Larry準(zhǔn)備在公司匯報工作。事先想請李華幫他聽聽，看報告內(nèi)容能不能吸引人。李華今天要學(xué)兩個常用語。一個是dud，另一個是oomph 。

LL: Thanks for agreeing to listen to my presentation, Li Hua. I really don't want it to be a dud.

LH: Larry, 什么是 "dud" 呀 ?

LL: Oh, A dud D-U-D is something or someone that doesn't live up to expectations and is a disappointment.

LH: Dud就是讓人失望的意思。你是不是想讓我?guī)湍懵犅牐愕膱蟾婺懿荒芪税。?

LL: Right! I want my presentation to be lively and interesting. If it is boring and difficult to understand, it will be a dud.

LH: 愿意為您效勞！不過Larry, 你這人這么幽默，不用聽我就知道，你的報告肯定不會枯燥無味的。

LL: You never know. I once worked with a woman who I thought was really funny, and at work we really got along. But then we went on a date, and it was a real dud.

LH: 你們約會的問題出在哪里呢？

LL: It turns out that we didn't have much in common except work.

LH: 噢，我知道了，你們倆這叫缺少共同語言。That date really does sound like a dud.

LL: What about you Li Hua? Have you every gone out with a guy who was a real dud?

LH: Dud也能指人啊。那要這么說，我可是遇到過真正的dud.

LL: How was this guy a dud, Li Hua?

LH: 他長得特別帥，可是我們倆出去吃飯，他從頭到尾都在沒完沒了地講他自己，根本不問問我喜歡些什么。That date was a real dud.

LL: Kind of like a firecracker that doesn't go off! We also call fireworks that don't go off "duds."

LH: 沒錯，我們管不響的爆竹叫“啞炮”。我最喜歡放炮了，特別是春節(jié)的時候...

Larry, 你干嘛呢？

LL: I am trying to get the slide projector to work. It looks like the light bulb is a dud!

LH: 那就別擺弄幻燈了。我光聽就行了。

LL: Okay, let's get started. Please be honest, Li Hua, and don't be afraid to tell me if you think my presentation is a dud.

LH: 你放心，我一定怎么想就怎么說。

******

LL: So, what do you think, Li Hua? Does my presentation need more oomph?

LH: Oomph? 這又是什么詞啊！怎么這么難說。

LL: It is like "oom" from the word room, followed by an "F" sound. Say it after me, Li Hua. Oomph!

LH: (Imitating)"oom", "oom-f". Oomph, oomph 是什么意思啊？

LL: When I asked if my presentation needed more oomph, I was asking if it needed something extra to make it more lively or interesting.

LH: 噢，你是說可以加點(diǎn)兒什么，讓你的報告更精彩是吧。老實(shí)說，Larry, 我覺得有的地方確實(shí)有點(diǎn)兒枯燥，需要加點(diǎn)兒oomph.

LL: How do you think I could give my presentation more oomph, Li Hua?

LH: 比方說，你一上來可以先講個笑話，吸引聽眾的注意。然后講到一半兒有人開始走神的時候，你可以再講個你自己工作中的真實(shí)經(jīng)歷，最好是干過的什么傻事。這樣你的報告就能更生動了。

LL: That's very good advice, Li Hua. I think doing those things will give my presentation the extra oomph it needs.

LH: 好，那現(xiàn)在換我了。我最近給中文課設(shè)計了一個網(wǎng)頁。你也幫我看看，要不要也加點(diǎn)兒oomph.

LL: Sure. I'm happy to look at it and tell you if it needs more oomph.

(Typing on keyboard...)

LH: Okay, here it is. Larry, 你覺得怎么樣？

LL: Wow, Li Hua! Maybe your website has a little too much oomph!

LH: Oomph 還會太多嗎？

LL: Well, you used orange and pink together on the same page. Those colors make it hard to read.

LH: 粉紅色和桔黃色放在一起是太亮了，看上去眼睛有點(diǎn)兒不舒服，那我換換其它顏色吧。

今天李華學(xué)到了兩個常用語。一個是dud, 意思是令人失望的。另一個是oomph, 是吸引力的意思。