單字解析
1. brain  n.
have no brains  沒有大腦/腦筋
rack one's brains  絞盡腦汁
rack vt. 折磨; 榨取
*上述片語中, brain恆用複數形brains。
例:How could you believe that crook? You have no brains.
(你怎麼會相信那個騙子呢?你真是沒有大腦。)
You don't have to rack your brains to get the answer to that simple question.
(你用不著絞盡腦汁就可以想出那個簡單問題的答案。)
2. talk about...  討論……
=discuss vt.
例:There's one thing I want to talk about with you.
=There's one thing I want to discuss with you.
(有件事我要跟你討論。)
3. help + 人 + (to) + 原形動詞  幫助某人……
例:Can you help me (to) move this table to the living room?
(你可否幫我把這張桌子搬到客廳?)
4. dignity  n. 尊嚴
例:You can lose everything you own but never lose your dignity.
(人可以失去所擁有的一切,但不可以失去尊嚴。)
5. 本文:
Well, helping people die with dignity is not that bad, is it?
可以, 幫助人死得有尊嚴不是件壞事, 是不是?
注意:
本句使用反問句, helping people die with dignity是主詞, 反問部份用代名詞it取代, 形成"is it?"的反問句。
反問句句構如下:
敘述句為肯定句時, 接否定反問句; 敘述句為否定時, 接肯定反問句。此外, 反問句的主詞一定要用代名詞。
a. 敘述句有be動詞時, 反問句沿用be動詞 (如本句)。
例:Jim is having his summer vacation in Japan, is Jim? (╳)
→Jim is having his summer vacation in Japan, isn't he? (○)
(吉姆正在日本過暑假,不是嗎?)
b.敘述句有一般動詞時, 反問句則依人稱時態使用do、does或did。
例:Carlos rides a bike to work, doesn't he?
(卡洛士騎腳踏車上班,不是嗎?)
c.敘述句有助動詞時, 反問句沿用助動詞。
例:You cannot sing, can you?
(你不會唱歌,是嗎?)
d.與命令句使用時, 反問句一律用will you。
例:Shut up, will you?
(閉嘴,好嗎?)
e.與"Let's..."句型使用時, 反問句一律用shall we。
例:Let's go dancing, shall we?
(咱們去跳舞,好不好?)
6. Where there is life, there is hope. 得青山在, 不怕沒柴燒。(諺語)
=If there is life, there is hope.
此處的Where可視為副詞連接詞, 相當If (如果) 之意, 引導副詞子句, 修飾之後的主要子句。
類似用法的諺語尚有:
Where there's a will, there's a way.  有志者事竟成。
Where there's smoke, there's fire.  無風不起浪。
7. realistic  a. 實際的
例:Be realistic! That pretty girl will never go out with you.
(實際點!那個漂亮女孩絕不會和你約會的。)
8. suffer  vi. 受苦; 罹患 & vt. 遭遇到
suffer from + 疾病  (長期) 患……(疾病)
注意:
suffer作及物動詞時, 表遭受短期的痛苦, 而"suffer from..."則表遭受長期的痛苦 (尤指慢性病所造成的痛苦)。
例:My mother suffers from migraine headaches.
(我媽媽患有偏頭痛。)
*migraine  n. 偏頭痛
The lion trainer suffered wounds all over his body.
(那個馴獅師全身是傷。)
9. painlessly  adv. 無痛苦地
painless  a. 無痛苦的
painful  a. 痛苦的
例:They say that acupuncture is painless.
(據說針灸不會痛。)
*acupuncture  n. 針灸
It was a painful experience to watch my pet dog pass away.
(看著我的愛狗死去是一種痛苦的經驗。)
10. have no heart  鐵石心腸, 沒有同情心
例:A: I made my husband sleep on the floor when he came home
drunk last night.
B: You have no heart.
(甲:昨晚我老公喝醉酒回家,我叫他睡地板。)
(乙:妳真是鐵石心腸。)
EX english 數位英語學院