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男足世界杯即将开始。大家的兴奋程度达到了 “fever pitch”!这个表达用来描述情绪激动的状态。因为表达里有 “pitch” 这个词,所以 “fever pitch” 通常被和足球联系在一起。听主持人佳莹和 Neil 介绍这个表达的含义和用法。
(关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。)
Jiaying
大家好,欢迎收听 BBC英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。我是佳莹。
Neil
… and me, Neil!
Jiaying
Neil,你怎么这么兴奋呀?
Neil
Of course I am. The football World Cup is about to start! Excitement has reached fever pitch.
Jiaying
Fever pitch? 这听上去可不怎么好!The last thing we need at the World Cup is fever on the pitch!
Neil
Oh, don't worry, Jiaying. There's no actual fever on the football pitch. No one is ill! 'Fever pitch' is just an expression that means there are high levels of excitement.
Jiaying
哦,原来 “fever pitch” 和 “发烧” 没有关系。我们先来听几个例句。
Examples
I was at the school sports day and excitement was at fever pitch. The kids were going crazy supporting their classmates!
Criticism of the company CEO was at fever pitch. The staff were really unhappy.
Anger reached fever pitch after the referee said it wasn't a goal.
Jiaying
你正在收听的是 BBC英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。刚刚我们一起学习了 “fever pitch” 的用法。 这个表达用来指 “极度兴奋,情绪激动的状态”。
Neil
As you heard in the examples, it's not just excitement that can be at fever pitch. It can be any strong emotion, such as anger or criticism.
Jiaying
是的,这个表达不光可以描述 “激动、兴奋的情绪”,它可以指任何一种强烈的情绪。“Fever pitch” 多与 “reach” 和 “to be + at” 连用。比如:“excitement reached fever pitch(兴奋到了极点)” 或者 “anger was at fever pitch(愤怒达到了极点)”。
Neil
And one last point – it's not really a football expression, but because it contains the word 'pitch', it's often used when describing football. Right, can I carry on getting excited about the World Cup now?
Jiaying
Yes, and if England or Wales do well, excitement really will be at fever pitch in the UK. Bye.
Neil
Bye!