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Welcome to Easy Stories in English, the podcast that will take your English from OK to Good, and from Good to Great. I am Ariel Goodbody, your host for this show. Today’s story is for pre-intermediate learners.
欢迎来到Easy Story，这是一个能够把你的英语从“还可以”提升到“良好”，再从“良好”提升到“优秀”的播客。我是阿里尔·古德博迪，这个节目的主持人。今天的故事是为中级以下的学习者准备的。
The name of the story is A Crooked Old House.
这个故事的名字是《一座歪歪扭扭的老房子》。
OK, I’ll just explain some words that are in today’s story.
好的，我来解释一下今天故事中的一些单词。
When something is crooked, it is bent and not straight.
当某物是“crooked”，它是指弯曲的而不是直的。
For example, if you break your nose, it will be crooked, and your glasses will look crooked as well.
例如，如果你摔断了鼻子，它会变弯，你的眼镜看起来也会是弯的。
If you don’t look after your teeth well, you’ll have crooked teeth.
如果你不好好照顾你的牙齿，你就会有歪牙。
When a house is very old, the walls move and are not straight anymore – it becomes crooked.
当房子很旧的时候，墙壁会移动，不再笔直——它会变得弯曲。
Moist is when something is a bit wet but not very wet.
“Moist”是指某物有点湿，但不是非常湿。
After you have a shower, the bathroom will probably be moist. Moisture is how moist the air is.
洗完澡后，浴室可能会很潮湿。潮湿是指空气的湿润程度。
Moisture is very important, because it can affect how hot or cold a room feels, and if a room is very moist, the furniture can get damaged.
湿度非常重要，因为它会影响房间感觉有多热或多冷，而且如果房间非常潮湿，家具可能会受损。
Interestingly, a lot of English speakers say that ‘moist’ is the ugliest word in the English language. I don’t know if I agree!
有趣的是，很多说英语的人说“moist”是英语中最丑的单词。我不知道我是否会同意！
If wood is left wet for a long time, it warps, it changes shape. That is why it is important to build houses well.
如果木材长时间处于潮湿状态，它就会翘曲，就会变形。这就是为什么建造房屋时要建好的原因。
Old houses were often built of wood, and if the house got moist inside, the wood would warp and the walls would no longer be straight. Ooh, that’s a bit of a tongue twister! ‘The wood would warp. ’ Wood can also become warped through heat.
老房子通常是用木头建造的，如果房子内部潮湿，木头就会翘曲，墙壁也不再笔直。哦，这有点绕口！“木头会翘曲。”木头也会因受热而变形。
If wooden floor boards warp, the building could become unsafe.
如果木地板弯曲，建筑物可能会变得不安全。
A hook is a curved thing that you have on the wall. You use hooks to hang things on.
“ hook”是一种弯曲的东西，你可以把它挂在墙上。你可以用钩子来挂东西。
For example, many houses have a row of hooks to hang coats on.
例如，许多房子都有一排挂钩来挂外套。
Or you might have hooks in the garden shed to hang tools on.
或者你可以在花园棚子里装些钩子来挂工具。
I have a desk from IKEA that has two hooks on either side to hang headphones on. Very handy for a podcaster like me.
我有一张宜家的桌子，两边各有两个钩子，可以用来挂耳机。对像我这样的播客来说非常方便。
A zip-line is a thick wire, a thick cable, that lets you travel quickly from one point to another by riding down.
“zip-line”是一根粗钢丝，一根粗缆绳，它可以让你通过滑行快速地从一个点移动到另一个点。
Basically, there is a bit you hold onto, and then you hang in the air and let gravity pull you down the zip-line.
基本上，有一个你抓住的东西，然后你悬挂在空中，让重力把你拉下滑索。
Zip-lines are often used in adventure playgrounds for children, as they are a fun and exciting way to fly through the air, but they are also used in tourism, for example to let people fly over a jungle.
滑索常用于儿童冒险乐园，因为它们是一种有趣且令人兴奋的空中飞行方式，但它们也用于旅游业，例如让人们飞越丛林。
Roll is when you move something by turning it around. So balls roll around, because they are round.
“Roll”是指通过转动使某物移动。所以球会滚动，因为它们是圆的。
You can also roll up a piece of paper and hit someone with it.
你也可以卷起一张纸并用它来打人。
When cars move, their wheels roll along the ground.
当汽车移动时，它们的轮子沿着地面滚动。
A fern is a long green plant. Ferns have long thin leaves and no flowers.
“fern. ”是一种长而绿色的植物。蕨类植物有细长的叶子，没有花。
Ferns grow their leaves in little balls which slowly unfold themselves. Ferns usually grow in dark, moist places. Eww!
蕨类植物的叶子从小小的球状物中生长出来，然后慢慢展开。蕨类植物通常生长在阴暗潮湿的地方。呃！
Drains are pipes in your house that take water away – the water drains away.
“Drains”是你房子里用来排水的管道——水会流走。
When you wash up or shower, the water goes down the plughole and into the drain.
当你洗手或淋浴时，水会顺着排水孔流进下水道。
Drains are obviously very important for modern life.
排水系统对现代生活显然非常重要。
If your drain gets blocked, then the water will stop draining, and that’s not fun.
如果你的排水口被堵住了，那么水就会停止排出，这可不好玩。
A plumber is a person whose job it is to fix sinks and pipes.
“plumber”是从事修理水槽和管道工作的人。
If your drain is blocked, or your shower is broken, or even worse – if your toilet won’t flush properly! – then it’s time to call a plumber.
如果你的排水管道堵塞了，或者你的淋浴喷头坏了，或者更糟糕的是——如果你的马桶不能正常冲水！——那么是时候打电话给水管工了。
The word ‘plumber’ comes from the Latin word plumbum, which means ‘lead’. Lead is a type of metal.
“plumber”这个词来自拉丁语“plumbum”，意思是“铅”。铅是一种金属。
The chemical symbol for lead is Pb – again, from plumbum.
铅的化学符号是Pb——同样来自拉丁语 plumbum。
Plumbers have this name related to lead because in the past, pipes were made of lead.
水管工人有这个与铅有关的名字，是因为在过去，管道是用铅制成的。
However, we now know that lead is poisonous to humans, so fortunately we use different materials now!
然而，我们现在知道铅对人类是有毒的，所以幸运的是我们现在使用不同的材料！
An association is a group of people who work together with one purpose.
一个协会是一群为了一个目的而一起工作的人。
For example, there are plumbers’ associations where plumbers can meet and discuss their area of work.
例如，有水管工协会，水管工可以在那里见面并讨论他们的工作领域。
There are football associations which help decide the rules and regulations for playing football.
有足球协会，它们帮助决定踢足球的规则和条例。
There are also associations of people who help out with different things, for example caring for the sick and the elderly.
也有一些人组成协会，帮助处理不同的事情，例如照顾病人和老人。
When you pretend, you do something but you don’t really do it.
当你“ pretend”做某事，但你并不是真的在做。
For example, if you pretend to eat, you don’t actually put the food in your mouth.
例如，如果你假装吃东西，你实际上并不会把食物放进嘴里。
If you pretend to drink, you don’t actually put the drink in your mouth.
如果你假装喝酒，你实际上并不会把酒放进嘴里。
If you pretend to know something, you say, ‘Oh yes, I know that! ’ but really you don’t. OK, so listen and enjoy!
如果你假装知道某事，你会说：“哦，是的，我知道！”但实际上你并不知道。好的，那么请听并享受这篇文章吧！
