The english we speak(BBC教學)第89期:It's a joke 荒唐可笑
Helen: Hello and welcome to The English We Speak from BBC Learning English, I'm Helen. With me today is quite a frustrated-looking Neil. Neil, what are you doing to that mobile phone?
海倫：大家好，歡迎來到BBC英語教學頻道的我們說的英語節目，我是海倫。今天我們請到了尼爾，他看上去非常生氣。尼爾，你拿着手機做什麼呢？Neil: Argh, I can't get it to make a phone call. It does everything else: it takes photos, it connects to the internet, it even irons my shirts but it won't make a call!
尼爾：哎喲，我不能打電話。這部手機其它的功能都有：可以拍照，可以上網，甚至可以熨襯衫，可它就是不能打電話！Helen: Your mobile phone irons your shirts?
海倫：你的手機可以燙襯衫？
Neil: No, not really, but honestly it does everything apart from the one thing I want it to do–make a phone call. It's a joke!
尼爾：不，實際上不是，說實話，它什麼功能都有，除了我希望它有的功能——打電話。真是荒唐！Helen: A joke? But you're not laughing. It can't be a very funny joke.
海倫：玩笑？可是你並沒有笑啊。那並不是個有趣的玩笑。Neil: Well if you say something is a joke in English it can also mean that it's not very good or not worthy of respect.
尼爾：嗯，英語中如果你說某件事很荒唐，可以是指那並不是很好，或者是不值得重視的事情。Helen: Yes, 'joke' has a second meaning.
海倫：對，joke這個詞還有其它意思。Example:
例子：The investigation into police corruption was a complete joke. Everyone knows the officers were taking money but they were let off.
對有關警察腐敗問題的調查簡直荒唐可笑。所有人都知道警察收受賄賂了，可是他們卻被放走了。The weather forecast was a total joke. It said it would be warm and sunny but it's freezing and raining.
天氣預報真是可笑。天氣預報說今天會是溫暖的明天，可是其實卻是個寒冷的雨天。Helen: As you heard there in the example, the person described an investigation into police corruption as a joke. This doesn't mean it was funny. It means it wasn't serious. Also the weather forecast was so bad it was described as a joke.
海倫：就像你在例子中聽到的，人們形容對警察腐敗問題的調查荒唐可笑。這並不是說那很有趣。而是說那並不嚴謹。同樣天氣預報也很糟糕，所以也可以形容爲可笑。Neil: Notice that you can add words before 'joke' to make the meaning even stronger. It's a complete joke.
尼爾：我們注意到你可以在可笑前加形容詞使意思更加強烈。這非常荒唐。Helen: A complete joke.
海倫：非常荒唐。Neil: It's a total joke.
尼爾：可笑透了。Helen: A total joke.
海倫：可笑透了。Neil: It's an absolute joke.
尼爾：絕對是荒唐的事情。Helen: Anyway Neil, why don't you just read the instructions for your new mobile phone? Then you'll probably be able to work out how to make a call.
海倫：不管怎樣，尼爾，你爲什麼不看看新手機的說明書呢？然後你可能就知道怎麼打電話了。Neil: I looked at the instructions but they're an absolute joke.
尼爾：我看過說明書了，可是那簡直荒唐透頂。Helen: Oh really?
海倫：哦，真的嗎？Neil: Well for a start they are in about 17 languages apart from English.
尼爾：首先，說明書上有17種語言，但就是沒有英語。Helen: What a joke!
海倫：真是可笑！Neil: Yeah I know.
尼爾：對，我知道。Helen: Well we've heard lots of jokes in today's programme but there hasn't been much laughing.
海倫：今天我們在節目中聽了很多可笑的事，不過其實並不是很有趣。Neil: Argh, what a useless piece of …
尼爾：哎喲，真是一個沒用的……Helen: Let's hope Neil finally works out how to use his phone.
海倫：我們希望尼爾最後能弄明白如何使用他的手機。Neil: Argh, this is beyond a joke, it really is…
尼爾：哎喲，這真是讓人無法接受，它真的是……Helen: Join us again for The English We Speak.
海倫：歡迎大家收看下期我們說的英語節目。Neil: Argh, mobiles…
尼爾：哎喲，手機……重點講解：
1. let off
對…寬大處理；
eg. Because he was a Christian, the judge let him off.
由於他是基督徒，法官便對他從輕發落。
eg. When police realised who he was, they asked for an autograph and let him off with a warning.
警察知道他是誰後，便向他要了簽名，然後只給了他個警告就放他走了。
2. be worthy of
值得…的；應該獲得…的；
eg. We esteem him to be worthy of trust.
我們認爲他值得信任。
eg. His spirit of assiduous study is worthy of emulation.
他刻苦鑽研的精神，值得效法。
3. for a start
首先；第一；
eg. You must get her name and address, and that can be a problem for a start.
你必須先打聽到她的姓名和地址，而那可能就是第一個難題。
eg. It comes as a surprise to be reminded that he is 70. For a start, he doesn't look it.
有人提醒我他 70 歲了，這很令人驚訝。首先，他看上去不像。
4. apart from
除…外；此外；
eg. I have nothing more to ask you about apart from these questions.
除了這些問題，我沒有別的要了解了。
eg. Apart from my host, I didn't know a single person there.
除了主人外，那裏的人我一個也不認識。
5. beyond a joke
（惱人或令人擔心的事）不可理喻，使人無法接受；
eg. Giving an arsonist a lighter is beyond a joke.
把打火機交給縱火犯簡直是不可理喻。
eg. I'm not afraid of a fair fight but this is beginning to get beyond a joke.
“我不怕公平地打上一架，但是這玩笑有點兒開過頭了。”
