VOA流行美语 Unit 107: Whatchamacallit/mooch

今天Larry和李华在一家电脑商店买东西，李华会学到两个常用语：whatchamacallit和mooch。

(Computer Store SFX)

LH: Larry, 你想买什么呀？

LL: I need to get one of those whatchamacallits that add memory. The memory on my laptop computer is almost full. What do you need to get?

LH: 我想买一些磁盘。Larry, 什么是whatchamacallit？这个词听起来好怪啊！它能帮你增加laptop的内存？那是电脑的部件吗？

LL: No, no, it's not a part of the computer. Whatchamacallit actually, it is the combination of the words "what you might call it" joined together and said very fast.

LH: 噢，原来whatchamacallit是what-you-might-call-it这几个词合在一起的啊。那whatchamacallit这又是什么意思呢？

LL：When you don't remember the real name of the thing you are talking about, you might say whatchamacallit. I forget what the thing I need is called, so I just call it a whatchamacallit.

LH: Oh, 原来是你叫不出一样东西的名字时候你就可以说它是whatchamacallit。哎，在这种情况下，不就像我们在中文里说的“那个叫什么来啦”？

LL: Exactly. But you cannot tell a shop clerk "I want to buy whatchamacallit".

LH: 那当然哟，要是你对店员说你想买那个叫什么来啦，他怎么知道你要什么呢？Hey, Larry, 你看这是什么？Look at this whatchamacallit!

LL: That's a zip drive. You can use it to save things on disks.

LH: 噢，原来这就是我们平时常说的zip drive啊！What about that whatchamacallit?

LL: That's a digital music player. Li Hua, you can't just start calling everything a whatchamacallit!

LL: 怎么啦？我不知道这个东西叫digital music player，所以我就用你教我的这个词whatchamacallit 。

LL: I guess you're right, but don't use that as an excuse not to learn the real names of things.

LH: 你放心，你没看见吗？我学了就用啊，每次都是你教什么我就用什么！

******

LH: Larry, 我今天能不能借你的电脑用几个小时？

LL: Last week, you borrowed my CD player. Yesterday, you ate half of my pizza and, today, you want to borrow my computer. You're becoming a mooch, Li Hua!

LH: 哎哟，借用一下你的CD player，吃一点儿你的pizza你都记这么清楚呀？你还说我变成什么啦？A mooch?

LL: A mooch, that's someone who, instead of getting things for herself, borrows or takes things from others. You always come to my apartment and get free food out of my refrigerator. That makes you a mooch.

LH: A mooch就是指那种喜欢借别人或者是拿别人东西的人。哎，Larry, 我有的时候是到你的冰箱里拿东西吃，可是我有时候不是也请你吃晚饭吗？

LL: Yeah well, the next time you come over, you should bring me a pizza.

LH: 没问题，下次我给你带个pizza不就行了吗？可是Larry, 咱们得先说清楚，你以后再也不能叫我是 mooch, 我可不是那种喜欢白吃白喝、占人便宜的人呢。

LL: Alright, alright. Let's forget about us for a second. Can you think of another person who is a mooch?

LH: 嗯， 让我想想 - 哎，对了，我在学校食堂吃饭的时候，有个女生老是凑到我桌上来吃我的炸薯条。更气人的是，她还以为我没注意到呢！

LL: Yes, that is a mooch. You should slap her hand next time she does that.

LH: 啊！你说她下次再这么做就打她的手？哎哟，那也用不着吧？我啊！学会了mooch这个词，下次就可以对她说 - Stop being a mooch！

今天李华从Larry那儿学到了两个常用语。一个是whatchamacallit, 就相当于中文里所说的“那个叫什么来啦”。李华学到的另一个常用语是mooch, 意思是“喜欢白吃白拿的人！”