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[00:00.00]2018年2月26日VOA慢速英語
[00:06.66]Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories.
[00:13.16]There are several kinds of citrus fruit.
[00:17.97]The most common are limes, oranges, grapefruit, tangerines and lemons.
[00:25.73]Out of all of them, it is the lemon that has found its way
[00:31.21]into a number of English language expressions.
[00:34.97]While eating an orange or grapefruit can be pleasant,
[00:39.96]we don't usually eat plain lemons.
[00:43.52]Lemons are really sour.
[00:46.26]The acid in them makes it really hard to eat them raw.
[00:51.25]Lemons are so acidic they can actually take the protective enamel off your teeth.
[00:58.12]So, biting into a lemon does not bring a smile to your face.
[01:03.89]In fact, when someone is unhappy she may have a puckered look on her face.
[01:11.65]In this case we can say she looks as if she just sucked on a lemon.
[01:18.60]We can also call this person a sourpuss.
[01:23.01]This is a person who always complains and always looks unhappy.
[01:30.01]With its really sour taste, sucking on a lemon is unpleasant.
[01:36.83]So, telling someone to "Go suck a lemon!" is a way of showing your anger.
[01:43.73]It's not really nice and sounds childish.
[01:48.38]But there are worse things you could say!
[01:50.96]While we don't usually eat lemons raw,
[01:55.12]they can add taste and vitamin C to food and drinks.
[02:00.08]But in everyday speech, the word "lemon"
[02:04.49]usually represents something poor, bad or broken.
[02:10.01]For example, if you hand someone a lemon,
[02:14.39]you have given them something that is broken or doesn't work.
[02:18.81]This expression means that you have cheated them.
[02:23.77]A "lemon" can also mean an unsatisfactory answer.
[02:30.02]As we said, a lemon can be something you bought that does not work.
[02:36.83]It is defective.
[02:39.19]Americans often use the word lemon
[02:43.21]to describe a newly-bought, but defective vehicle.
[02:47.91]Let's say you go to an automotive dealership and buy what you think is a good car.
[02:55.38]On the streets around the dealership, it runs perfectly.
[03:00.24]But on the drive home, everything goes wrong.
[03:04.94]The gas pedal sticks.
[03:07.29]The engine starts smoking.
[03:09.72]Then it just stops running in the middle of the road!
[03:15.26]You have bought a lemon.
[03:18.55]As you watch the tow truck take away the car for repairs,
[03:23.62]you call the dealership and demand your money back.
[03:26.94]The salesman says with a laugh, "No way! All sales are final!"
[03:34.25]Now, many people would get angry.
[03:37.88]Not only do you not have a car, but you have lost a lot of money.
[03:44.39]But you don't get upset.
[03:47.78]You find a way to make this situation work for you.
[03:52.67]After all, you are a person who looks on the bright side.
[03:57.76]Your life's belief is: When life give you lemons, you make lemonade!
[04:04.29]Here, the term "lemon" means a problem or difficulty in life.
[04:09.75]Lemonade is a cool refreshing drink.
[04:13.59]You could say it is the prize you get by overcoming difficulty with your good attitude.
[04:21.59]So, we use this expression to describe a situation
[04:26.31]where something goes wrong but the person in the situation
[04:30.60]chooses to turn it into a positive experience.
[04:35.14]People who turn lemons into lemonade we call optimistic.
[04:41.36]They have a can-do attitude!
[04:44.42]This is a common phrase and we use in many different situations.
[04:50.74]Sometimes we don't even need to say the whole thing.
[04:55.41]If you simply say, "When life gives you lemons ..."
[04:59.31]people will know what you mean.
[05:01.92]So, back to our broken car story.
[05:05.92]You take the lemon of a car you bought at the dealership and you make lemonade.
[05:11.98]First, you learn about your rights as a buyer
[05:16.47]under a measure known as the lemon law.
[05:19.05]In the United States,
[05:21.48]this requires an automobile manufacturer or dealer to replace, repair,
[05:27.91]or refund the cost of an automobile that proves to be defective after purchase.
[05:34.78]Under the lemon law, you will get your money back.
[05:39.40]But don't stop there.
[05:41.44]Why make a glass of lemonade when you can make a whole pitcher!
[05:46.95]You warn friends and neighbors about that car dealership.
[05:52.05]You write an article for the local newspaper about lemon laws.
[05:56.98]The newspaper receives many emails and letters
[06:01.06]from people who had similar experiences.
[06:04.06]Knowing their rights, they also demand their money back
[06:09.34]for the lemons that were sold to them.
[06:11.46]The newspaper is so happy with the amount of responses
[06:15.87]that it offers you a part-time job writing stories about consumer issues.
[06:22.17]You've turned a bad experience into something good and you've helped others.
[06:29.11]Life gave you lemons and you made lemonade.
[06:33.76]And that's the end of this week's Words and Their Stories.
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Words in This Story
citrus – n. a juicy fruit (such as an orange, grapefruit, or lemon) that has a thick skin and that comes from a tree or shrub that grows in warm areas — often used before another noun
sour – adj. having an acid taste that is like the taste of a lemon
acid – n. chemistry : a chemical with a sour taste that forms a salt when mixed with a base / acidic – adj. containing acid : having a very sour or sharp taste
pucker – v. to pull the sides of (something, such as skin or cloth) together so that folds or wrinkles are formed : puckered – adj.
defective – adj. having a problem or fault that prevents something from working correctly : having a defect or flaw
optimistic – adj. having or showing hope for the future : expecting good things to happen : hopeful
positive – adj. good or useful
can-do – adj. having or showing an ability to do difficult things
attitude – n. the way you think and feel about someone or something
refund – n. to give back money that someone paid for something (such as a product that was returned or a service that was not acceptable)
consumer – n. a person who buys goods and services