B3 U4: Giving the Right Gift!

VOCABULARY

I. Words for Production

1. pale [pel] adj. (of skin) whiter than usual because of illness, worry, or  

  shock　蒼白的

　► Sue looks pale and tired. I think she should see a doctor.　

蘇看起來臉色蒼白又疲累。我認為她應該要去看醫生。　

2. international [&Int2`n8S1nL] adj. relating to more than one nation　國  

  際的

　► English is an international language. Many people in different countries use it.英文是國際性的語言。許多不同國家的人都在使用英文。

3. background [`b8k&Gra5nd] n. [C] information about a person’s family,  

  education, experience, etc.　(家世、學經歷、文化等) 背景

　► The company is looking for a person with a strong background in computer science.　這間公司在找尋有深厚資訊工程背景的人。　

4. fond [fAnd] adj. getting enjoyment and satisfaction from something,  

  especially something one has liked for a long time　喜愛的

　► Linda is fond of cooking. She likes to spend time preparing delicious meals.　琳達熱衷下廚。她喜歡花時間準備美味的餐點。　

5. confident [`kAnf1d1nt] adj. being sure that something will happen in  

  the way one expects, or believing in one’s own ability to do something 

  successfully　有把握的，有信心的

　► Tom has studied very hard, so he is confident that he will pass the exam.　湯姆很用功讀書，所以他有信心可以通過考試。　

confidence [`kAnf1d1ns] n. [U] 把握，信心

　► Amelia’s boss has confidence in her and believes that she will do the job well.　亞米莉雅的老闆對她有信心，相信她會把工作做好。　

6. attend [1`tEnd] vt.; vi. to go to an event, such as a meeting, wedding,  etc.　參加，出席

　► Jason will attend a business meeting tomorrow.

     傑森將會參加明天的商務會議。

7. funeral [`fjun1r1l] n. [C] a ceremony for burying or burning a dead 

  person　葬禮 funer = die

　► After the famous singer passed away, many of his fans went to his funeral.　在這知名歌手過世後，他的許多歌迷去參加他的葬禮。　

8. meaning [`minI9] n. [C][U] the thing or idea that a word, sound, sign, 

  etc., represents　意思

　► The teacher explained the meaning of this English word in Chinese.　老師用中文解釋這個英文字的意思。　

9. normally [`nOrmLI] adv. usually, or in most cases or situations　通常，正

  常情況下

　► Children in Taiwan normally start to go to elementary school at the age of six.  台灣的孩童通常在六歲開始上小學。　

normal [`nOrmL] adj. 一般的，正常的　SYN typical, usual

　► It’s normal to feel nervous when you have to talk in front of a large group of people.　

當你必須對一大群人講話時，感到緊張是很正常的。　

10. avoid [1`vOId] vt. to prevent something bad from happening　避免

　 ► We should avoid making the same mistakes over and over again.　我們應該避免再三犯相同的過錯。　void, van, vac = empty

IDIOMS AND PHRASES

1. in spite of  used to say that something is true or happens even though something else might have prevented it　儘管　SYN despite

　► In spite of the fact that it was raining heavily, Paul still went out jogging.　儘管下大雨，保羅仍然外出慢跑。　

READING 1

Casey turned pale when she opened the gift box. We were at Casey’s place, celebrating her first birthday in America. Casey was an international student from Taiwan. In spite of our different cultural backgrounds, we immediately became friends. I knew that she was fond of antiques ([8n`tik] n. [C] 古董), so I was pretty confident that she would love the gift I had found at the antique shop—a beautiful wooden  ([`w5dN] adj. 木製的，木頭的) clock. I asked Casey what was wrong, and she explained, “In Chinese culture, the phrase ‘giving a clock’ sounds like ‘attending a funeral,’ so it carries the meaning of ‘death.’ People in Taiwan normally would avoid giving a clock as a gift.”

VOCABULARY

11. client [`klaI1nt] n. [C] a person who gets services or advice from a 

   professional person or company　客戶　SYN customer

　 ► The lawyer successfully proved his client’s innocence.

      這名律師成功地證明他客戶的清白。

12. offensive [1`fEnsIv] adj. rude in a way that causes other people to feel

   upset, annoyed, or embarrassed　無禮的，冒犯的

　 ► Some people complained that the writer’s new book was offensive to women.　有些人抱怨這名作家的新書冒犯女性。　

offense [1`fEns] n. [U] 冒犯

　 ► Don’t be angry about Ted’s silly joke. He meant no offense.　

不要對泰德的愚蠢笑話感到生氣。他無意冒犯。　

offend [1`fEnd] vt. 冒犯，得罪

　 ► The actress was offended by the reporter’s question and left in anger.　這位女演員被記者的問題所冒犯而憤怒離去。　

13. pleased [plizd] adj. feeling happy and satisfied　高興的，滿意的

　 ► The customer was very pleased with our products and would like to order more of them.

這位顧客很滿意我們的產品，而且想要再訂更多。

1

GRAMMAR IN USE

強調句：It + be + 被強調部分 + that....

本句型為強調句型，目的是將句子中的某一部分加以強調，以突顯其重要性。其中that不可省略，但強調的部分若為人且為主格時，則可用who替代。

Examples:

1. In India, it is the gift of leather that is considered offensive.

2. It was then that I realized gift­giving customs are very different around the world.

3. It was Leo that/who knocked on the door.

Let’s Try!

A. 根據句型及不同的強調部分改寫以下句子。第一題為範例。

Jason gave a love letter to Cindy at school yesterday.

→ It was Jason

that/who gave a love letter to Cindy at school yesterday

                                             .

→ It was Cindy ²                                            .

→ It was a love letter ³                                        .

→ It was at school ⁴                                          .

→ It was yesterday ⁵                                          .

[Ans.] 2. that Jason gave a love letter to at school yesterday 3. that Jason gave to Cindy at school yesterday 4. that Jason gave a love letter to Cindy yesterday 5. that Jason gave a love letter to Cindy at school

B. 根據句型及提示字寫出完整的句子以完成段落。注意動詞變化。

One day, my father told me the story of how he met and fell in love with my mother. He said, “I remember all the important moments with your mom. It was ¹                                              (on Christmas day of 1996/I first meet your mom). After that day, I couldn’t stop thinking about her. Two days later, I gave her a call. ²            

                                      (this phone call/help us get to know each other better) Then, ³                                     
                          (in January of 1997/we fall madly in love) with each other. Then, six months later, ⁴                                              
                    (in a romantic restaurant/I ask her to marry me).”

“Did you kneel down (跪下) when you asked her to marry you?” I asked.

“Of course. Most important of all, ⁵                           
                             (my deep love for her/win her heart).”

[Ans] 1. on Christmas day of 1996 that I first met your mom 2. It was this phone call that helped us get to know each other better. 3. it was in January of 1997 that we fell madly in love 4. it was in a romantic restaurant that I asked her to marry me 5. it was my deep love for her that won her heart

READING 2

It was then that I realized gift-giving customs are very different around the world. My sister, who works in an overseas company, once made a similar mistake when she presented her Indian ([`IndI1n] adj. 印度 (人) 的) client with a cow leather ([`lED2] n. [U] 皮革) wallet. In India ([`IndI1] n. 印度), it is the gift of leather that is considered offensive because cows are sacred ([`sekrId] adj. 神聖的) to Hindus ([`hIndu] n. [C] 印度教教徒). My sister didn’t mean to cause any offense, but the Indian client wasn’t too pleased when he received this gift.

READING 3

A few days later, I spoke to my friend Joseph about what had happened on Casey’s birthday. He said, “My girlfriend is French ([frEntS] adj. 法國 (人) 的). When I visited her family for the first time, I brought a bouquet ([bu`ke] n. [C] 花束) of chrysanthemums ([krI`s8nT1m1m] n. [C] 菊花) with me. Her father got mad and asked me to leave.”

READING 4

 “What?” I asked in surprise. “Chrysanthemums sound nice. What’s wrong with that?”

2   It + be + Adj + of sb + to V....

此句型中，虛主詞it代替後面的真主詞 (to V...)，而句型中的形容詞為修飾「人」的形容詞，因此須用of sb來強調人的「特質」。

Examples:

1. It is kind of you to help me finish this work.

2. It was rude of me to give chrysanthemums to my girlfriend’s family as a gift.

3. It was brave of Thomas to save the girl from the burning building.

Let’s Try!

A. 根據句型合併下列句子。

1.   Sarah is wise.

     Sarah learns from her mistakes.
   →                                                                

2.   Eddie was nice.

     Eddie gave me a birthday gift.
   →                                                                

3.   I was stupid.

     I thought that Rex liked me.
→                                                          

4.   Ms. Jackson was kind.

     Ms. Jackson took care of my dog.
→                                                          

[Ans.] 1. It is wise of Sarah to learn from her mistakes. 2. It was nice of Eddie to give me a birthday gift.       3. It was stupid of me to think that Rex liked me. 4. It was kind of Ms. Jackson to take care of my dog.

B. 根據句型及提示字完成下列對話。注意受格變化。

1. Jennifer:                                                       
(kind/you/treat me to such a wonderful dinner) I really enjoyed it.

Kevin: It’s my pleasure. I’m glad that we had dinner together.

2. David: Mom, thank you for everything you have done for me. You are the best mother in the world.

Mom: Oh, honey.                                                            
(very sweet/you/say that)

3. Gloria: I heard that Louis found a bag of money on the street, but he later

found its owner and returned all the money to him.
Amy: Wow,                                                     
      (honest/Louis/return the money).

4. Betty: Look! My Japanese friend sent me a postcard to wish me a happy

birthday.
Tim:                                                             
    (nice/she/remember your birthday)

5. Justin: Jim used my computer without asking me first.
Doreen:                                      (rude/he/do so)
        You should tell him not to do that again.

[Ans.] 1. It was kind of you to treat me to such a wonderful dinner. 2. It is very sweet of you to say that. 3. it was honest of Louis to return the money      4. It is/was nice of her to remember your birthday.    5. It was rude of him to do so.

READING 5

Joseph explained, “My girlfriend later told me that to the people in France ([fr8ns] n. 法國), the chrysanthemum is a symbol of death, and it should only be used for funerals or on graves ([Grev] n. [C] 墳墓).” He continued, “It was really rude of me to give chrysanthemums to her family as a gift.”

VOCABULARY

14. matter [`m8t2] vi. to be important　重要，有重大關係

　 ► My parents’ opinions matter a lot to me. I discuss almost everything with them.　

我父母的意見對我來說很重要。我幾乎每一件事都和他們討論。　

READING 6

I decided to find out more about gift-giving customs around the world. It turned out that not only does the choice of a gift matter, but the way the gift is presented is also very important. For example, a gift that is given to a Japanese person should be presented with both hands, since this is regarded as a symbol of respect.

VOCABULARY

15. Western [`wEst2n] adj. relating to the western part of the world, 

   especially North America and Europe　西方國家的，歐美的

　 ► Western culture has a great influence on young people in Asia today.　

歐美文化對今日亞洲的年輕人有很重大的影響。　

16. honor [`An2] vt. to show great respect for someone or something　

向……表示敬意

　 ► The police officer was honored for his courage and years of service.　這名警官因其勇氣和服務的年資而備受尊崇。　

honor [`An2] n. [U] 敬意，尊敬

　 ► The hospital was named in honor of a great doctor.

      這間醫院是為了向一位偉大的醫生致敬而命名的。

17. impolite [&Imp1`laIt] adj. not polite　無禮的　SYN rude　ANT polite

　 ► It is impolite to use your cell phone while someone is talking to you.　

在別人跟你說話的同時玩手機是很失禮的。　

Word Smart

字首“im­-”多加在以字母m、p為首的形容詞前，表示「不……的，無……的」，具否定之意。 mature → immature　不成熟的        patient → impatient　不耐煩的 moral → immoral  不道德的            polite → impolite　無禮的 movable → immovable  不能移動的 possible → impossible　不可能的

18. embarrassed [Im`b8r1st] adj. ashamed or worried about what other 

   people will think of you　(感到) 尷尬的

　 ► Steve felt embarrassed when he fell down in front of the whole class.　

史蒂夫在全班面前跌倒時感到很尷尬。　

embarrassing [Im`b8r1sI9] adj. 令人尷尬的

　 ► I don’t like to talk with Tina because she usually asks a lot of embarrassing questions.　

我不喜歡跟蒂娜講話，因為她通常會問很多令人尷尬的問題。　

embarrass [Im`b8r1s] vt. 使尷尬

　 ► It embarrassed Bob to be mistaken for a girl.

      被誤認為是女生讓鮑伯很尷尬。

19. urge [3dZ] vt. to strongly suggest or try hard to persuade someone to 

   do something　催促，力勸

　 ► Since it was already midnight, the mother urged her kids to go to bed.　

由於已經半夜了，這位母親催促她的孩子上床睡覺。　

IDIOMS AND PHRASES

2. (it’s) no wonder (that)  not surprising　難怪

　► Amy grew up in the United States. It’s no wonder that she speaks English so well.　艾美從小在美國成長。難怪她英文說得那麼好。　

READING 7

In addition, in many Western countries, people prefer to open their gifts in front of the givers. In this way, they can honor the people who have given them these gifts. However, in Asian cultures, it is impolite to open a gift right away. No wonder Casey looked quite embarrassed when I urged her to open the gift.

IDIOMS AND PHRASES

3. keep in mind       to remember something　將……牢記在心　SYN bear in mind

　► It is important to set priorities in life. We should always keep this in mind.　

設定人生中事物的優先次序是很重要的。我們應該總是將這點牢記在心。

READING 8

Now, I always keep in mind that I should spend some time studying the local customs before giving a gift to someone from another country. Next week, I’ll visit another Taiwanese friend, and I’m going to buy a gift for him. This time, I know a clock will not be my choice.