The english we speak(BBC教學)第77期:By the skin of your teeth勉強做成某事

Li: Hi, I'm Li, and welcome to The English We Speak. I'm here today with Jen.

李：大家好，我是李，歡迎來到我們說的英語節目。今天我們請到了珍。

Jennifer: Hi!

珍妮弗：大家好！

Li: You look a little… flustered? Are you ok?

李：你看上去有點兒……慌亂，你還好吧？

Jennifer: I woke up late and had to run to the train station. There's only one train an hour. I ran all the way there and made it by the skin of my teeth, just as the doors were closing. Phew! Is there any coffee…?

珍妮弗：我起晚了，只能趕緊跑去火車站。因爲火車一小時只有一趟。我一路跑去火車站，勉強趕上了火車，火車門馬上就要關了。呼！有沒有咖啡……？

Li: Hang on… how did your teeth help you to run for the train?

李：稍等……你牙齒上的皮膚是怎麼幫你趕上火車的？

Jennifer: Sorry?

珍妮弗：你說什麼？

Li: You said "I made it by the skin of my teeth." I've got to see this! Show me your teeth! When did they grow skin?

李：你剛剛說“我用我牙齒上的皮膚趕上了火車。”我一定要看看這個！讓我看看你的牙！它們是怎麼長出皮膚的？

Jennifer: There's no skin on my teeth. That would be disgusting. Yuck.

珍妮弗：我牙齒上沒有皮膚。那樣會很噁心的。呸。

Li: So what did you mean?

李：那你是什麼意思？

Jennifer: If you do something 'by the skin of your teeth' it means that you did it by a narrow margin – so you just managed to do it, or almost failed.

珍妮弗：如果你“用你牙齒上的皮膚”做某事，意思是你以微弱的優勢做成了某事——你勉強完成了這件事，差點就要失敗了。

Li: So, if you got to the train by the skin of your teeth, it means that you nearly missed it?

李：你說你勉強趕上了火車，意思是你差點就要錯過火車了？

Jennifer: That's exactly right. Let's hear some more examples of the phrase in action:

珍妮弗：完全正確。下面我們再來看一些這個短語的例句：

My brother's so lucky – he never does any revision for exams but always manages to pass by the skin of his teeth!

我哥哥非常幸運——他考試從來沒複習過，而每次考試都能將將及格！

Hi, I'm stuck in a traffic jam – I might still make it to the presentation, but it'll be by the skin of my teeth.

你好，我堵在路上了——我可能會趕上展示會，但也就勉強能趕上。

Li: So when you just manage to do something, you can say you did it by the skin of your teeth?

李：那當你說勉強做成某事的時候，就可以用這個短語了？

Jennifer: That's it.

珍妮弗：沒錯。

Li: That's a really funny phrase. I like it.

李：這真是個有趣的短語。我喜歡。

Jennifer: It's good to be able to get your teeth into English phrases like this.

珍妮弗：你能像這樣專注於英語短語真好。

Li: My teeth? What about my teeth?

李：我的牙？我的牙怎麼了？

Jennifer: It's just another phrase, silly. If you get your teeth into something, it means that you become really involved in it.

珍妮弗：笨蛋，這是另一個短語。把你的牙齒放進某件事中，意思是你真正投入到一件事中。

Li: Well in that case, I do love getting my teeth into a new phrase… Teeth… hang on… Oh no! I've just remembered, I have a dentist's appointment at twelve o'clock – it's ten to twelve now, I'll never make it!

李：那這樣的話，我真的很熱衷於學習新短語……牙齒……稍等……哦，不！我剛剛想起來，我12點約了牙醫——現在已經11點50了，我肯定趕不及了！

Jennifer: You go, I'll finish the programme – if you run you might make it, but by the skin of your teeth!

珍妮弗：你去吧，我來結束今天的節目——如果你跑着去的話可能會趕上，不過肯定是勉強趕上！

Li: Thanks Jen – bye…

李：謝謝你，珍，再見……

Jennifer: Join us again for another edition of The English We Speak and visit our website, . Bye!

珍妮弗：這裏是我們所說的英語節目，我們下期見，歡迎大家訪問我們的網站。再見！

重點講解：
1. by the skin of one's teeth
僥倖；好不容易纔；險些兒沒有；
eg. He won, but only by the skin of his teeth.
他贏了，但是贏得十分勉強。
eg. He escaped by the skin of his teeth.
他險些沒逃掉。
2. make it
成功；
eg. He poured in every ounce of power but couldn't make it.
他竭盡了全力卻無濟於事。
eg. I believe I have the talent to make it.
我相信自己有成功的天分。
3. manage to do sth.
設法做到；成功完成某事；
eg. I'll manage to reach some sort of arrangement with him.
我要設法與他達成某種協議。
eg. I wonder how he could manage to possess himself of that secret.
真不知道他是怎樣把那個祕密弄到手的。
4. be involved in
專心於…的；忙於…的；
eg. The family were deeply involved in Jewish culture.
這家人非常注重學習猶太文化。
eg. They have long been involved in a crusade for racial equality.
長期以來他們一直致力於爭取種族平等的運動。
5. get one's teeth into
潛心專注於；全力投入；
eg. This role gave her something to get her teeth into...
這一角色讓她全情投入其中。
eg. They have to get involved and get their teeth into some police work.
他們必須參與進來，全力投入到一些警務工作中。