sharing

Fast food store refugees

 

廿四小時快餐店，成為我城不少人無家者暫時的家。他們的生活是怎樣的？背後有什麼故事？今集兩位主持會跟大家細讀一篇饒富感情的報道，希望能喚起更多人關心香港貧富懸殊的境況。

 

On a major road in the working class neighbourhood of Sham Shui Po, a pair of bright yellow arches beckons visitors into a 24-hour fast food outlet. As night falls, the fast-food restaurant becomes a temporary hostel, attracting dozens of the city's poorest people.

 

arch 拱

（noun 名詞）

 

  • a Norman/Gothic arch 諾曼式半圓拱／哥特式尖拱
  • a triumphal arch 凱旋門

 

例子：an arch in the cat's back

 

 

arch 呈弓形／使成弓形

(verb 動詞)

 

► to arch one's back 拱起背

例子：The cat arched its back.

 

例子：Winnie arched her eyebrows in surprise.　Winnie彎起雙眉，露出驚訝表情。

例子：That tree arches over the main road.　 那棵大樹覆蓋主要道路。

例子：Yoga teacher arched backward to begin the exercise.  瑜伽老師背向後彎，開始練習。

 

beckon

(verb 動詞)

 

1. 向…示意

  • to beckon sb in   示意某人進去
  • to beckon to sb to do sth   示意某人做某事

例子：John beckoned the waiter to come over.

 

2. 吸引

例子：New adventures are beckoning.

 

「快餐店難民」現象並非香港獨有，在日本、內地也非常普遍，但香港人口老化、置業艱難、薪金停滯，令情況更為嚴峻：

 

Although similar crowds can be found at these outlets all over Asia - especially in Japan and mainland China - an aging population, unaffordable property prices and stagnant wages all conspire to make the problem particularly acute in Hong Kong.

 

unaffordable 負擔不起的（adjective 形容詞）

 

afford

(verb 動詞)

 

1. 負擔

例子：They were too poor to afford a doctor.

例子：My mother always remind me don't spend more than I can afford.

 

2. 提供

例子：The window afforded a magnificent view of the beach.  從這個窗戶可以看到海灘的美景。

 

affordability  負擔能力

(noun 名詞)

 

例子：the affordability of health care

 

affordable 負擔得起的

(adjective 形容詞)

 

例子：We should buy a more affordable car.

例子：The government provides an affordable housing to citizens.

例子：an affordable price

 

stagnant 停滯不動

（adjective 形容詞）

 

例子：There is a stagnant puddle in the garden.

 

  • stagnant air 凝滯的空氣
  • a stagnant economy 停滯不前的經濟
  • stagnant wages 薪金停滯

 

conspire

（verb 動詞）

 

1. 密謀

  • to conspire against sb /sth    陰謀反對某人／某事物
  • to conspire to do sth   密謀做某事

例子：Seven people were accused of conspiring to overthrow the government.

 

2. 共同起作用

  • to conspire to do sth   共同導致某事
  • everything conspired to make her life a misery   他命運多舛
  • to conspire against sb /sth   共同與某人／某事物作對

 

例子：His illness and the bad weather conspired to ruin his vacation.

例子：Several things conspired to force govenment to change the policy.

 

acute 極度的

（adjective 形容詞）

  • an acute crisis
  • acute awareness
  • acute pain/infection
  • acute symptoms
  • an acute disease

 

IDIOMS 慣用語時間

 

Every cloud has a silver lining  黑暗中總有一線光明／雨過天青

 

例子：I'm sorry your business is going badly, but don't despair. Every cloud has a silver lining.

例子：Even though you lost the race, every cloud has a silver lining. This race helped to motivate you to lose weight and get back into shape.

 

 

下星期日開始，English in News 會小休幾個月，迎來全新訪談節目 The Speaker！有意知道名人如何學習英語、英語演講有什麼訣竅的話，萬勿錯過！

   
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