李薇 译注

When a boyfriend and girlfriend decide to get married for sure, they get engaged. Sometimes, they have an engagement party. Sometimes, the man gives the woman a diamond ring to wear on the same finger as the future wedding ring. In Canada, we also have a saying: If you want to know what a woman will look like in the future, look at her mother. Do you think this is true?

A: Hi, I hear your girlfriend and you are going to get married. Is that true?

B: I love her and she loves me. We’re planning to get engaged next week.

A: Are you sure about this? You’ve only been dating for two months.

B: Yes, but she’s the girl of my dreams.

A: Every time you go out together, you have to foot the bill.

B: That’s only natural, I’m the man.

A: Yes, but I saw you in the coffee shop last week. You had to wait on her hand and foot, bringing her anything she needed.

B: That’s a man’s job, too.

A: Do you want to do that forever?

B: I’m happy to take care of my sweetheart.

A: Yes, but she’s very headstrong. She has to be the boss. Two weeks ago, you wanted to meet us, but she put her foot down and made you go out with her, instead. She’s very hard-headed.

B: Yes, she’s a little stubborn, but that’s cute.

A: And, when she’s in a bad mood, you have to walk on eggshells. You told me she threw a plate of food at you when you smiled at a waitress.

B: She’s jealous. I like that.

A: And, my friends say she’s very mouthy at home, telling her parents they’re wrong and giving them lip when they try to make her do anything.

B: Yes, she’s sassy and she talks back. I like a woman with spunk.

A: Wow, you’re really under her thumb. I think she cast a spell over you.

B: Hey, stop ribbing me. That’s love!

A: I’m not just teasing you, I’m worried. Her mom has a big pot belly, too. You know what they say: women grow to look like their mothers.

B: Now, I’m getting cold feet. Maybe I’ll postpone the engagement!

Exercise

1. foot the bill a. don’t listen to others’ advice and determined not
to change mind

2. wait on sb. hand and foot b. don’t change mind and very determined

3. headstrong c. don’t change your mind and very determined to do
what you want

4. put one’s foot down d. often say bad or rude things to others

5. hard-headed e. meaning rude, angry talk

6. stubborn f. answer someone rudely

7. walk on eggshells g. courage

8. mouthy h. girl doesn’t obey and very rude

9. give sb. lip i. be strongly influenced by someone that they control
you completely

10. sassy j. like a slave or nurse, to do everything for someone
(often used humorously)

11. talk back k. say very firmly and strongly that someone must stop
doing something

12. spunk l. make jokes and laugh at someone to make them
embarrassed

13. under sb.’s thumb m. joke softly and friendly to make the other person
shy and embarrassed

14. cast a spell (on) n. a big, round stomach

15. rib o. be very careful to someone because they easily
become very angry

16. tease p. delay the special plan to a later time

17. pot belly q. you do magic to attract and change someone

18. get cold feet r. suddenly get nervous and not brave enough to do
something you planned to do

19. postpone s. pay for something, especially something expensive

Answers: 1–s, 2–j, 3–c, 4–k, 5–b, 6–a, 7–o, 8–d, 9–e, 10–h, 11–f, 12–g, 13–i, 14–q, 15–m, 16–l, 17–n, 18–r, 19–p

Usage Tips

1. postpone这个词是“延迟，延期”的意思，一般指“事先定好的计划只是暂时取消一下，改到稍后的时间”，而且往往推迟的理由也比较充分。如：

Jane: I have to postpone my trip because my son is sick.

Judy: They postponed the baseball game until tomorrow because of rain.

与其意思相近的词还有delay，如：The teacher delayed the start of the class because there was a train delay and the students were late. 相对来讲，postpone要更正式些。

2. 如果孩子之间相互取笑，可以用tease一词，但意图并不友善，是在嘲笑（laugh at）对方，如：

Jane: When I was young, the other kids teased me because my clothes were too old. 而当大人之间用tease时，则含友善的意味，如：My brother always teased me when a boy phoned me. He always made me blush.

3. spunk 一词是“勇气，胆量”的意思，常见于口语中，男女均适用，该词常用在那些虽看似是弱势群体的人但有胆量和信心去敢做敢说的人身上，比如向严苛的老板要求加薪，等等。该词带有褒义色彩，其形容词形式是spunky，即“有胆量的，充满勇气的”，如：a spunky team captain（有胆量的球队队长）。另一个口语中较常用的同义词是guts，语气较spunk要更强些，如：He has the guts to admit his mistakes.

（来源：英语学习杂志）