Words and Idioms 974

现在播送美国习惯用语第 974讲。我是杨琳。

M: 我是 Steve Baragona.

最近我们办公室来了一个实习生。她在广播方面没什么实践经验，可是特别聪明好学，又很勤奋。我觉得她很有发展潜力。我和我的同事们都认为，有一个习惯用语用在她身上正合适，那就是:

M: Diamond in the rough. Diamond is spelled d-i-a-m-o-n-d, and rough; r-o-u-g-h. Diamond-in-the-rough. Diamond in the rough.

Diamond 是钻石的意思，而rough, 意思是粗糙的，未经雕琢的。连起来，diamond in the rough, 字面意思是粗糙的钻石，实际上就是我们在中文里所说的“未经雕琢的璞玉”。上面例子里谈到的那个实习生就是这样。She may not be an established broadcaster, but she shows potential. She's a DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH. 她现在还不是一名播音员，但是她很有潜力。她是一块未经雕琢的璞玉。下面的例子里，一个刚买房的人对他的房子有什么跟别人不一样的见解呢? 我们来听听看:

M: "My friends don't have a very high opinion of the house I bought. True, it's small and outdated. But the way I see it, its my DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH. Once I build an addition on to it, install new windows, doors and give it a fresh coat of faint, it'll be quite inviting. "

这段话是说：我朋友都觉得我刚买的房子买亏了。这房子确实不大，而且装璜也过时了。但是我觉得这幢房子很有潜力。一旦我重新装修，安上新的窗户和门，重新粉刷，这房子肯定能焕然一新。

我相信他很善于投资房地产，因为他能够意识到什么房子有翻修的价值。我的一个好朋友也是这样，她从来没有投资过房地产，不过她投资对了人。在她和她男朋友恋爱的时候，大家都不看好，可是她认为她男朋友是个潜力股。事实证明，His husband then started a great business. He was a DIAMOND IN THE TOUGH after all. 好了，言归正传，我们再来听听刚才那段话:

M: "My friends don't have a very high opinion of the house I bought. True, it's small and outdated. But the way I see it, its my DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH. Once I build an addition on to it, install new windows, doors and give it a fresh coat of faint, it'll be quite inviting. "

Diamond in the rough, 未经雕琢的璞玉。对于教练或者教师来说，发现这种潜力股的能力很重要。下面的这名网球教练就试图说服大家他发现了一个很有潜力的新球员，我们来听听看:

M: "Samantha's coach has tried to convince anyone who will listen that he's discovered the next great tennis star. But nobody believes that she's a DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH. No matter how much she trains, they think it's doubtful that she'll ever become an exceptional player."

这段话是说: 萨曼塔的教练试图让其他人相信他真地发现了未来的网球明星。但是没有人相信她是一支潜力股。不管她怎么训练，大家都怀疑她是否能成为一名出色的网球选手。

一般来说，很难想像所有人都是错的。不过也有很多例子说明真理有时候确实会站在少数人那一边。说起Diamond in the rough这个短语的起源，最初人们用这个短语来指那些还没有经过雕琢的，特别是那些可能被打造成高贵珠宝的宝石。现在，我们用这个短语的引伸意义，来形容那些非常有潜力的人和物品。好的，让我们再来听听刚才那段话:

M: "Samantha's coach has tried to convince anyone who will listen that he's discovered the next great tennis star. But nobody believes that she's a DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH. No matter how much she trains, they think it's doubtful that she'll ever become an exceptional player."

今天我们学习的习惯用语是diamond in the rough, 意思是“未经雕琢的璞玉”。好的，这次[美国习惯用语]就到此结束，我是杨琳，我是 Steve Baragona。谢谢各位的收听。

A: Diamond in the rough, this is a good term to describe myself....(笑) kidding kidding. 不过上周我看了一部电影，里头的女配角虽然不出名，但是演得特别好! She's definitely a diamond in the rough.

B: Sounds like you watch a lot of movies! Do you go to the movie theater a lot?

A: 其实不是! 我就是在Netflix上，在线看! It's a lot more cheaper than going to a movie theater, and a great way to relax after a long day of work!

B: That's true! I used to go to the movie theater a lot when I was dating my husband...but now, maybe I should consider having Netflix! Sounds like there are some great options there!

A: 是呀! 这不，在今天的美语三级跳里，Emily和Peter就要聊聊有关看电影的话题，咱们一起去听听吧!