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And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English.
欢迎收听VOA慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。
On this program we explore words and expressions in the English language.
本节目探索英语中的单词和短语。
Today we talk about an important part of every plant – the roots.
今天，我们谈论所有植物的一个重要部分--根。
The roots of most plants grow below the ground.
大多数植物的根都长在地下。
There, they have some very important jobs.
他们在地下有一些非常重要的工作。
The roots anchor the plant.
根是植物的锚。
They secure it in the ground.
它们把它固定在地里。
Roots also take in water and minerals to feed the plant.
根也吸收水分和矿物质来滋养植物。
And in many plants, the roots store food and nutrients.
在许多植物中，根部储存食物和营养。
So, roots are the foundation of the plant: the supporting structures.
因此，根是植物的基础：支撑结构。
And that gives us our first expression: “to put roots down.”
这就是我们的第一个表达：“扎根。”
When you put roots down, you make a place your home by creating connections.
当你put roots down时，你就通过建立联系把一个地方变成了你的家。
You get a job and maybe buy a house.
比如找一份工作，可能买一栋房子。
You also make friends and join activities.
也可以是交朋友，参加活动。
You might start a family.
可能是组建一个家庭。
As your children start school, your ties to the school and other parents are also roots.
当你的孩子开始上学时，你与学校和其他父母的联系也是根基。
All these things connect you to a place.
所有这些东西都将你与一个地方联系在一起。
Each connection makes it harder for you to leave.
每一个联系都让你更难离开。
Just like the roots of a plant, they ground you.
就像植物的根一样，它们让你扎根。
If you want to move a plant, you must be careful not to disturb the roots too much.
如果你想移动一棵植物，一定要注意不要把根部弄得太乱。
If you do, you could kill the plant.
否则你可能会杀死植物。
And that brings us to another way we use the word root.
这就引出了我们使用root的另一种方式。
The root can also be the start or cause of something.
root也可以是某事的开始或原因。
For example, I could say that my love of mystery stories is rooted in my childhood full of Agatha Christie books!
例如，我可以说，我对神秘故事的热爱植根于我充满阿加莎·克里斯蒂书籍的童年！
Now, problems have roots too.
现在，问题也是有根源的。
So, people could say that a small town’s problems are rooted in a lack of good jobs.
因此，人们可以说，一个小镇的问题根源于缺乏好的就业机会。
That suggests our next expression: Get to the root of the problem.
这就是我们的下一个短语表达：找到问题的根源。
When we get to the root of the problem, we get to the cause of it.
当我们get to the root of the problem，我们就找到了问题的根源。
You can also strike at the root of a problem if you are looking for a way to solve it.
如果你正在寻找解决问题的方法，你也可以strike at the root of a problem。
Sometimes we use the verb “dig” to go with some root expressions.
有时我们用动词“dig”来搭配一些关于root的表达。
As we said, roots are underground.
正如我们所说，树根在地下。
You must dig to reach them.
你必须挖才能找到他们。
So, we could say, “A lack of jobs is just one issue.
因此，我们可以说，“缺乏就业机会只是一个问题。
To get to the root of the city’s larger problem, we must dig deeper.”
为了找出这座城市更大问题的根源，我们必须更深入地挖掘。
Here’s an example: I just heard that the city council is going to add more money to this year’s school budget.
举个例子：我刚刚听说市议会将在今年的学校预算中增加资金。
That’s good news!
真是个好消息!
But I'm not sure more money is going to fix high truancy rates and poor classroom behavior.
但我不确定更多的钱能否解决高逃课率和不良课堂行为的问题。
Well, it can’t hurt.
嗯，反正不会有什么坏处。
True.
没错。
But to really help students, we need to get to the root of the education problem.
但要真正帮助学生，我们需要找到教育问题的根源。
And what do you think the root of the problem is?
你认为问题的根源是什么？
I think the "roots" to that problem are vast and complex.
我认为这个问题的“根源”是巨大而复杂的。
Now for our final expression.
现在是我们的最后一个短语表达。
There is a common saying in English that involves roots.
英语中有一句与root有关的俗语。
You may hear people say that money is the root of all evil.
你可能会听到人们说金钱是万恶之源。
That expression comes from the Bible: “The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.”
这句话出自圣经：“贪财是万恶之源。”
While it may not be root of all evil, I'm sure that greed has caused quite a few problems.
虽然它可能不是所有邪恶的根源，但我相信贪婪造成了相当多的问题。
And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories. Until next time, I'm Anna Matteo.
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。下次见，我是安娜·马泰奥。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
