Joining me today is Tom. Hi Tom.

今天和我一起的是湯姆嗨，湯姆

Hi Neil and hello to our audience. Today's story is about the new Covid-19 strain,

嗨，尼爾，向我們的觀眾問好。今天的故事是關於新的Covid-19菌株。

which is rapidly spreading in the UK and this has led to new travel restrictions,

在英國迅速蔓延，這導致了新的旅行限制。

both inside and outside the country.

境內外。

Don't forget that if you want to test yourself on the vocabulary you learn today,

如果你想檢驗自己今天所學的詞彙量，別忘了。

there's a quiz on our website at bbclearningenglish.com.

在我們的網站上有一個測驗在bbclearningenglish.com。

OK. Let's hear some more about that story from this BBC Radio 4 news report:

好吧，讓我們聽聽英國廣播公司第四臺的新聞報道讓我們來聽聽英國廣播公司第四臺的新聞報道中關於這個故事的更多內容。

So, the story is about a new strain of Covid-19, which is rapidly spreading in the UK.

所以，這個故事是關於一種新的科維德-19菌株，在英國迅速蔓延。

This is important because it basically means that Christmas is cancelled

這很重要，因為這基本上意味著聖誕節被取消了

for millions of families in London and the South East of the country.

為倫敦和我國東南部數百萬家庭提供服務。

This is because of travel restrictions put in place by the government.

這是因為政府實施的旅行限制。

Now, other European countries, such as France, are also imposing travel restrictions

現在，法國等其他歐洲國家也在實施旅行限制措施。

on all travel to and from the UK.

所有往返於英國的旅行。

OK. Well, you've been looking at the headlines connected to this story.

好吧好吧，你一直在看與這個故事有關的頭條新聞。

You've picked out three words and expressions, which are really useful. What are they?

你選了三個詞和表達方式，真的很有用。它們是什麼？

Really useful indeed. They are: 'mutant', 'amid' and 'to follow suit'.

確實很有用。它們是："突變"，"中間 "和 "效仿"。

'Mutant', 'amid' and 'to follow suit'.

'變異'、'之中'、'效法'。

So, let's start with your first headline and that word 'mutant', please.

所以，讓我們從你的第一個標題和那個 "突變 "一詞開始，請。

First headline, Neil, is from Metro. It says:

第一個標題，尼爾，是地鐵公司的。它說：

'Mutant' – different from others of its kind due to a genetic change.

'突變'--由於基因變化而與其他同類不同。

Now, this word is possibly easier to understand if we start with its verb form: 'to mutate'.

現在，這個詞可能更容易理解 如果我們從它的動詞形式開始："變異"。

Yeah. So, 'mutant' is an adjective. The verb form is 'to mutate' and when you 'mutate'...

是啊，所以，"變種人 "是一個形容詞。所以，"突變 "是一個形容詞。動詞形式是 "突變"，當你 "突變"... ...

Excuse me. When you 'mutate', you change genetically so your genes or your DNA changes.

對不起，我不知道當你 "突變 "時，你改變了基因，所以你的基因或你的DNA改變了。

Now, we see this word 'mutant' used a lot in, sort of, comic books and sci-fi and fiction, don't we?

現在，我們看到 "變種人 "這個詞在漫畫書和科幻小說裡用得很多，不是嗎？

Used so much in comics and sci-fi and fiction. You know, I'm a big comic-book fan, Neil.

在漫畫、科幻和小說裡用的太多了。你知道，我是個大漫畫迷，尼爾。

'Mutant' – the word 'mutant' – is actually six times more popular now than it was in 1980.

'變種人'--'變種人'這個詞，現在的流行程度其實是1980年的6倍。

It's six times more common, which probably is a result of all the famous mutants

是普通人的六倍，這大概是所有著名變種人的結果吧？

that you see in the comics. Would you like me to tell you some?

你在漫畫中看到的。你想讓我告訴你一些嗎？

Yes please.

是的，請。

So, some of my favourite mutants from comics and fiction films:

所以，我最喜歡漫畫和小說電影中的一些變種人。

Godzilla is a mutant; Deadpool – mutant; the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are also mutants;

哥斯拉是變種人；死侍--變種人；忍者神龜也是變種人。

and probably the most famous are the X-Men. The X-Men are mutants as well.

而最著名的可能就是X戰警了。X戰警也是變種人。

OK. Well, it's interesting that we're talking about fiction and comic books,

好吧。嗯，這很有趣，我們正在談論小說和漫畫書。

because this word contains an element of drama in it, doesn't it?

因為這個詞包含了戲劇性的元素在裡面，不是嗎？

Absolutely, yeah. If you look at the headline they say: 'Mutant Covid'.

當然，是的。如果你看標題，他們說："變異的科維德"。

They don't say, 'New Strain of Covid,' because 'mutant' sounds a lot more exciting

他們不說 "新株科維德"，因為 "突變體 "聽起來更刺激。

and dramatic and will, sort of, grab the reader's attention.

和戲劇性，會，有點吸引讀者的注意力。

You know, 'mutant' – you get this idea of like a Godzilla kind of virus:

你知道，"突變體"--你會想到像哥斯拉那樣的病毒。

it's very strong and dramatic, as you said.

就像你說的那樣，它非常強烈和戲劇性。

Yeah. Despite the fact that what they're saying at the moment is

是啊，儘管他們現在說的是儘管他們此刻說的是：

that it's no more dangerous than the previous strain,

它的危險性不比之前的菌種大。

but still, as you say, 'mutant' gives it... it makes it more appealing to read.

但還是像你說的，"突變 "給了它... ... 它使它更吸引人的閱讀。

It does; it makes you want to read that headline and that's probably why they've used it.

確實如此，它讓你想讀這個標題，這可能就是他們使用它的原因。

OK. Let's have a summary:

好了，我們來總結一下：讓我們來總結一下。

We have been talking about comic books and if you want to watch another News Review

我們一直在談論漫畫書，如果你想看另一個新聞評論。

on the same topic we have the perfect one for you, haven't we Tom?

在同樣的話題上，我們有一個最適合你的，不是嗎，湯姆？

We do. It's about the death of Marvel Comics legend, Stan Lee, two years ago

是的是關於漫威漫畫的傳奇人物斯坦-李兩年前的死訊。

and you can find it by clicking the link.

你可以通過點擊鏈接找到它。

OK. Let's have your next headline.

好了，我們來看看你的下一個標題。讓我們來看看你的下一個標題。

My second headline, Neil, is from the Evening Standard – the headline:

我的第二個頭條，尼爾，來自《標準晚報》--頭條。

And there's that word 'mutant' again.

又是那個 "變種人 "這個詞。

Yes. 'Mutant' that we looked at in the last headline,

是的，我們在上一個頭條看到的 "變種人"。

but the word we're looking at here is 'amid'.

但我們在這裡看的詞是 "中間"。

'Amid', which means in the middle of or surrounded by.

'之中'，指的是在中間或四周。

It does, yeah. And yeah, for once on News Review we are looking at a preposition.

是的，是的。是的，這一次我們在《新聞評論》上看到了一個介詞。

The reason I chose this word – the thing that for me, I think,

我選擇這個詞的原因--對我來說，我認為。

is most interesting – is the register, which is how formal it is.

最有意思的是--是登記簿，也就是它的形式化程度。

Yeah. Because, as I said in the definition there – in the middle of or surrounded by –

是的，因為，正如我在定義中所說因為，正如我在定義中所說的，在中間或周圍的... ...

why don't we just say that? Why do we need this word 'amid'?

我們為什麼不直接說呢？為什麼要用這個 "中 "字？

Because it's actually – it's really formal, isn't it?

因為它實際上是--它真的很正式，不是嗎？

It is very formal. So, I think there's two reasons.

它是非常正式的。所以，我認為有兩個原因。

If you look at the headline, it looks like it's quite a serious subject;

看標題的話，好像是個挺嚴肅的話題。

you know, they're actually going to go into detail about the flights and so forth.

你知道，他們實際上是要去 到詳細的班機等等。

Also – 'in the middle of' – how many words is that?

還有--'中間的'--這是多少個字？

That's going to take up a lot of space in the headline. So, 'amid' is perfect here.

這在標題中會佔據很大的空間。所以，"中間 "在這裡是最合適的。

Yeah. And there's actually a clue in the word itself:

是啊，而且這個詞本身就有線索：其實這個詞本身就有線索。

you can see if you take off the 'a-' you have that word '-mid',

你可以看到，如果你把 "a-"去掉，你就有了 "中 "字。

which is the same meaning as 'middle'.

這與'中'的意思相同。

Or 'midst' – 'in the midst of', but we will come to that in a moment.

或'中間'--'中間的'，但我們一會兒會說到這一點。

So, 'amid' – it can be physical. It can be physical or it can be, sort of, figurative.

所以，"中間"--它可以是物理的。它可以是物理的，也可以是，某種程度上，象徵性的。

Physically – in the middle of – I could say,

身體上--------------------------------------------------------我可以說。

'I am filming amid all of the chaos in my living room.'

'我是在我的客廳裡亂七八糟的情況下拍攝的。

You can see that there's wires and cameras everywhere.

你可以看到，到處都是電線和攝像頭。

Chaos is a good collocation with 'amid'.

混沌與'之中'是一個很好的搭配。

Yeah. Or you might want to say that, you know,

是啊，或者你可能想說，你知道，或者你可能想說，你知道的。

we had the BBC Learning English Christmas party on Friday.

我們上週五有BBC學習英語的聖誕派對。

It was a virtual party, of course and...

當然，這是一個虛擬的聚會，而且... ...

It was – it was a good time.

那是--那是一段美好的時光。

...'amid' the party, Rob told a really rude joke.

......在派對上，羅布講了一個非常粗魯的笑話。

I mean you could say that, but it... that's quite an informal context to use it.

我的意思是，你可以說，但它... 這是一個相當非正式的情況下使用它。

I could say, 'During the merriment of the Christmas party my colleague Rob told a joke.'

我可以說："在聖誕聚會的歡樂時光裡，我的同事羅布講了一個笑話。

But why would we speak like that on a day-to-day... day-to-day level?

但我們為什麼要在日常的... 日常的層面上這樣說話呢？

It's too formal so we normally use it for more serious things.

太正式了，所以我們一般用它來做比較嚴肅的事情。

So, it can be figurative as well, this preposition 'amid':

所以，它也可以是形象化的，這個介詞'之中'。

if you look at what the headline's talking about, it's talking about an announcement

如果你看一下標題的內容，它說的是關於一個公告。

to stop flights, which was made 'amid' an alarming rise in cases.

停止班機，這是'在'令人震驚的案件上升的情況下作出的。

So, an alarming rise in Covid cases – very serious.

所以，科維德病例的增加令人震驚--非常嚴重。

Rob's joke at the Christmas party – not that serious.

羅布在聖誕派對上的笑話--沒那麼嚴重。

Not that serious... OK. let's get a summary:

沒那麼嚴重...好了，我們來總結一下。

We mentioned that the last word 'amid' is a preposition

我們提到最後一個詞 "中間 "是介詞

and we have more on prepositions, but it's not serious, is it Tom?

我們還有更多關於介詞的內容，但這不是認真的，對吧，湯姆？

No we have a... you can see prepositions in probably the least serious context,

不，我們有一個......你可以在可能最不嚴重的情況下看到介詞。

a very silly one on The Grammar Game Show, by clicking the link.

一個非常愚蠢的一個文法遊戲節目，通過點擊鏈接。

Very entertaining though, so do check that out.

不過非常有趣，所以一定要去看看。

OK. We have another word for you – another headline.

好吧，我們有另一個詞要告訴你--另一個標題。我們有另一個詞要告訴你--另一個標題。

OK. My next headline is from The Independent

好吧，我的下一個標題是《獨立報》的。我的下一個標題是獨立報的

and the vocabulary is actually in the subheading. It says:

而詞彙其實是在小標題中。它說：

'To follow suit' – meaning to do the same thing.

'效法'--指做同樣的事情。

'To follow suit' means to do the same thing.

'隨順'是指做同樣的事情。

Before we continue, Neil, I will point out that there is a typo in this headline:

在我們繼續之前，尼爾，我要指出，這個標題有一個錯字。

the subject is 'five EU countries' – it should be 'look poised', not 'looks poised'.

主題是'五個歐盟國家'--應該是'look poised'，而不是'look poised'。

That's right. So, the headline has got a mistake in it... but it's still useful for us.

是的，是的所以，標題有一個錯誤... 但它仍然是有用的我們。

It happens... it happens to the best of us.

它發生了... 它發生在我們最好的人身上。

OK. So, how about this word 'suit'? I thought a 'suit' was something you wore:

好吧，那這個 "服 "字呢？那麼，"西裝 "這個詞怎麼樣？我以為 "西服 "是你穿的東西。

the matching jacket and trousers and tie for a formal occasion.

搭配的外套、長褲和領帶，適合在正式場合使用。

It is! This is another definition of 'suit' – is a formal attire

是的！這是另一個 "西裝 "的定義。這是 "西裝 "的另一個定義--是一種正式的服裝

that you wear, you know: jacket, tie.

你穿的衣服，你知道： 夾克，領帶。

We can also have 'suits' in cards, in games... like in card games.

我們也可以在卡牌中、遊戲中......像在紙牌遊戲中一樣有'套裝'。

There are 52 cards, I think, and there are four 'suits' that are the same colour.

我想，一共有52張牌，有四種'套裝'的顏色是一樣的。

And it's this idea of being the same: if you look at businessmen wearing suits,

而且是這種想法是一樣的：如果你看商人穿西裝。

suits are very much the same, right? Kind of like a uniform.

西裝都是大同小異的，對吧？有點像制服。

That's right.

是的

You could have a blue suit... yeah, you could have a blue suit

你可以有一個藍色的西裝... 是的，你可以有一個藍色的西裝。

or you could have a black suit but basically they're... they're the same.

或者你可以有一個黑色的西裝，但基本上他們是... 他們是一樣的。

And it's this idea of being similar or being the same thing.

而就是這種相似或相同事物的想法。

Now, no doubt your plans for Christmas have changed, Tom?

現在，毫無疑問，你的聖誕計劃已經改變了，湯姆？

Yes, I have. Well... Can you tell us about that?

是的，我有。那...你能告訴我們嗎？

...I will tell you about my Christmas plans, Neil, and then perhaps

...我會告訴你我的聖誕計劃，尼爾，然後也許...

maybe you can 'follow suit' – maybe you could do the same thing.

也許你可以 "效仿"--也許你可以做同樣的事情。

OK.

好的

So, my original plan was to go to the countryside, get some fresh air, see my family,

所以，我原來的計劃是去鄉下，呼吸一下新鮮空氣，看看家人。

but now those plans have been cancelled so I will be spending my Christmas

但現在這些計劃已經被取消了 所以我將會度過我的聖誕節。

right here in my living room where you can see me.

就在我的客廳裡，你可以看到我。

Maybe not with the camera on though.

不過開著攝像頭就不行了。

Hmmm... I could live stream my Christmas dinner, but probably not.

嗯...我可以直播我的聖誕晚餐，但可能不會。

How about you?

你呢？

OK. So, I'll 'follow suit' now....

好吧，我知道了。那麼，我現在就'效仿'....。

Please 'follow suit'.

請'效仿'。

...I'll follow suit now and I'll..

...我現在就跟著去，我會... ...

Yeah, I'll tell everyone that I'm doing exactly the same as you.

是啊，我會告訴大家，我和你做的一模一樣。

I won't be traveling anywhere to see anybody. I'll be here, because we can't leave

我不會去任何地方見任何人。我會在這裡，因為我們不能離開。

and millions of others in the South-East of England will 'follow suit'.

以及英格蘭東南部的其他數百萬人也會'效仿'。

Exactly.

就是這樣

OK. Let's have a summary:

好了，我們來總結一下：讓我們來總結一下。

Time now, Tom, for a recap of the vocabulary please.

時間到了，湯姆，請你回顧一下詞彙。

A recap of today's vocabulary.

對今天的詞彙進行總結。

we have: 'mutant' – different from others of its kind due to a genetic change.

我們有："突變"--由於基因改變而與其他同類不同。

'Amid' – in the middle of; or surrounded by.

'Amid'--在中間；或被包圍。

And 'to follow suit' – means to do the same thing.

而'效法'--是指做同樣的事情。

If you want to test yourself on this vocabulary, please go to our website:

如果你想測試一下自己的詞彙量，請到我們的網站。

bbclearningenglish.com – there's a quiz there that you can take

bbclearningenglish.com - 那裡有一個測驗，你可以採取

and don't forget we are also all over social media.

別忘了我們也在社交媒體上。

Thanks for watching and we will see you next time.

感謝您的觀看，我們下期再見。

Take care and goodbye.

保重，再見。

Bye everybody! Happy Christmas!

大家再見!聖誕快樂