關於新年決心的英語聽力訓練

實踐出真知，語感總是在練習中產生的。以下本站小編整理的關於談論新年決心的英語聽力訓練，歡迎閲讀訓練!

And now Words and Their Stories -- a weekly program from VOA Learning English.

現在是美國之音慢速英語詞彙掌故節目。

Our show explores the roots and modern uses of expressions in American English.

我們的節目會探索美式英語中的各種表達的來源和現代用法。

Today we talk about the word "resolution." Resolution is a word with more than one meaning.

今天我們討論“resolution”這個單詞，這是一個多義詞。

However, when talking about a New Year, a resolution is a promise people make to themselves to be better. The person decides to make a serious effort to do something over the next 12 months.

然而，當我們説到新年時，就是指人們許下的做到更好的自我承諾，也就是説，這個人決定在未來12個月裏認真做一些事情。

Many people use the start of a new year as a time to try something new or change something about themselves. This use of resolution dates back to the late 1700s. These earlier resolutions were usually of a religious nature.

很多人將新年伊始作為嘗試新事物或改變自我的時機。Resolution這個單詞的使用可以追溯到18世紀末。早先的各種決心(resolution)通常都具有宗教性質。

However, these days, New Year's resolutions are usually about living healthier, having more success and finding greater satisfaction in life.

然而到了現在，新年決心通常是關於更加健康、更加成功以及在生活中找到更大的滿足。

So, some common New Year's resolutions are to:

因此常見的新年決心如下：

lose weight,

減肥

exercise more,

加強鍛鍊

keep in contact with family and friends,

和親朋保持聯絡

stop smoking,

戒煙

save money,

攢錢

go back to school,

重返校園學習

cut back on alcohol,

少喝酒

or get more or better sleep.

或是改善睡眠

Some people may make a New Year's resolution to improve only one area of their life. Others may feel they need to completely change everything. These people may use the New Year as a time to turn over a new leaf! Turning over a new leaf means to make a change and behave in a more responsible manner.

有些人可能會制定一項改善單一生活領域的新年決心，還有人可能覺得自己需要徹底改變。這些人可能將新年作為洗心革面重新做人(Turning over a new leaf)的`時機。Turning over a new leaf是做出改變，行事更有擔當。

At the start of a New Year, you can wipe the slate clean. This means you can simply wash away all the mistakes you made from the past year, as one would remove chalk from a school black board.

在新年伊始，你可以忘記過去重頭再來(wipe the slate clean)。意思是説你可以將過去一年犯下的所有錯誤一筆勾銷，就像把黑板上的粉筆字擦掉一樣。

Just remember that before you start from a clean slate, learn from the mistakes you made. If not, you may find yourself going back to square one. Some word historians say this expression comes from a board game called Snakes and Ladders. In this game, you begin on square one and win by climbing the ladders to the last square. However, landing on a snake could send you back to the first square, or the very beginning.

只是要記住，在你改過自新( start from a clean slate)之前，要從自己犯過的錯誤中吸取教訓。否則你可能會發現自己又回到了起點(back to square one)。一些詞彙歷史學家表示，這種表達源自於蛇梯棋。在這種遊戲中，玩家從第一個格子開始，通過梯子爬到最後一格獲得勝利。然而，落在蛇形圖案的格子裏會讓你回到起點。

The expression back to square one could have come from the game Hopscotch. This game also begins on a box marked with the number "1."

Back to square one這種表達還可能源自跳房子游戲。這個遊戲也是從一個標有數字1的格子開始。

If your plans for the New Year are not working out at all, you may have to go back to the drawing board. This means that your plan or method is not working. So, you have to go back and develop a new solution to the problem. People who draw images, such as cartoonists, use a drawing board.

如果你的新年決心未能實現，你可能需要重新規劃(go back to the drawing board)，這意味着你的方案或方法不奏效。所以，你必須重頭開始尋找解決問題的辦法。漫畫家之類的繪圖人員會用到繪圖板。

The phrase go back to the drawing board comes from Peter Arno, who worked as a cartoonist for New Yorker magazine. In 1941, he made a cartoon showing military men running toward a crashed plane. The designer of plane is seen walking away with his designs under his arm. The caption says, "Well, back to the old drawing board".

Go back to the drawing board這句短語出自於彼得·阿諾(Peter Arno)，他是“紐約客”雜誌的漫畫家。1941年，他畫了一副漫畫，畫面是軍人們衝向一架墜毀的飛機，還可以看到飛機設計師把自己的設計方案夾在胳膊下走開。標題寫道，“好，回到舊的圖紙” 。

So, for many people the New Year is a good time for a fresh start.

所以，對很多人來説，新年是重新開始的好時機。

Still, many people do not make New Year's resolutions. They do not want to put added pressure on themselves. Or they are happy with what they are doing and how their lives are progressing.

然而，很多人不制定新年決心。他們不希望給自己施加額外壓力，或是對現狀滿意。

And some people may think that there is no reason to try so hard to change yourself. They may agree with the old saying that a leopard never changes its spots. This means you are born as you are born and no amount of effort can change that.

還有些人可能認為，沒有理由要這麼辛苦地改變自己。他們可能會贊同本性難移(a leopard never changes its spots)這句老話，意思是生來如此，無從改變。

After all, change can be hard. Getting up early to exercise every day is hard.

畢竟改變可能會很難。每天早期鍛鍊很難。

Setting aside time every day to learn a new language or musical instrument is not easy.

每天抽時間學習一門新語言或樂器也不容易。

As we get older, it might be even more difficult for people to change their behavior. Maybe that's way we say, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks."

隨着人們老去，要改變他們的行為可能會更加困難。也許我們可以説，“老狗學不會新把戲”。

I'm Anna Matteo. Have a Happy New Year!