BBC地道英语:Teetotal 滴酒不沾

William: Hello and welcome to Authentic Real English. My name is William Kremer.

Helen: And I'm Helen. Hello.

William: So, are you going to go out after work tonight, Helen?

Helen: You mean for Rob's birthday? What's the plan?

William: Well, I think we're just going to head to the Fox and Flowerpot at 6.00 o'clock.

Helen: 又要去酒吧了？真有创意！No, I think I'll give it a miss this time.

William: Oh no! Why? Have you got plans?

Helen: No, it's just...

William: You don't like Rob?

Helen: No, that's not the reason. I just don't like going to the pub all the time. I don't really drink, you know, so I always feel a bit awkward.

These people are enjoying orange juice instead of alcohol.

William: Ah, I didn't know that you were teetotal, Helen!

Helen: Teetotal?

William: Teetotal.

Helen: Teetotal.

William: Yeah. This is an adjective that describes a person who doesn't drink alcohol.

Helen: Teetotal 是形容一个人不喝酒。So does this person just drink tea?!

William: Well, maybe! But actually, the word teetotal doesn't have anything to do with tea. It's spelled T.E.E.T.O.T.A.L. Let's listen to this example of the word being used:

Example

Man: Have you bought the drinks for the party yet?

Woman: Yep – I've got a case of wine and two boxes of beer. I've also got some soft drinks for Granny. She's teetotal nowadays.

Helen: 那么我可不可以这么说, I don't feel like drinking beer tonight, I'm going to have a teetotal evening?

William: Well, not really. We describe people as teetotal, and it means that they never drink alcohol. Now, teetotal is an adjective, but there is also a noun that we can use. See if you can hear it in this example:

Example

Man: My father used to drink heavily, you know. Every night he'd have a bottle of Scotch. Maybe that's why I've always been a teetotaller.

Helen: 我听到了 teetotaller. 这是一个名词，专门指那些滴酒不沾的人。Now William, where does this word come from?

William: Well, no-one is really completely sure, Helen. But it's worth saying that in the past it was used to describe someone who didn't drink and who also thought that drinking alcohol was a bad thing. I think nowadays it's a bit softer.

Helen: Well, truth be told, William, I'm not a teetotaller. I like a drink every now and then but I just can't drink pint after pint of beer like you English people!

William: Well, good for you Helen. But why don't you come to the pub anyway? You can just have an orange juice or a lemonade. No-one will laugh at you.

Helen: 我知道没人会笑话我不喝酒，但是他们肯定会让我开车送他们回家！这次就算了吧。不过我很高兴又学到一个新词。非常感谢，William.

William: Don't mention it. Right, I'm off to the pub now.

Helen: Don't drink too much!

William: I won't! Bye!

Helen: Bye!