生意上往來的客17 / 17