流行美语 (Popular American) 324

李华刚刚看了她最喜欢的电影演员乔治.克鲁尼演的新片Up in the Air. 今天我们要学两个常用语：up in the air和full of hot air.

LL: Hey Li Hua, I heard you went to see that new movie Up in the Air. How'd you like it?

LH: 好看极了，情节特别曲折，让你始终猜不到结局。

LL: Maybe that's why it's called Up in the Air?

LH: 你说为什么叫up in the air? 我原来以为，就是因为电影里讲的故事跟坐飞机有关，在天上飞来飞去，所以叫up in the air的。

LL: Well, that's one reason it's called Up in the Air.. But the phrase "up in the air" also has another meaning.

LH: 真的吗？快告诉我，up in the air还有什么其它意思。

LL: Well, people use the expression "it's up in the air" all the time, and they are not talking about people flying.

LH: 不是在天上飞？那让我想想，说什么事情it's up in the air在空中悬着，是指一件事情悬而未决吗？

LL: Right! Like last Sunday, my friend Greg was watching the Super Bowl and I asked him who was going to win, and he said, "I don't know yet. it's still 'up in the air.'"

LH: 是啊，这届超级杯比赛太激烈了，难怪Greg说it's still up in the air鹿死谁手，还很难说。

LL: Exactly... Greg was using "up in the air" to mean that the game was still undecided and it wasn't clear who was going to win.

LH: 我明白了。那上星期我烤蛋糕烤到一半，你问我怎么样了，我因为是第一次做，不知道烤出来会不会好吃，就可以说I don't know, it's up in the air.

LL: You got it. You can say it's up in the air because you don't know whether the cake will taste good or not. This is how "up in the air" is used most of the time. It's used to show when something is still undecided.

LH: 怎么样，Larry, 今天晚上有什么计划吗？

LL: I don't know. It's still up in the air.

******

MC: Larry取信回来，Li Hua正坐在沙发上看电视。

LL: Hey Li Hua, what are you watching?

LH: 电视上正转播一个关于西部野火防范问题的听证会。这个国会议员还真能说，已经足足讲了十几分钟了。

LL: Oh, I know this congressman¹. He's full of hot air.

LH: Full of hot air? 那是什么意思？

LL: I mean he's talking a lot without saying anything of value or meaning.

LH: 哦，我明白了，说一个人full of hot air，就是说这个人只会夸夸其谈，但是言之无物。

LL: Yup. "Full of hot air" is also used to describe someone who is exaggerating, talking only to hear their own voice, or talking about something they don't really understand.

LH: 哦，就是说大话，说空话，甚至对自己并不熟悉的事情也能滔滔不绝的意思。如果这么说，这个国会议员还真是full of hot air。

LL: Politicians in particular are often accused of being "full of hot air". They often talk just for the sake of talking.

LH: 那Larry, 有没有人说你也是full of hot air呢？

LL: I don't go on and on about subjects that I don't know a lot about, so no... But if you want, I can pretend to be "full of hot air".

LH: 真的吗，你能装出夸夸其谈的样子？那我可一定得看看。

LL: First tell me what topic you want me to be "full of hot air" on.

LH: 选题？这容易，就说眼下的经济形势吧！

LL: OK. Piece of cake! Unemployment is too high and it needs to be fixed² but we need to increase consumption³ and lower interest rates. At the same time, exports are soaring⁴ and that's creating inflationary issues that are spilling over into the futures⁵ markets and affecting the bull⁶ market on Wall Street. We also need to worry about the CPI and the real estate market....

LH: WOW! 你还真是full of hot air! 说了一大堆的经济术语，我完全没有听懂。

LL: Yeah. That's called being "full of hot air".

今天李华学了两个常用语。一个是up in the air, 意思是尚无定论，悬而未决。另一个是full of hot air，意思是夸夸其谈。

 

1 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

2 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

3 consumption   

n.消费，消耗，消费额，消耗量，结核病

参考例句：

• Consumption of oil has declined in recent years.石油消耗量在最近几年下降了。
• The meat was condemned as unfit for human consumption.这种肉已被宣布不适宜人们食用。

4 soaring   

adj.往上爬升的；高耸的

参考例句：

• The house prices in the city seemed soaring up without limit. 这个城市的房价好像在无限制地飞涨。
• They were amazed at the soaring drive of our oil workers. 他们对我国石油工人的冲天干劲感到惊奇。

5 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

6 bull   

n.公牛，买进证券投机图利者，看涨的人

参考例句：

• It's only a hair off a bull's back to them.这对他们来说，不过九牛一毛。
• Many dogs closed around the bull.很多狗渐渐地把那只牛围了起来。