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.
在本节目中,我们探讨英语中的单词和短语。
We give you definitions, examples, and notes on usage.
我们给出释义,例子并对用法进行解释说明。
Today, we talk about fitness and exercise.
今天,我们谈论健康和锻炼。
Keeping in shape is a common expression for staying physically fit!
Keep in shape是表示“保持身体健康”的常见短语!
What sort of exercise do you enjoy?
你喜欢哪种运动?
How do you get in shape?
你是如何保持健康的?
If you are already in shape, how do you stay in shape?
如果你已经很健康了,你是如何保持身材的呢?
I used to walk a lot for work and that kept me in good shape.
我过去经常步行去上班,这让我保持了良好的体型。
Five days a week I would walk to the train station, walk to the office and then climb stairs.
一周五天,我会步行到地铁站,步行到办公室,然后爬楼梯。
At lunch, my coworkers and I would take a walk outside.
午餐时,我和我的同事会在外面散步。
Our office is in a beautiful area of Washington, D.C., surrounded by museums and monuments.
我们的办公室位于华盛顿特区一个美丽的地区,周围都是博物馆和纪念碑。
So that adds up to a lot of walking!
所以加起来要走很多路!
But then, in 2020 like so many others, I started working from home.
但是,在2020年,像其他许多人一样,我开始居家办公。
I became worried that without all that walking, I would quickly get out of shape!
我开始担心,如果不走那么多路,我的身材很快就会走形!
So, I made time for more swimming and short walks around my neighborhood.
因此,我腾出更多的时间在我家附近游泳和短距离散步。
Those two kept me in shape.
这两项运动让我保持了身材。
Using the word "shape" when talking about fitness and health makes sense.
在谈论健身和健康时,使用“shape”这个词是有道理的。
Sometimes, we can describe the human body in terms of size and shape.
有时,我们可以用尺寸和形状来描述人体。
But we can also use the word "shape" to talk about our projects, our activities, our actions and behaviors.
但我们也可以用“shape”这个词来谈论我们的项目、我们的活动、我们的行动和行为。
So, shape up also means to correct bad behavior.
因此,shape up也表示纠正不良行为。
For example, a boss might warn an underperforming employee to shape up.
例如,老板可能会警告表现不佳的员工要好好表现。
The boss may take this expression one step further.
老板可能会在使用该短语时更进一步表明态度。
She or he might add a threat by saying shape up or ship out.
她或他可能会威胁说,要么好好表现,要么离开。
Talking about ships, we also describe things that are clean or running smoothly as shipshape.
谈到船,我们也用shipshape(井井有条)来形容干净或平稳运行的东西。
A ship that is orderly and clean runs more smoothly and is safer.
一艘井然有序、干净的船行驶得更平稳、更安全。
Remember, on a ship, you can be very far away from help.
记住,在船上,你可能会离救援很远。
So, keeping things in good order prevents accidents and big problems.
因此,保持井然有序可以防止事故和大问题。
So, what happens if a situation or a project was in trouble but is now going well?
那么,如果局面或项目曾经陷入困境,但现在进展顺利,会发生什么呢?
Well, we can say things are shaping up.
我们可以说情况正在好转。
If it's not going well, we can say the project is in bad shape.
如果进展不顺利,我们可以说项目状况不佳。
Now, let's hear two friends use some of these expressions.
现在,让我们来听两个朋友是如何使用其中一些短语的。
Hey, how's the project going?
嘿,项目进行得怎么样了?
It's going well. Everything is shipshape now.
一切都很顺利。现在一切都井然有序。
What do you mean 'now'?
你说“现在”是什么意思?
Well, last week we ran into some trouble.
上个星期我们遇到了一些麻烦。
An employee wasn't pulling his weight and things weren't getting done.
一名员工工作不尽职,工作没有完成。
What did you do?
你做了什么?
I told him, "Shape up or ship out."
我告诉他,“要么好好表现,要么离开。”
That's pretty harsh!
这太苛刻了!
Maybe, but he shaped up. Now he's a valuable member of the team. I think he was overworked and dealing with some personal issues.
也许吧,但他好好表现了。现在他是团队中有价值的一员。我认为他过分努力了,在处理一些私人问题。
We all run into trouble sometimes. Hey, talking about being overworked … let's take a break in a bit. I need a walk!
我们有时都会遇到麻烦。嘿,说到工作过度……让我们休息一会儿吧。我要出去走走!
Sounds good. The project is in good shape. But I have to make sure I stay in good shape too!
听起来不错。这个项目进展顺利。但我也必须确保自己保持好身材!
And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories. We hope you enjoyed learning some "shape" expressions and verbal phrases.
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。我们希望你喜欢学习一些有关“shape”的短语和动词短语。
Practice using them the next time you want to talk about getting or staying physically fit.
下次当你想谈论保持身体健康时,练习使用它们。
Until next time … I'm Anna Matteo.
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!