流行美語:without a hitch ; chow down

期終考試今天全部結束，Larry和Li Hua準備開個party來慶祝一番。Li Hua會學到兩個常用語：without a hitch和chow down。

(household utensil noise)

LH: Larry, 你看我們準備的東西夠不夠啊？這是我第一次請朋友來開party，要是東西不夠吃，那就糟糕啦！

LL: Calm down, Li Hua. I'm sure the party will go off without a hitch.

LH: 你說我們的party會怎麽樣 - without a hitch - 那是什麽意思啊？

LL: Oh, if something "goes without a hitch", it means that everything goes smoothly and nothing will go wrong.

LH: 對，hitch這個字也可以解釋為"障礙"，那something goes without a hitch, 就是"進展順利"。

LH: Larry，你的意思就是我們的party will go off without a hitch，肯定能辦好，不會有問題...那我可不可以說：There won't be any "hitches"？

LL: No, No, Li Hua, you can't use it that way. You can only say that something "goes without a hitch." This is an idiomatic expression. You can't generally substitute the word "hitch" for "problem."

LH: 啊，原來something "goes without a hitch"是一個習慣用語，不能把hitch 和problem兩個交替來使用。那想說什麽事一帆風順，我們就隻能說：什麽事情goes without a hitch.

LL: Okay, Li Hua, now that you understand the phrase, can you give me an example?

LH: 我來想一想。有了。最近這次考試我覺得我考得不錯 - My exams went without a hitch.

LL: I wish I were as confident as you are. Now, can you give me another example of how to use "without a hitch"?

LH: 嗯...我最近申請了暑期裏到一個公司去工作。他們約我上星期去麵談。我覺得那個麵談進行得挺順利的，所以 - It went off without a hitch.

LL: Hey congratulations!

LH: Thank you, Larry. 哎喲，我們趕快準備吧。客人馬上就要到了！

******

(party SFX)

LL: See, everybody is enjoying the party, I told you it would be fine.

LH: 嗯，大家好象都玩得挺開心。我原來還擔心吃的不夠呢，現在看來說不定還做多了！

LL: I don't know about that. Some people are really chowing down. Hey, look at Jim, he's eating one hot dog after another!

LH: 就是啊，我也注意到Jim挺喜歡吃熱狗的，可是你說什麽？ 這兒有的人是在chowing down? 什麽是chow down啊？

LL: Well, "chow" is slang for "food" and to chow down is to eat a lot and to do it enthusiastically.

LH: 噢，chow這個字在口語裏可以表示"食物"。那麽chow down就是"吃得很多，而且還興致勃勃的"。那不就有點兒像我們中文裏說的"狼吞虎咽"嗎？

LL: Yep. Look, Jim has finished his hot dog. He's now moved on to eating a piece of cake. He's definitely chowing down. He acts as though he hasn't eaten in days.

LH: 對，Jim他剛吃完熱狗，現在又在吃蛋糕了 - He is really chowing down. 好象幾天沒吃飯一樣的。哎，對了，Larry, 這也說明我們準備的東西受歡迎哪！

LL: That's right! See, Li Hua, I told you that the party will go off without a hitch.

LH: 哎，Larry, 說了這麽半天了，你都吃什麽啦？

LL: What have I chowed down? Well, I have been busy helping you and haven't got time to eat yet.

LH: 哎喲，真是抱歉，你光顧著幫我招待客人，自己都還沒顧上吃呢！

LL: That's OK. I think we should chow down now before all of the good stuff is gone!

LH: 好啊，那我們趕緊開吃吧，要不然好東西都沒了！

今天李華從Larry那兒學到兩個常用語。一個是without a hitch, 表示事情"進展順利"。另外一個是chow down, 相當於中文裏所說的"狼吞虎咽"。