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*新聞標題
Athens cafes abuzz with political talk ahead of elections
*標題解說
‧ Athens cafes:在雅典的咖啡館,Athens 雅典,這字本身有「s」Athens
‧ abuzz with X:充滿人們熱烈討論X的聲音(片語)
filled with excitement or with the sound of people talking in an excited way
The room was abuzz with gossip.
http://oaadonline.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/abuzz
‧ abuzz with political talk:充滿了熱烈討論政治的聲音
‧ ahead of elections:在選舉投票之前
*內文解析
■ Kiki Sarakinou並不認為希臘人欠他們的歐洲鄰居任何東西。「不管是誰借給我們錢,我們不欠他們什麼」,她說。「是他們欠我們的」。因為,她說,希臘給了歐洲文化像亞里士多德,蘇格拉底這類思想家,「所有的哲學家和數學家」。
Kiki Sarakinou doesn't think the Greeks owe their European peers anything. "Whoever lent us money, we don't owe them anything," she says. "They owe us."
Because, she says, Greece gave Europe culture, thinkers like Aristotle, Socrates, "all the philosophers and mathematicians."
‧ peer:(地位,能力等)同等的人;同輩(名詞)
a person who is the same age or who has the same social status as you
http://tw.dictionary.yahoo.com/search?p=peer&fr=yfp&ei=utf-8&v=0
這位女士認爲希臘理所當然要得到European peers 歐洲其他國家的支援,
沒有虧欠
■ Sarakinou 坐在Peros咖啡館外,在雅典最富裕地區之一的Kolonaki, 這位光鮮亮麗的人物享受著該國的咖啡館文化。
Sarakinou is sitting outside Cafe Peros, a resplendent figure enjoying the country's cafe culture in Kolonaki, one of Athens' most affluent areas.
‧ X is sitting outside Café Peros, Y, Z.
用逗號隔開的内容:
Y= a resplendent figure enjoying…:說明 Sarakinou 是怎樣的人物
Z= one of Athens' most affluent areas:說明 Kolonaki 這地方是富人區之一
‧ resplendent:光鮮亮麗的(形容詞)
resplendent (in something) (formal or literary)
brightly coloured in an impressive way
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/resplendent
‧ figure:有許多解釋,這裡應該當人物(名詞)
因爲對於主詞Sarakinou(以姓指稱)
a person of the type mentioned
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/figure
‧ affluent:富裕的(形容詞)
having a lot of money and a good standard of living
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/affluent
■ 她稱目前的情況「非常令人難過,『和』糟糕」。她說該國必須跟貪腐誠實對抗使得自身走出危機。
She calls the situation "very sad, [and] bad." The country must take an "honest fight" to corruption to bring itself out of the crisis, she says.
‧ take a fight:勇敢對抗(動詞片語)taken an honest fight 誠實地對抗
‧ corruption:貪腐(名詞)
‧ take an honest fight to corruption:跟貪腐,誠實對抗
■ Kolonaki 是城市精英族群所在。這是一個企業家,政治家和演員聚在一起以雪茄,濃咖啡和冰鎮啤酒慢慢思考討論該國政治和經濟危機的地方。
Kolonaki is populated by the city's elite. It is a place where businessmen, politicians and actors gather to chew over the country's political and economic crisis with cigars, espressos and cold beer.
‧ 簡化來看:
It is a place where X,Y, and Z gather to chew over the country's political and economic crisis with A,B and C..
‧ 某地 be populated by 某類人:居住在某地的多是某類人(動詞片語)
‧ elite:精英族群(名詞)a group of people in a society, etc. who are
powerful and have a lot of influence, because they are rich, intelligent, etc
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/elite
‧ chew over something:仔細思考討論(動詞片語)
to think about or discuss something slowly and carefully
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/chew
■ 該地區富裕的客戶群確保了它在危機中稍有多一點的屏障,廣場依然人聲沸騰,充滿了家人,生意人和老年人,一直放鬆到炎熱的雅典夜晚。
Its wealthy clientele has ensured it is slightly shielded from the crisis, and the square remains buzzing with families, businessmen and the elderly, relaxing into the hot Athens evening.
‧ 這句話有 A and B 兩部分
A= Its wealthy clientele has ensured it is slightly shielded from the crisis
B= the square remains buzzing with X,Y,Z, relaxing into the evening.
(分詞relaxing 說明 X,Y,Z 這些人放鬆的情況)
‧ clientele:客戶群(名詞)
all the customers or clients of a shop/store, restaurant, organization, etc
an international clientele
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/clientele
‧ wealthy clientele:富裕的客戶群
‧ shield:保護(動詞)
be shielded from X:受到保護免於 X 之害
it is shielded from the crisis 受到保護,免於遭受危機之害
‧ slightly shielded:稍微受到保護
‧ relax:放鬆(動詞)
‧ into 時間:直到某時
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/into
to a point during a period of time
She carried on working late into the night.
into the night:直到夜晚
into the hot Athens evening:直到炎熱的雅典夜晚
■ 然而,不要以為該地區能幸免。餐廳經理 Dimitris Konstantopoulos說去年以來業務已經下降了一半, 員工人數已經從60削減至29 。
Yet the area is far from immune. Restaurant manager Dimitris Konstantopoulos says business has dropped by half since last year, and numbers of staff have been cut from 60 to 29.
‧ far from something/from doing something:並非如此(副詞片語)
almost the opposite of something or of what is expected
It is far from clear (= it is not clear) what he intends to do.
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/far+from#far_1
‧ immune (from X):免於 (X)(形容詞)
immune (from something)protected from something and therefore able
to avoid it
同義詞:exempt
Not even the President's wife was immune from criticism by the press.
http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/immune
*字彙整理
在這則新聞,看到精英希臘人對該國危機的討論,我們感受到咖啡館談論政治的風情,順道學點描述這種風情的用語:
‧ 富裕的客戶群:wealthy clientele:(名詞)
‧ 精英族群:elite(名詞)
‧ 充滿了熱烈討論政治的聲音:abuzz with political talk (片語)
‧ 在選舉投票之前:ahead of elections
‧ (地位,能力等)同等的人;同輩:peer(名詞)European peers
‧ 光鮮亮麗的:resplendent (形容詞)
‧ 人物:figure(名詞)
‧ 富裕的:affluent(形容詞)
one of Athens' most affluent areas 雅典最富裕的地區之一
‧ 仔細思考討論:chew over something:(動詞片語)
‧ 受到保護免於 X 之害:be shielded from X(動詞片語)
‧ 直到炎熱的雅典夜晚:into the hot Athens evening(片語)
‧ 免於 (X)待遇:immune (from X)(形容詞)