另外一个来自飞行的俗语是:Nose dive。Nose就是鼻子,dive是俯冲,或者是跳水。不管是俯冲,还是跳水,他们都是指急剧地往下降。当一架飞机开始nose dive的时候,它突然尾巴向上,鼻子向下快速地往地面下降。可是,nose dive也可以用在生活的其他各方面。例如,一家报纸报导说:
例句 1 ) : "Today the stock market took a nosedive and dropped 25 points."
这句话的意思是:“今天股票市场的价格猛跌,下降了二十五点。”
一个人的工作,或事业也可以出现nose dive这样的现象。美国报纸可能会这样报导有关好莱坞电影明星的情况:
例句 2 ) : "Everyboday thought this young actor would have a brilliant future after he starred in two pictures that made a lot of money. Then he appeared in three films that nobody want to see, and his career took a nose dive -- no producer wants him any more."
这句话是说:“大家都以为那个年轻演员,在演了两部盈利非常高的电影后,一定会前途无穷的。可是后来,他又演了三部谁都不要看的电影。这样,哪个制片人都不要他了,他的影台生涯从此就一落千丈。”
我们讲了两个来自飞行的习惯用语。一个是:To bail out,这是指跳伞,或解救困难。另一个是Nose dive,意思是急剧下降,或一落千丈。
adj. 卓越的,光辉的,灿烂的
n. 宝石