地道英语

Dip your toe into 尝试，摸索

内容简介

英语表达 “dip your toe into…” 的字面意思是 “把脚趾头伸进……” ，就好像泡脚时先把脚趾头伸进热水中试试温度的动作。尝试新事物会让你感到害怕吗？一开始你是不是会小心摸索前进？本期节目中要介绍的表达 “dip your toe into…” 就可以用来比喻 “小心尝试，摸索前进”。

文字稿

（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。）

Feifei 
大家好，欢迎收听 BBC英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。在每期节目中，我们都会介绍一个英语母语人士或讲英语流利的人会用到的表达。I'm Feifei and I'm here with Phil.   

Phil 
Hello. How are you, Feifei? 

Feifei 
I'm actually feeling incredibly relaxed. I've just started doing a painting course. I haven't done it before, and I wasn't sure if I'd like it. So, I'm just dipping my toe into it at the moment. But you know what, it's actually quite relaxing.

Phil 
Uh-huh. Well. The expression that we're learning in this programme is 'dip your toe into' or 'dip a toe into'. We'll look at what it means and how to use it. Depending on who we're talking about, it can be 'dipping my toe into', 'dipping your toe into' or 'dipping his, her, or their toe'. Feifei, you said you're dipping your toe into painting at the moment. But what does that mean here?

Feifei 
Well, dipping your toe into something here means to start something slowly and gradually. Think about going to the beach, especially in England when it's not that warm. If you want to go for a swim, but you're worried about the temperature, you might start by dipping your toe into the sea to see how cold it is.

Phil 
So, this expression means starting something gradually to see if we like it or not. And, actually, we often use this with things like hobbies – like painting. So, you can say that you're dipping a toe into painting to see if you like it or not.

Feifei 
Yes, that's right. There are two things that are important to remember about this expression. One: it means to start gradually, and two: you're starting gradually because you're unsure if you'd like it or be successful at it.

Phil 
OK. So, if I give you an example about me. Someone suggested to me that I try cycling to work. I thought they were crazy. It's a long way. There's bad traffic. Why would you do that? But, I thought I'd try it, so I got an old bike, and I just tried it to see if I'd like it. I was dipping my toe into cycling and it turned out to be really good.

Feifei 
Yes. So, Phil was dipping his toe into cycling. Here are some more examples of the expression 'dip your toe into'.

Examples 
I really like reading romance novels, but I think I might dip my toe into true crime and read one of those next.

I've always done ballet, but I've decided to dip my toe into tap, and I'm starting a class next week.

My mum's always worked as an estate agent, but recently, she's been thinking about dipping her toe into hairdressing.

Phil
In the examples we've heard, people are dipping their toe into different new activities. Are there other ways of saying it?

Feifei
Yes, we also say 'dipping a toe into the water' or 'dipping my toe into the water'. Now, this is when it's clear from the conversation what the new activity is. It's also possible to use the verbs 'stick' or 'put'.

Phil 
OK. So, we can be sticking, putting, or dipping our toe into the water or whatever it is that we've just started to do. 

Feifei 
是的，“dip your toe into something” 这个表达很有意思。它用把 “脚趾头伸进一个物体” 这个动作来形象地比喻 “小心尝试做某事，摸索前进”，就像要进入冰冷的海水前，先把脚趾头伸进水里，试试水温。所以当你想表达慢慢开始尝试接触某个新事物，但不确定自己喜不喜欢，甚至能不能做成的时候，就可以说 “I'm just dipping my toe into it.”

Phil
And that's all from us. We'll be back next time with another useful English phrase. See you then.

Feifei
Bye-bye.