听力文本

Hello and welcome to VOA Learning English's Words and Their Stories!

Every week, we bring you some common words, expressions and idioms used in the United States.

Today we are going to breathe. Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathing keeps us alive. Deep breathing can lower our blood pressure and calm an over-active mind.

Today, we visit the seaside as we explore many expressions that have to do with breathing. Two friends are taking a much needed break from work. We join them as they sit on the beach, burying their feet deep in the sand.

This morning they are taking scuba lessons. They breathe in the cleansing ocean air. And they breathe out the frustrations of the work they left behind.

Let's listen.

"This is the life! I am so glad we took this vacation."

"Me, too. Sitting here listening to the ocean and the seagulls, I can finally breathe easy."

"No work for the next 14 days! That's breathing easy!"

"Work was killing me. Right up until I left for the airport, my boss was there ... breathing down my neck the whole time. ‘Yes, boss, I finished the report. Yes, I contacted the client. Yes, I submitted the proposal.' Advertising is such a non-stop industry."

"Bosses need to know that it doesn't help to breathe down someone's neck. People need a little breathing room to get things done."

"That is the truth. Well, I am breathing a sigh of relief to finally be away from work. Hey, how are things with your job?"

"It's better. Several months ago, I was so busy working on a political campaign that I hardly had time to breathe."

"I know! I didn't see you for months during that campaign. I wondered when you were going to come up for air."

"And working with politicians ... that can be challenging. They start to breathe their own fumes."

"In what ways are they breathing their own fumes?"

"They believe what the public and media say about them. They won't listen to anybody and they think they know best."

"I don't have to deal with that type at my office. But one colleague of mine is really getting on my nerves. She sucks all the air out of the room. She's loud, talks all the time, and always has to be the center of attention."

"I also worked with a guy who sucked the air out of a room, too. But he left. The person who replaced him is pleasant and has many new ideas -- a real breath of fresh air."

"That's great. You know, talking about fresh air, how about this ocean air? So much better than a polluted city. I could stay here forever."

"Wouldn't it be nice if we could win the lottery? That way we could just stay here on the beach and not worry about making money."

"I wouldn't hold your breath for that to happen. The odds of winning the lottery are not in your favor. But it sounds like you need to breathe a little life into your career. Maybe it's time to look for another job."

"Well, in fact, I have a lead on a great job. But I won't know until next month. So, don't breathe a word to anyone about it."

"I promise. My lips are sealed. But, really, would you listen to us? We want to get away from work and here we are talking about it."

"Ha, you're right. It's time to put work talk aside. Here comes our scuba instructor. Speaking of breathing and coming up for air, let's not forget to do that during our scuba lesson, literally."

And that's it for this Words and Their Stories. Let us know what you think of the program or practice using these expressions on our website, at LearningEnglish.VOANews.com. I'm Anna Matteo.

重点解析

1.breathe easy 松一口气
Oh, I can breathe easy now.
啊，那我现在就可以松一口气了。

2.breathe down one's neck 紧盯某人
Finally, I told him that if he continues to breathe down my neck, he's going to have to find another mechanic.
最后告诉他，你要是再这么盯着我，就另请一位机修工吧。

3.come up for air 休息片刻
I still have more to do, but I simply have to come up for air.
我还有不少没完成，但是我可真得喘口气歇一下了。

4.breathe one's own fumes 自欺欺人
They start to breathe their own fumes.
他们开始自欺欺人。

参考译文

大家好，欢迎来到VOA学英语《词汇掌故》节目！

我们每周都会带来一些美国的常用单词、词组和习语。

今天我们将要讨论的是“breathe”这个词。吸气。呼气。呼吸维持着我们的生命。深呼吸能够降低我们的血压，从过于兴奋的心情中冷静下来。

今天我们去海滩探索一些与呼吸有关的词组。两个好朋友从工作中脱离出来进行必要的休息。在她们坐在沙滩上把脚深深地埋在沙子里的时候，我们加入了他们。

今天上午她们正要上潜水课。她们呼吸着海边洁净的空气。同时也把抛在脑后的工作烦恼呼出去了。让我们一起听一下。

“这才是生活！我很高兴我们能度个假。”

“我也是。坐在这里听着大海和海鸥的声音，我终于能够松口气了。”

“接下来的两个礼拜都不用工作！这才真的让人松口气！”

“工作快要压垮我了。直到我前往机场，我的老板一直在那里...紧盯着我。'好的老板，我写完报告了。好的，我联系过客户了。好的，我把提案交上去了。广告这一行真是永远都得不到休息啊！”

“老板们应该明白，紧盯着人是没用的。人们需要一些完成任务的喘息时间。”

“就是这样。能够远离工作，真让我松了一口气。对了，你的工作怎么样了？”

“好一点。几个月以前，我忙着参与竞选工作，几乎让我喘不过气来。”

“我知道！自从那次选举以来我已经好几个月没看见你了。我还想着你什么时候才能出来放个风。”

“和政客们一起工作...挺有挑战性的。他们开始自欺欺人。”

“怎么个自欺欺人法？”

“他们相信民众和媒体对他们的评论。他们不听任何人的话并且认为他们自己知道的最多。”

“我在办公室里倒是不用和这种人打交道。但我有个同事确实快把我逼疯了。办公室里里外外的空气都被她污染了。她嗓门很大，不停地说话，还总是想成为大家关注的焦点。”

“我的同事里面也有个这样的人。但是他走了。代替他的人很好，有很多新点子--真是一缕清风啊。”

“太棒了。你知道，说道新鲜空气，海边的空气怎么样？比城市里污浊的空气好多了。我想永远待在这里。”

“我们要是中了彩票那该有多好啊？那样的话我们就能一直待在这里，不用操心挣钱的事儿了。”

“我可不会屏住呼吸等待这种事发生的。中彩票的可能性一点都不尽如人意。不过听起来你需要给自己的事业注入一些活力。也许是时候寻找下一个工作了。”

“嗯，事实上，我有一个不错工作的线索。但是直到下个月我才知道。所以，这件事先不要跟任何人说。”

“我向你保证。我嘴很严的。但是，说真的，你愿意倾听我们吗？我们想要逃离工作，但是刚刚又谈到工作了。”

“哈哈，你说得对。是时候把工作放到一边了。潜水教练过来了。说到呼吸和需要空气，一会儿潜水课的时候可别忘了这么做--我是说字面上的意思。”

以上是今天的《词汇掌故》节目。请在我们的网站LearningEnglish.VOANews.com上告诉我们你对节目和短语练习的想法。我是安娜·马特奥。