中级美国英语Lesson50:与时间有关的常用语

五.ALL THE TIME

下面我们学习怎么用 all the time, a-l-l t-h-e t-i-m-e, all the time. 这个词组可以用 来表示 "总是". 比方: He's always busy. 可以改成: He's busy all the time. 现在 老师作一些句子说明在这套教材里出现过的一些人物.比方: Peter doesn't like to wear a watch. He's always late. 学生就把句子改成: Peter doesn't like to wear a watch. He's late all the time. 学生作练习的时候请你也一起作.

M: Jenny is preoccupied with time. She always worries about being late.

F: Jenny is preoccupied with time. She worries about being late all the time.

M: Peter doesn't like to wear a watch. He's always late.

F: Peter doesn't like to wear a watch. He's late all the time.

M: Henry has a hectic schedule. He's always busy.

F: Henry has a hectic schedule. He's busy all the time.

M: Kate is persuasive. Her students always listen to her.

F: Kate is persuasive. Her students listen to her all the time.

M: Bill is a competitive coach. He always talks about winning a game.

F: Bill is a competitive coach. He talks about winning a game all the time.

M: Bob likes politics. He always campaigns for somebody.

F: Bob likes politics. He campaigns for somebody all the time.

M: Nancy has financial problems. She always complains about the high cost of living.

F: Nancy has financial problems. She complains about the high cost of living all the time.

M: Bonnie has psychological problems. She's always upset.

F: Bonnie has psychological problems. She's upset all the time.

六.听短文回答问题

今天我们要听的文章谈到美国人很重视时间. 这一点从语言, 生活习惯等等方 面都可以看出来. 文章里许多词汇都是我们刚刚练习过的.

现在请你注意听.

Americans think a great deal about time. They constantly refer to time and the value of keeping busy. From childhood, they learn to value time, and their language reflects this preoccupation with it.

As children, they are taught to be on time for events and to do work on time. They learn that the price of committing a crime is to do time in prison. When they are having a good time, they say that time flies; they say sadly of someone who is dying that he is living on borrowed time. From the time of its beginning, American English has reflected this preoccupation with time.

Nowhere can this sense of time be seen more clearly than in the working place. Working Americans are bound to the clock. It is a commonly held belief that one should balance work against a set time, for example an 8 hour day or a 40 hour week. Anything over these time limits is overtime, and the worker should receive more money per hour for work done during overtime.

Time during nonworking hours is also considered very precious. Whether an American decides on a hectic weekend schedule, when Saturday and Sunday are filled with activities,or on a relaxed weekend,the time will be regarded as valuable. Some Americans feel they have a love / hate relationship with time. They love the comforts that progress has brought through work, but they hate the bondage to the clock and the pressures of a time-oriented society. There is little doubt that many Americans feel they have become servants of the clock.

现在请你回答下面三个问题. 回答之后老师会念正确答案给你听.

第一个问题是:

M: What are some of the expressions reflecting Americans' preoccupation with time?

F: To be on time, have a good time, live on borrowed time and to do time are some of the expressions reflecting Americans' preoccupation with time.

第二个问题是:

M: What is overtime?

F: Anything over an 8 hour day or a 40 hour week is overtime.

第三个问题是:

M: Why do many Americans feel they have become servants of the clock?

F: It is because they live in a time-oriented society.