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2025.11.06 23:29
第十四部 第叁课: eager beaver , grunt work
- Larry 在跟李华讲他办公室里新来的实习生。今天李华会学到两个常用语：eager beaver 和 grunt work。
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- A new intern started working in my office today. He sure is an eager beaver, Li Hua!
- Beaver 不是海狸吗？动物怎能到你办公室去实习啊？
- No, the new intern isn't an actual beaver! But he works hard and is always busy like a beaver building a dam. He is always eager to do work, so we say he is an "eager beaver.”
- 对了，我现在想起来了。Beaver 不仅是指海狸，有的时候也指工作勤劳的人。而 Eager 呢就是很热情的意思，所以 "eager beaver” 指的呢就是做事特别努力，特别积极的人。Larry，我看你啊也是个 "eager beaver”，早出晚归的。
- I am not quite the eager beaver that the new intern is - I've been in the office a while. People are generally eager beavers when they are new to a job and want to impress their bosses.
- 没错，一般啊新到一个地方工作的人就会特别的热情积极，因為他们要让老闆有个好印象啊。我还记得我刚开始教中文的时候，也特别卖力耶，每天都花好多时间备课呢。
- And would you say you still are an eager beaver when it comes to teaching Chinese?
- 现在啊，不像刚开始那麼卖劲儿了。像你一样啊，我也不是以前的 eager beaver 了。
- That's OK, Li Hua. While being an eager beaver can be a good thing, someone can also take it too far.
- 勤奋当然是好事啊！居然还会有的人勤奋过头？这是什麼意思啊？
- Well, the intern in my office is such an eager beaver he wants to do everything! He ends up making my work more complicated.
- 这个实习生什麼都要做，这不是很好吗，怎麼会给你添麻烦啊？
- Yeah, that's right. He always wants to help, but sometimes I work better on my own.
- 你要是有的时候喜欢自己做，不要别人插手的话，你不能对他说你不需要帮忙吗？对了，Larry，也许你可以想办法让他去做一些你不喜欢做的事呀。
- What a good idea!
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- Thanks to your advice, Li Hua, I've now got the new intern doing some of my grunt work.
- 什麼是 grunt work? Grunt 不是指猪发出那个呼嚕呼嚕的声音吗？
- Yes, pigs grunt. And people make grunting sounds, too, when they are working really hard at something like digging ditches.
- 这我知道。人啊在做挖沟之类的工作时也会发出表示疲劳的声音。Larry, 那 grunt work 是不是就是指繁重的体力劳动啊？
- Not necessarily. Grunt work is basically routine, menial work. There are always some repetitive, boring tasks people working in offices do.
- 我明白了，grunt work 就是简单的，枯燥乏味的工作。
- Yeah, and grunt work generally doesn't require a lot of knowledge or experience. That’s why I am having the intern do my grunt work.
- 做简单的工作当然不需要丰富的知识，也不需要很多经验囉。Larry，说了半天，你究竟是让这位实习生做什麼啊?
- I am having him reorganize the office files, make new labels for the file folders, filling out forms and typing up letters.
- 你还真让他干不少活耶！整理办公室的文件，并且把它们存档，还要為文件夹贴新的标签、填表格、打信件。这些事啊的确是既费事又枯燥的。嗯～你觉得这位实习生该不会在意吧？
- No, I am sure he won't mind doing the grunt work.
- 你怎麼肯定他不在意呢？
- He is such an eager beaver, Li Hua, he will be delighted to do whatever grunt work I give him!
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- 今天李华学到了两个常用语。一个是 eager beaver, 意思是做事情特别积极、努力的人。李华学到的另一个常用语是，grunt work 意思是简单枯燥的工作。
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