Popular American - #91

流行美语-第九十一课

without a hitch

chow down

期终考试今天全部结束，Larry和Li Hua准备开个party来庆祝一番。Li Hua会学到两个常用语：without a hitch和chow down。

(household utensil noise)

LH:  Larry, 你看我们准备的东西够不够啊？这是我第一次请朋友来开party，要是东西不够吃，那就糟糕啦！

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

LH:  你说我们的party会怎么样 - without a hitch - 那是什么意思啊？

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

LH:  对，hitch这个字也可以解释为“障碍”，那something goes without a hitch, 就是“进展顺利”。

LH:  Larry，你的意思就是我们的party will go off without a hitch，肯定能办好，不会有问题...那我可不可以说：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，原来something "goes without a hitch"是一个习惯用语，不能把hitch 和problem两个交替来使用。那想说什么事一帆风顺，我们就只能说：什么事情goes without a hitch.

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

LH:  我来想一想。有了。最近这次考试我觉得我考得不错 - 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...我最近申请了暑期里到一个公司去工作。他们约我上星期去面谈。我觉得那个面谈进行得挺顺利的，所以 - It went off without a hitch. 

LL:  Hey congratulations!

LH:  Thank you, Larry. 哎哟，我们赶快准备吧。客人马上就要到了！

******

(party SFX)

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

LH:   嗯，大家好象都玩得挺开心。我原来还担心吃的不够呢，现在看来说不定还做多了！

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挺喜欢吃热狗的，可是你说什么？ 这儿有的人是在chowing down? 什么是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这个字在口语里可以表示“食物”。那么chow down就是“吃得很多，而且还兴致勃勃的”。那不就有点儿像我们中文里说的“狼吞虎咽”吗？

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:  对，Jim他刚吃完热狗，现在又在吃蛋糕了 - He is really chowing down. 好象几天没吃饭一样的。哎，对了，Larry, 这也说明我们准备的东西受欢迎哪！ 

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

LH:   哎，Larry, 说了这么半天了，你都吃什么啦？

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

LH:   哎哟，真是抱歉，你光顾着帮我招待客人，自己都还没顾上吃呢！

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

LH:   好啊，那我们赶紧开吃吧，要不然好东西都没了！

今天李华从Larry那儿学到两个常用语。一个是without a hitch, 表示事情“进展顺利”。另外一个是chow down, 相当于中文里所说的“狼吞虎咽”。