第24课　A LATE START

"Do you take spicy things?" should be "Do you eat spicy food?"

Jane arrives at work to find Gary waiting outside. They can hear the phone ringing in the office.

Jane: Hello, Gary. Why are you waiting out here?

Gary: I had lost my keys.

Jane: Where did you lose them?

Gary: I don't know. If I did...

Jane: The phone's ringing. Can you let us in?

Gary: Cannot. I had lost my keys.

Jaya arrives.

Jaya: Good morning all. Why are you waiting out here?

Jane: I don't know.

Jaya: The phone's ringing.

Jane: I know.

Jaya: Here, let me.

Jaya opens the door and they enter the office.

Jane: Good morning. HotDotCom. How can I help?

Nora: It's me. Nora.

Jane: Hello, Nora. What's wrong?

Nora: I am late. I sleep late yesterday.

Jane: Umm...

Nora: I am on my way. I am in the bus now.

Jane: Oh! You are on the bus.

Nora: Yes, I will be there in a few minutes.

Jane: That's OK. Thanks for ringing.

Gary: Hey Jane, did you hear? Hotel Boat Quay had signed the contract.

Jane: Why? What happened? It was signed, sealed and delivered on Friday.

Gary: Yes.

Jaya: Gary means they have signed the contract.

Jane: Then what happened?

Jaya: Nothing.

Jane: (realising the confusion) Ahhh...! I had lost my keys.

Gary: You too?

Jane: No. When you said, "I had lost my keys" you meant to say, "I have lost my keys."

Gary: Ahhh...!

Jane: (sighs) Maybe we should start this morning all over again.

Narrator: What a confusing morning! Gary had a problem with...

Replay...

Gary: I had lost my keys.

Narrator: ...which means that he has now found them. Jane thought he was talking about an earlier past. Like, "I had lost my keys but I found them this morning." He should have said ..."I have lost my keys"...which means that the event is still important.

Replay...

Gary: Hey Jaya. Did you hear? Hotel Boat Quay had signed the contract.

Narrator: This suggests that they backed out of the deal.

　　　(pause) Nora also said:

Replay...

Nora: I am late. I sleep late yesterday.

Narrator: Nora's late. She says she slept late - but that's a Singaporean expression. In good English we say: "I went to bed late". It also seems as if Nora didn't get up on time, either. She could've said, "I overslept this morning."

　　　 So don't oversleep tomorrow - get up early and phone in for the next lesson!

《联合早报》

Speak Good English Phone-in Lesson
打电话·听课文 1800 7341015

Speak Well, Be Understood.　好英语，利沟通。
Written by Laraine Bamrah, Paul Tolton, Delphia Choo, Alaisdair Raynham and Steve Adams for the British Council in association with the Speak Good English Movement.
©Ministry of Information and The Arts and British Council Singapore 2001

<<< 汉英双语专辑