And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English!
When the sun shines brightly, it provides a great chance to get outdoor things done. Like making hay!
現在是美國之音慢速英語單詞故事節目。
陽光明媚的時候是完成戶外作業的絕好機會。例如曬乾草。
At least, that is what farmers from the past would say. "Make hay while the sun shines".
This idiom is very old, dating back to Medieval times.
至少，過去的農民會這麼說。"曬草要趁太陽好。"
這句習語非常古老，可以追溯到中世紀。
Rain would often ruin the process of making hay.
So, farmers had no choice but to make hay when the sun was shining.
雨水經常會破壞曬乾草的過程。
所以，農民們別無選擇，只能在陽光燦爛的時候曬乾草。
Today, we all use this expression, not just farmers.
When conditions are perfect to get something done, we can say, "It's a good idea to make hay while the sun shines".
如今我們大家都在使用這個表達，而不僅僅是農民。
當條件適合完成某項工作時，我們就可以說："最好是抓住時機，趁熱打鐵。"
In other words, you are taking advantage of a good situation or of good conditions.
You are making the most of your opportunities.
換句話來說，你要利用良好的現狀或條件。你要充分利用機會。
These all mean "making hay while the sun shines".
Now listen while I use this expression with my friend Bryan.
這些都是"making hay while the sun shines"的意思。
現在來聽一聽我跟我的朋友布萊恩運用這句表達。
Say, when is your husband coming home?
Not for another two weeks.
我說，你老公什麼時候回家啊？再過兩周吧。
That's a long time! How are you spending your time alone?
I am finally getting some home improvement projects done.
還有好久啊！你這段時間一個人怎麼過的啊？
我終於完成了一些家庭裝修項目。
You know, moving some furniture, painting some rooms, cleaning closets . . . That's a lot of work for one person.
Why don't you wait for your husband to come home?
你知道，像搬一些家具，給房間刷漆，打掃壁櫥等。這對一個人來說工作量很大啊。
你為什麼不等你老公回家一起幹啊？
No way ! It's easier to do it by myself. I'm getting everything done that I can't do with other people around.
Good idea. Make hay while the sun shines.
不行！我自己幹更簡單。我趁著身邊沒人時把事情都幹完了，要是有人我可能就幹不了了。
好主意。"把握良機，趁熱打鐵。"
Exactly! And sometimes we use this expression to mean we beat someone to the punch, or we got ahead of someone else.
就是這樣！有時候我們用這句表達來表示我們先發制人，或者我們領先於某人。
And other times you make hay while the sun shines to make good use of the chance to do something while it lasts.
You are being opportunistic – taking advantage of a good opportunity.
還有時候，曬草要趁太陽好意味著充分利用時機做某事。
你要做機會主義者，把握住好機會！
For example, my friend Ozzy was sick for a week and could not go to work.
So, his co-worker Sarah -- who doesn't like him -- took advantage of his illness and stole his project!
例如，我的朋友奧茲病了一周，沒法去上班。
所以，他的同事薩拉，一個不喜歡他的人，利用他這次生病的機會搶走了他的項目。
Talk about making hay while the sun shines. Sometimes when you make hay while the sun shines you are staying ahead of a problem – like in this example:
這就是抓住時機。有時候當你抓住機會時，你就會躲過麻煩，例如下面這個例子：
Hey, do you want to go hiking with me and my friends this weekend? The weather is going to be beautiful! I wish I could.
But I have to finish my taxes. It's the last weekend before they're due.
嘿，這個周末你想跟我和我的朋友一起去遠足嗎？天氣會很好！我也希望我能去。
但是我得完成報稅。這是報稅截至日前的最後一個周末了。
Oh, that's too bad. Wait. What about your taxes? My taxes are done.
I was off from work a couple of weeks ago and made hay while the sun shined.
I got all of it done!
哦，那太糟糕了。等等，你報完稅了？
我報完稅了。我幾周前休假了，便趁機都弄完了。
I wish I would have taken advantage of my time off last week.
All I did was lay around the house.
You should know that sometimes we only use parts of this expression.
我多希望我也利用了上周的休假時間。我所做的就是躺在家裡。
你要知道，有時候我們只使用這句表達的一部分。
You might hear someone simply say they were "making a little hay".
The meaning is still there, even if all the words aren't.
你可能會聽到有人光說他們在"making a little hay"。
即使整句話不完整，表達的也是這個意思。
And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.
But join us again next week. You can listen while you're making dinner or riding to work.
以上就是本期單詞故事的全部內容。歡迎下周繼續收聽我們的節目。
你可以在做晚餐或騎車上班時聽節目。
Yeah, make hay while the sun shines. Learn more English expressions with VOA Learning English ! Until next time . . .
是的，抓住時機，趁熱打鐵。你可以通過美國之音慢速英語學習節目了解更多英語表達。
I'm Anna Matteo. And I'm Bryan Lynn.
我們下期節目再見。
安娜·馬特奧和布萊恩·林恩為您播報。