(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
Now, the VOA Learning English program, Words and Their Stories.
On this program we explore words and common expressions in American English.
We communicate most commonly, of course, with our words. But we also speak with our bodies. We call it body language.
Sometimes, though, we need to describe our body language with words. That is what today's show is about – talking about body language.
Two types of body language have made their way into text messaging and social media language.
The most common is LOL. If we are LOL-ing, we are laughing out loud. That is what l-o-l stands for. And it is easy to know when to use this. If a friend writes something to you that is extremely funny – or hilarious – you can reply with a "LOL." In conversation, though, it sounds weird to say the letters "L-O-L."
Here's another one you might see in a text message from a friend.
So, when someone nods their head up and down, that means they are in agreement. And if they shake their heads back and forth, it means they are disagreeing.
Well, sometimes it does. Sometimes shaking one's head means something completely different.
For example, I might say I could only shake my head at his arrogance. This means that I couldn't believe that he had said or done something so arrogant. In a text, email or social media post, you can simply type SMH. But just as with LOL, it doesn't sound right in spoken English.
Here is an example of how to use the full phrase "shake my head" in a conversation.
I can't believe how your friend acted at the funeral! When the preacher began speaking, she laughed out loud. It was so disrespectful.
How do you think I felt? I was standing with her! I could only shake my head and cringe inside. It was so embarrassing!
If your friend is always behaving badly, you may just have to throw your hands up. This body language expression means that you realize that you cannot do anything to make a situation better.
For example, let's say you are teaching a roomful of young children when suddenly a dog runs through the classroom! The children jump up and start laughing and chasing the dog. You can't do anything to quiet them down. So, you just throw your hands up and let them have fun.
Shrugging your shoulders is when you raise and lower them. As body language, it shows that you don't care about something. But it can also mean that you are uncertain or perhaps just bored.
For example, let's say I am babysitting a friend's child. At dinnertime, I ask the child, "So, do you want pasta or rice for dinner?" He doesn't say anything. He just shrugs his shoulders. So, I made my favorite – pasta with tomato sauce!
Rolling your eyes is another way to show you don't care. This body language says that you don't care AT ALL about what someone is saying. Eye-rolling is even more disrespectful than shoulder-shrugging. So, teachers and parents often criticize children for eye-rolls by simply saying, "Don't roll your eyes at me!"
Staying with the eyes, we come to raising eyebrows. Usually when we raise our eyebrows, our faces look as if we are surprised or shocked by something. But raising your eyebrows can also show that you disapprove of something. There is a certain amount of judgement in eyebrow-raising.
Let's hear it used in a short dialogue.
Did you hear about Jack? During the weekly meeting with staff, he wore a head-to-toe clown costume.
Oh, that's nothing. He lost a bet with his son and had to wear it.
Well, it raised some eyebrows around the office. People are saying he isn't serious enough to be manager.
Wearing a clown costume is nothing to raise your eyebrows at. People should really lighten up!
Now, when some people are nervous, they bite their nails. It may not be a good habit, but it has given us a useful word.
Something, such as a game or a movie, that causes you to feel nervous because the ending is not known until the final moment is called a nail-biter!
When talking about a sporting event, the opposite of a nail-biter is a blow-out. A blow-out is a game where one team out scores the other by a lot!
Did you watch the basketball game last night?
I did! What a great game.
I know. I haven't seen a game that close in a long time. It was a real nail-biter! The score was tied until the last 10 minutes!
It was a much better game than last week. That game was a blow out. One team scored 68 points in the first quarter while the other didn't even score one. Boring.
And that's all for this Words and Their Stories.
Even though this program is not a nail-biter, we hope you're not rolling your eyes or shrugging your shoulders with boredom. And we certainly hope your eyebrows aren't raised in disapproval. But we do hope you give us a thumbs up, which -- of course -- means "good job."
I'm Anna Matteo.
重点解析
1.text messaging 发送(手机)短信
The app was quickly adopted by Korean users as a free alternative to text messaging.
这款应用很快在韩国用户中得到普及，被当成了短信的免费替代品。
2.back and forth 来回;往返
I could see the branches of the trees moving back and forth.
我能看到树枝来回摇摆。
3.lighten up 放轻松；减仓；放松；别担忧；轻松一点嘛
Hey! Lighten up! I'll buy you a replacement CD for the one I scratched.
嘿！放轻松点！被我刮伤的那张CD我会买一张新的还给你。
参考译文
现在是VOA学英语《词汇掌故》节目。
我们的节目旨在探讨美式英语里的常见单词和表达。
我们交流时用的最多的，当然，是我们的语言。但是我们也用我们的身体来传意。我们称之为肢体语言（body language）。
但有时候我们需要用语言来表达我们的肢体语言。这就是今天节目的话题——探讨肢体语言。
两类肢体语言已经成功融入短信和社交媒体语言。
最常见的是LOL（大声笑）。如果我们大声笑，表示我们正笑得很大声。这就是“l-o-l”的含义。而且用起来很容易知道它的意思。如果你的朋友给你写了什么特别有趣或者极其滑稽的内容，你可以用“LOL”回复。但是在交流中，说出字母“L-O-L”的话，听起来会觉得很怪异。
接下来是另一个你可能从你朋友发的短信里见过的表达。
当一个人上下点头的时候，这表示他们赞成。如果他们来回摇头，这表示他们不赞成。
嗯，有时候确实是这样，但是某些时候“摇头（shaking one's head）”却有着完全不同的意思。
例如，我也许会说我对他的嚣张，我只能摇摇头（shake my head）。这意思是我无法相信他会说出或者做出如此嚣张的事情。在短信里，邮件中或者社交媒体的帖子里，你不能就打出“SMH”，而正如LOL一样，在书面语里，这样看起来不对。
下面是在对话里使用短语“shake my head”的例子。
我无法相信你朋友在葬礼上的行为！当牧师开始讲话的时候，她大声笑出来了。太无礼了。
你觉得我感觉如何？我就和她站一块！我只能无奈地摇摇头，心里很抓狂。太尴尬了！
如果你的朋友总是行为不端，你也许只能两手一摊（throw your hands up）。这个肢体语言的表达意思是你意识到你不能做任何事情来改善现状。
例如，假设你正在给一屋子的孩子上课，这时候突然一只狗跑进教室了！孩子们站起来并开始笑着追那只狗。你无法让他们安静下来。所以，你只好两手一摊，任由他们玩闹。
耸耸肩（shrug your shoulders）是指你把肩膀抬高或降低。作为肢体语言，这表示你不在乎某事。但它也可以表示你不确定或者也许你只是觉得无聊。
例如，假设我正给一个朋友看孩子。晚餐时分，我问那个孩子，“那么，晚餐你想吃意大利面还是米饭？”他不出声。他只是耸耸肩。所以，我做了我最喜欢的食物——番茄酱意面！
翻白眼（roll your eyes）是另一种表示你不在乎的方式。这个肢体语言表明你完全不在乎别人在说什么。翻白眼（Eye-rolling）比耸肩更无礼。所以，老师和家长经常批评孩子翻白眼时就说，“不要朝我翻白眼！”
继续眼睛的话题，我们来说说眉毛。通常，当我们抬眉的时候，我们的表情看起来像是我们被某事惊喜到或者惊讶到了。但是扬眉也可以表示你不同意某事。抬眉包含一定的判断意味。
让我们来听一段使用了这个表达的对话。
你听说杰克的事了吗？在每周的员工会议上，他穿了一身小丑衣服。
哦，那没什么。他和他儿子打赌输了，所以不得不那样穿。
嗯，它引起了办公室里一些人的不满。他们说他作为经理，那样不够庄重。
穿一件小丑衣服没什么可不满的。他们真应该放轻松一点！
当有些人紧张的时候，他们会咬指甲。这个习惯也许不好，但它给我们提供了一个有用的词。
有时，例如一个游戏或者一部电影会让你感觉紧张，因为你直到最后一刻才能知道结局，这真是紧张又刺激（nail-biter）啊！
当说到体育赛事的时候，“nail-biter（紧张刺激）”的反义词是毫无悬念（blow-out）。毫无悬念指的两支队伍分数相差悬殊的一场比赛。
你看了昨晚的篮球比赛了吗？
我看了！一场很精彩的比赛。
我知道。我没看过长时间内分数如此相近的比赛。真是紧张有刺激！直到最后十分钟，分数才追平了！
这场比赛比上周的比赛好多了。那场比赛真是毫无悬念。一支队伍在比赛第一节时就得了68分，然而另一支队连一分都没得。太无聊了。
这就是这期《词汇掌故》的全部内容了。
虽然这个节目不紧张刺激，但是我们希望你没有觉得无聊而翻白眼或者耸肩。还有，我们当然希望你没有什么不满。但我们真得希望你能给我们一个赞（thumbs up），当然，意思是“干得好”。
我是安娜·马特奥。
