【生词预览】

burglar窃贼，show up出现，expect预料

【笑话原文】

A Burglar Can’t Find Me Either

My brother got a call from a security firm that offered him a promotional burglar alarm at no charge. Happy to get something for free, he gave the caller directions to his farm. But no one showed up. The next morning the supplier called him to say that he was lost. “I’ll try again to find you,” he said.

“Never mind,” said my brother. “If you can’t find me, I don’t expect a burglar can either.”

【中文译文】

窃贼也找不到我

我弟弟接到保安公司的促销电话， 说要给他一个免费的防盗警报系统。他听说又免费的东西，就高高兴兴地告诉那人，去他的农场怎么走。但是没有人来。第二天早上，那人来电话说他头一天走迷路了。

他说：“我会再试一次。”

我弟弟说：“不用了。如果你找不到我，我想窃贼也找不到我。”

【词汇讲解】

1.burglar窃贼。Burglars broke into his house last night.昨夜窃贼闯进他家。也可以作及物／不及物动词，有“盗窃／抢劫”的意思。

2.security安全。safeguard the security of one’s country保卫国家的安全。“确信／把握”：The violinist played with great security.小提琴手满怀信心地演奏。Are you sure of the security of the knot?你能肯定这个绳结牢吗？

3.charge费用。travel at one’s own charge自费旅行。“内涵”poetry with an emotional charge感情洋溢的诗歌。“责任”：The girl accepted her mother’s charge to put things in order.女孩接受母亲要她整理东西的任务。“管理”：He has charge of the home office.他负责主管总公司。

4.promotional提升的／发起的／促销的。promotional civil service examinations公务员升级考试；a promotional job促销工作；prettily made promotional films制作精美的宣传影片。

5.show up出现。这个短语还有“揭露”的意思：show up sb’s ignorance暴露出某人的无知；“变得突出”：White shows up well against a blue background.经蓝色的背景一衬托白色更为醒目。

6.expect预料。了解一下与expect有关的惯用语:She is expecting.她怀孕了。Her dark hair is beginning to turn grey, but at fifty-five that is only to be expected.她的黑发正开始变灰白，但对于五十五岁的人来说这完全正常。What can you expect?你还能指望什么呢？