Take Away English-Year of the Pig 猪年

'Pigs might fly'

I'm a pig, my son is a rabbit, I have snakes for daughters, and my wife, believe it or not, is a dragon! Do I live in a zoo? No, of course not! I am talking about our Chinese zodiac signs.

Depending on the year of your birth, each person has an animal for a sign. That's why I am a pig and my wife is a dragon.

February the 18th is Chinese New Year and 2007 is the year of the pig, so let's take a closer look at this interesting animal.

Pigs were first domesticated¹ by man about 9,000 years ago, and are still a very common farm animal in many parts of the world. We don't just use pigs for their meat – almost every part of the animal is used. The bones and skin are used for glue and footballs. The hair is used for artists' brushes and insulation². The fat is used in the manufacture of insecticides, floor waxes, rubber and plastics. Amazingly, pigs are a source of nearly 40 pharmaceutical³ drugs and their heart valves can be used in surgery to replace human ones.

Pigs have also been important in the world of entertainment. In 1995 the film 'Babe' starred a loveable talking pig as its main character. The film won an Oscar and was nominated for 6 more.

In England you can even go to watch pig racing⁴. A farmer, Rob Shepherd, has been raising money for charity by staging pig races on his farm. The events have been very successful. People don't just want to eat pigs, it seems!

Pigs also feature in the English language. To say that something is unlikely to happen you can say "Pigs might fly!" A man that thinks men are superior to women is a "chauvinist⁵ pig". Hungry? Well then, you can "pig out" and eat lots of food. And what if someone rescues you? Well, you can say that they "saved your bacon".

If you, like me, were born in the year of the pig, then you are brave, thoughtful and loyal. The year of the pig is filled with good fortune. Happy Chinese New Year!

GLOSSARY 词汇表
zodiac 十二生肖 glue 胶水 insulation 绝缘 insecticides 杀虫剂 pharmaceutical drugs 药制品 loveable 可爱的 charity 慈善 chauvinist 沙文主义者 brave 勇敢的 loyal 忠诚的	domesticated 饲养的 brushes 刷子 manufacture 生产 waxes 蜡 heart valves 心脏瓣膜 nominated 提名 staging 举行 bacon 咸肉 thoughtful 考虑周到的 good fortune 好财运

 

1 domesticated   

adj.喜欢家庭生活的；（指动物）被驯养了的v.驯化( domesticate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He is thoroughly domesticated and cooks a delicious chicken casserole. 他精于家务，烹制的砂锅炖小鸡非常可口。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The donkey is a domesticated form of the African wild ass. 驴是非洲野驴的一种已驯化的品种。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 insulation   

n.隔离；绝缘；隔热

参考例句：

• Please examine the insulation of the electric wires in my house.请检查一下我屋子里电线的绝缘情况。
• It is always difficult to assure good insulation between the electric leads.要保证两个电触头之间有良好的绝缘总是很困难的。

3 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

4 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。

5 chauvinist   

n.沙文主义者

参考例句：

• I don't know how she can live with him;he's such a male chauvinist pig!我真不理解她怎么能与他一起生活，他是个典型的大男子主义者。
• How can you do the Muslim chauvinist thing?你怎么能做穆斯林沙文主义的事情？