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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。
We walk through doors many, many times a day.
我们每天要穿过很多次门。
If we want to enter any building, we must go through a door.
如果我们想进入任何一座建筑物，我们必须穿过一扇门。
And that building could be a new home, an interesting store or restaurant.
这座建筑物可以是一个新家，一个有趣的商店或餐厅。
Maybe it is a school, library or laboratory.
也许它是一所学校、一个图书馆或实验室。
We don’t know for sure what is on the other side of a door.
我们不知道门的另一边是什么。
If you think about it, doors offer us many possibilities and opportunities!
如果你仔细想想，门为我们提供了许多机会！
That may be why we have several expressions that connect doors with opportunity.
这可能就是我们有一些把门与机会联系在一起的短语的原因。
First, let’s talk about an opportunity.
首先，我们来谈谈机会。
An opportunity is a chance for greater success.
机会指的是取得更大成功的机会。
It is a good chance for advancement or progress.
它是一个提升或进步的好机会。
Or it can be just a chance for something different.
也可能只是一个尝试不同事物的机会。
But you won’t know unless you open the door.
但如果你不打开门，你就不会知道。
So, “when opportunity comes knocking, be ready to answer the door.”
所以，“当机会来敲门时，做好开门的准备。”
This expression means you do not want to miss an opportunity.
这句话的意思是你不想错过任何机会。
There is a certain sadness and regret involved in a missed opportunity.
错失机会会让人感到悲伤和遗憾。
You don’t always get another second chance.
你不总会有第二次机会。
That is why we also say, opportunity knocks but once.
这就是我们也说“机不可失，时不再来”的原因。
You may also hear it said this way: opportunity seldom knocks twice.
你可能也听过这样的说法：机会难逢。
Both expressions mean that great opportunities are usually only offered to us one time.
这两种表达都表示重要的机会通常只提供给我们一次。
We use these expressions to urge people to act quickly and to take an opportunity when it comes to them.
我们用这些表达来敦促人们迅速采取行动，并在遇到机会时抓住机会。
Now, sometimes an opportunity is not a completely open door.
有时机会并不是一扇完全敞开的门。
Maybe the door is open just a little – a crack.
也许门只开了一点点——一道缝。
If that happens and you want to get in, you should make sure to put your “foot in the door.”
如果发生这种情况，而你又想进入，你应该确保把自己的“一只脚放在门上”。
Imagine you are standing in a doorway and you want to get inside the building.
想象一下，你站在门口，想要进入大楼。
You want to be part of whatever is happening in there.
不管里面发生了什么，你都想参与其中。
With your foot in the door, you are one step closer to making that happen.
只要你把脚放在门上，你就离实现目标又近了一步。
When you have a foot in the door, you have an opportunity to get inside a building.
当你把脚放在门上时，你就有机会进入建筑物内。
The same can be said for a situation.
同样的道理也适用于一种情况。
Sometimes, all you need to succeed is a small chance or opportunity to prove yourself.
有时候，你取得成功所需要的只是一个证明自己的小小的机会。
This is especially true for people who do not have connections that can open doors for them.
对于那些没有人脉可以为他们打开大门的人来说，情况尤其如此。
Getting your foot in the door is a way to open that door of opportunity for yourself.
迈向目标的第一步是为你自己打开机会之门的一种方式。
Here is an example: I had short-term job in New York City in the publishing industry.
下面有一个例子：我在纽约市的出版业有一份短期工作。
The job did not pay very much.
这份工作薪水不高。
But it was a good way for me to get my foot in the door.
但这对我来说是迈向目标的第一步。
Now, sometimes in life, things do not go our way.
在生活中，有时事情并不如我们所愿。
The door of opportunity slams in our face.
机会之门在我们面前关上了。
But that’s okay.
但是没关系。
We have another expression that can fix that problem.
我们有另一个表达可以解决这个问题。
"When one door closes, another one opens."
“当一扇门关上了，另一扇门就会打开。”
This expression means that the end of one situation or opportunity may often followed by the start of a new one.
这句话的意思是，一种情况或机会的结束往往会是一个新情况或机会的开始。
You can use this expression to offer hope to someone who may have lost a good opportunity.
你可以用这个表达给那些可能已经失去好机会的人带来希望。
And that’s all the time we have for 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·马特奥。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
