【高中/大學英語無障礙閱讀1000篇將陸續上傳。材料來源/適用對象/使用說明/使用效果等詳見「高中/大學英語無障礙閱讀第1篇」。疑似生詞漢語加注也許不能完全解決您的生詞問題,但你可以自己藉助詞典進行補充查閱(相信這樣的生詞應該不會很多)。】
1 My third story is about death. When I was 17 I read a quote that went something like 「If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you』ll most certainly be right.」 It made an impression on me.
我的第三個故事是關於死亡的。17歲的時候,我讀過一句格言,大意是:如果你把每一天都當作生命中最後一天去過的話,總有一天你會發現你這樣的做法是正確的。這句話給我留下了很深的印象。
quote引用(的話)n,impression留下印象n
2 About a year ago, I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning and it clearly showed a tumour on my pancreas胰腺.
大約一年前,我被診斷出癌症。那天早晨七點半我做了一次檢查,掃描清楚地顯示在我的胰腺上長了一塊腫瘤。
diagnose診斷v,scan掃描v,tumour腫瘤n
The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months.
醫生告訴我,這幾乎可以肯定是一種無法治癒的癌症,預計我只能活三到六個月。
incurable不可治癒的a
My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctors』 code for 「prepare to die.」 It means to try and tell your kids everything you thought you』d have the next ten years to tell them, in just a few months.
醫生建議我回家,把我的後事安排好,這是醫生對「準備死亡」的規範做法。這意味著你要試著在幾個月內把未來十年要對孩子們說的話都說出來。
affair屬於…方面的事n,code密碼-代碼-電碼-編碼/系統編排的法律-規章-章程-法典-n
It means to make sure that everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.
這意味著你要事先把一切事都完成好,好讓家人順利地為你辦理後事。這意味著你要(永遠地)說再見了。
button紐扣/扣住n【button up按上/扣住/完成/守口如瓶】
3 I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy活體檢查. It turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and, thankfully, I am fine now.
我一整天都在想著那個診斷結果。那天晚上我做了一次活檢。原來,這只是一種非常罕見的可以通過手術治癒的胰腺癌。我做了手術,謝天謝地,我現在好了。
diagnosis診斷書n,curable可以治癒的a,rare罕見的a,surgery外科手術n
4 This was the closest I』ve been to facing death. No one wants to die, even people who want to go to Heaven don’t want to die to get there, and yet, death is the destination we all share.
這是我離死亡最近的一次體驗。沒有人願意死,即使是那些想上天堂的人也不想為了去天堂而死。然而,死亡是我們共享的目的地。
destination目的地n
No one has ever escaped it. It’s life’s change agent; it clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now, the new is you. But someday, not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away.
沒有人能逃過死亡。死亡是人類生命更新換代(以新代舊)的代理人。現在你是「新」,但是不用太久,你們會逐漸變為「舊」,被清理掉。
agent代理人n【agency代辦處n】,clear out清理出去v,make way for讓路讓位v,gradually逐漸地adv
Sorry to be so dramatic, but it’s quite true. Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.
抱歉說得這麼誇張,但這是真的。你的時間有限,所以不要浪費時間去過別人的生活。
dramatic喜劇般的/誇張的或過分激動的a
5 When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age.
我年輕的時候有一本很棒的雜誌叫做《全球目錄》。當該雜誌走到盡頭的時候,他們出版了最後一期。那是處在20世紀70年代中期,當時的我就是你們這個年紀。
publication出版物n,course行程/過程/課程n,issue第幾期雜誌-熱點問題-話題n/發行雜誌-郵票-硬幣-鈔票-股票v/籤發護照-籤證-指令v
On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road. Beneath it were the words: 「Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.」 It was their farewell message as they signed off.
最後一期的封底上有一張清晨鄉村公路的照片。照片下面有一行字:「求知若飢,虛心若愚」,這是他們停刊的告別語。
beneath在…下面pp,farewell告別n,sign off結束工作v
Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin a new life, I wish that for you.
求知若飢,虛心若愚。我總是希望自己能這樣。現在在你們畢業開始新生活的時候,我也希望你們能這樣。
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