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The stories behind your favourite Christmas carols

 

"Santa Claus is coming to Town", "All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth"... ... 首首聖誕頌歌，創作背後的故事你又知道嗎？Kevin 和 Jo 會跟大家分享多首聖誕金曲，趁機學習相關英文生字各種有趣用法！

 

This is the season for Christmas caroling.
Here's a closer look at the stories behind some of your favourite holiday tunes.

 

carol 歡快地歌唱；（尤指）唱宗教頌歌

(verb 動詞)

 

carol 歡快的歌；聖歌；（通常指）聖誕頌歌

(noun 名詞)

 

e.g. "Silent Night" is my favourite Christmas carol.

「平安夜」是我最喜歡的聖誕頌歌。

 

這些字，都有「歌」的意思：tune, melody, song

 

tune 曲調，曲子；旋律

(noun 名詞)

 

e.g. That's a very catchy tune.  那是一首很容易上口的曲子。

 

in tune / out of tune 啱音 / 走音

e.g. I’m afraid the piano is out of tune.  恐怕這架鋼琴走調了。

 

be in tune with somebody  與…協調／相契合

be out of tune with somebody  與…不協調／不相契合

 

e.g. Much of his success comes from being in tune with what his customers want.

他的成功很大程度上歸功於他理解及配合顧客的需要。

 

e.g. Her theories were out of tune with the scientific thinking of the time.

她的理論與當時的科學思想不符。

 

'Santa Claus Is Coming To Town'

Inspiration can strike you anywhere, even on a subway. While traveling to a music publisher's office in 1933, the tune's songwriters sat in a subway car and penned (寫下) the song on the back of an envelope.

 

inspiration

(noun 名詞)

 

1. 靈感 / 想法 / 主意

 

怎樣說「得到靈感」？有什麼動詞可以用？

I have an inspiration.  Vs.   An inspiration strikes me.

 

> take inspiration from / draw inspiration from something

 

e.g. The artist took his inspiration from African art.

e.g. He drew much inspiration from art produced by primitive cultures.

 

> provide inspiration for

 

e.g. The golden autumn light provided the inspiration for the painting.

秋天金色的陽光給這幅畫的創作帶來了靈感。

 

2. 給人以靈感的人（或物）

 

e.g. Sally has always been an inspiration to us all.

 

'I'll Be Home for Christmas'

The song captured the mood of homesick Americans in 1943, especially the soldiers who were in the depths of World War II. 

 

早前我們介紹過 seasick (暈船的) 這個字，原來還有 homesick 和 lovesick！

 

homesick 思鄉的，想家的

(adjective 形容詞)

 

e.g. As I read my mother's letter, I began to feel more and more homesick.

我在讀媽媽的來信時開始覺得越來越想家。

 

lovesick 害相思病的；（因單相思而）傷心的

(adjective 形容詞)

 

e.g. He was wandering around like a lovesick teenager.

他像個單相思的年輕人一樣悶悶不樂地四處遊蕩。

 

Listening test

 

Q1: 為何最初會有「報佳音」的習俗呢?

Originated from England, from the idea of hospitality: People of higher classes have to give to the lower classes, and so they began to think of ways to get money – with music!

 

Q2: 上門「報佳音」三步曲是什麼？傳統聖誕歌有玄機！

The secret of “We Wish You A Merry Christmas”: it follows the pattern – blessing, demands for payment, and implicit threat!

 

A Song For You

 

"The Christmas Song" by Nat King Cole

 

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire

Jack Frost nipping at your nose

Yuletide carols being sung by the choir

And folks dressed up like Eskimos

 

Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe

Help to make the season bright

Tiny little tots with their eyes all aglow

Will find it hard to sleep tonight

 

Yuletide (old fashioned way to say Christmas)

mistletoe 美洲檞寄生枝條（常用作聖誕裝飾物，按西方習俗，可與站在枝條下面的人接吻）

 

e.g. Jack and Jasmine were kissing under the mistletoe at the office party.

辦公室派對上，Jack 和 Jasmine 在檞寄生枝條下親吻。

   
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