商業英語世界觀-世界公民文化中心

今天繼續來看第二句Debug，”這是個口誤”怎麼說才道地?
It is an oral mistake! (X)
It is a slip of the tongue! (O)
一提到「誤」，你一定想到mistake，這是中文的直覺。所以「口誤」你會說oral mistake。這麼說，外國人當然也會聽得懂，但是不道地。口誤其實是” slip of the tongue”(舌頭滑了一下)，表示不小心說出來了，說錯了!
更多內容都在世界公民weekly電子報裡。歡迎訂閱！

這裡拜我們來揪英文錯，一天一句，試試自己是不是也有同樣沒查覺到的習慣和問題！
It is time that we stop the machine and find the trouble. (X)
(該停機檢查故障了)這句哪裡錯了呢？答案是：
It is time we stopped the machine and found the trouble. (O)
It is time that…表示「是…的時候了」，其後的從句應採用過去時態，譬如：小孩睡覺的時間到了，就是：It's time that children went to bed.
"debug" 是世界公民文化中心一對一教學方法之一，光是揪出你的錯誤，英文不一定會進步，更重要的是：想辦法讓自己不再犯同樣類型的錯誤，才是英文進步的關鍵。

"這可是件大事啊!" 英文怎麼說?
<X>This is a big thing!
<O>This is important!或This is an important issue.

很多人都喜歡跟商家討價還價。一來一往，經常是雙方各讓一步。生活中，經常要讓步，才不會有太多衝突。今天，來看看英文裡對於"讓步、妥協"的表達：
1. You say 2000 and I say 1000, so let's split the difference and call it 1500.
你出2000而我要1000，這樣吧， 我們各讓一點，1500成交。
2. He forced his opponent to back down.
他迫使對手讓步。
3. I am prepared to make certain concessions on this issue.
我準備在這個問題上做某些讓步。
4. How about meeting each other halfway?
我們雙方都各讓一步，怎麼樣？
5. He refused to give way and admit he was wrong.
他拒不讓步，不肯認錯。
6. No matter how they slander us, we will never give in.
不管他們怎樣誹謗我們，我們決不讓步。
7. We will yield nothing to unreasonable demands.
對於不合理的要求，我們決不讓步。
*熟到老外都覺得你英文好，加入量身訂做的一對一課程*

小編：最近維基爆料案備受國際關注，我們來看這篇文章，觀察各家媒體怎麼說。

The front-page news across much of the world today is the latest "documents dump" from WikiLeaks.org.　The huge cache of confidential American diplomatic cables pulls back the curtain on the sometimes messy business of diplomacy. White House has tried to downplay the cables' value, calling them "field reports". News media reports about the cables and e-mails tell a much different story, though.
維基解密在網站上的爆料近來成了全世界新聞頭條，美國外交電報爆料也揭開時而混亂的外交內幕。美國白宮想要低調處理，於是稱這些是「田野調查」報告。新聞媒體可不這麼想了。
我們來看看媒體怎麼說：
— Politico — "WikiLeaks Target: American Power": "The main effect of the many details of American diplomacy revealed in the thousands of documents obtained and released by WikiLeaks was to deepen the damage to their intended targets: U.S. foreign policy, prestige, and power."
政治：維基解密對準美國強權。
洩露美國外交的許多細節主要用意在傷害它主要攻擊對象美國，包含美國外交政策、威望及權力。
— BBC News — "U.S. Condemns WikiLeaks Diplomatic Cables Release": "The White House said the release was 'reckless' and put the lives of diplomats and others at risk. One Republican congressman called for WikiLeaks to be designated a terrorist organization."
英國BBC：美國讉責維基洩露美國外交電報。
白宮說這些爆料肆無忌憚，置外交人員和其他人於險境。一名共和黨議員認為維基解密應視同恐怖機構。
— The New York Times — "Cables ... Shine Light Into Secret Diplomatic Channels": "The disclosure of the cables is sending shudders through the diplomatic establishment, and could strain relations with some countries, influencing international affairs in ways that are impossible to predict."
The news outlets that published the information obtained by WikiLeaks include the Times and The Guardian. And the Guardian is doing live updates of this ongoing story on this blog.
Among the stories to emerge from them so far are the deadly serious — about, for example, corruption in the Afghan government, Saudi donors' support of terrorist groups and efforts to secure Pakistan's nuclear fuel — to the embarrassing but sure-to-be-fodder-for jokes (Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is reportedly called the "Robin to (Prime Minister Vladimir) Putin's Batman."
紐約時報：電報….帶你一窺美國外交秘辛
維基解密爆料外交電報已經讓外交體制惶惶不安，也可能加深各國關係緊張，影響原來就難以預測的國際事務。公布爆料的新聞媒體包括泰晤士報和衛報，衛報還特別在布落格上做即時更新。爆料內容最致命的是像阿富汗政府的腐敗、沙烏地阿拉伯金援恐怖組織並支持巴基斯坦核武，還有讓人尷尬卻不失為笑料的八卦題材，例如美國駐俄國大使館說俄國總理梅德維捷夫對普丁這是從，普丁有如「蝙蝠俠」，梅德維捷夫則扮演他的跟班「羅賓」。
美國國家公共電台(NPR)做了一項調查，問題是：Is what WikiLeaks is doing ...

沒事找事，英文裡有幾個傳神的說法。
英文裡有一句成語，叫做Don't trouble troubles till trouble troubles you. 在麻煩找上你之前，別先自找麻煩。
沒事找事還有一句叫做，Wake a sleeping dog. 弄醒在睡中的狗，就如自找麻煩一樣。通常睡著的狗被吵醒總是凶巴巴，這句英美諺語指人因無聊而惹事生非，自招煩惱。

明天12/11(六)工商時報內專欄”世界公民weekly”精彩預告：
WikiLeaks' Disclosures: Right Or Wrong? 維基解密是與非
維基解密在網站上的爆料近來成了全世界新聞頭條，美國外交電報爆料也揭開時而混亂的外交內幕。美國白宮想要低調處理，於是稱這些是「田野調查」報告。新聞媒體可不這麼想了。

"Spillcam" and "vuvuzela" were the top words of 2010, reflecting the global impact of the months-long oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the noisy South African horns at the World Cup soccer tournament, according to a survey released on Sunday.
2010年最熱門詞彙是“漏油”和“嗚嗚茲拉”。可見為期數月的墨西哥灣漏油事件和南非世界杯足球賽中喧囂的喇叭在全球影響力。這項結果是根據全球語言監測近日發佈一項調查。
 

What if ...? 這樣的問題問得好，經常是讓對方解決問題或傷腦筋，會有不錯的互動效果。
結構︰What if＋主詞＋動詞
此句型意為"如果...的話怎麼辦呢。經常用在談判。
What if it is true?  如果這是真的又該如何呢？ 
What if he doesn't agree? 如果他不同意該怎麼辦呢？ 
What if I say no! 如果我說不呢?
What if we agree to a two-year contract? would you give us exclusive distribution rights?
如果我們簽兩年約，你會給我們獨家代理權嗎？ 

  
 
每個行業都有自己的行話，說了行話就像一種宣誓，嘿！我們是同一類人。外商企業有幾個字人人愛用，為什麼？你看了就知道。