【BBC 听力】Think on Your Feet

来源: BBC Learning English - The English We Speak
等级: B1 (Intermediate)
时长: 3 min
学习目标: 学习习语 “think on your feet” 的含义和用法

课程简介

本期《我们说的英语》(The English We Speak)节目介绍一个实用的习语表达：“think on your feet”。这个表达形象地描述了在压力下快速思考和做决策的能力。通过主持人Feifei和Phil的生动对话，你将了解这个习语的来龙去脉，以及它在工作面试、体育比赛和日常生活中的各种应用场景。

播放音频

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听力原文（Transcript）

Feifei: Hello and welcome to The English We Speak, where we explain phrases and expressions used by fluent English speakers so that you can use them too. I’m Feifei.

Phil: And I’m Phil. Feifei, what would you rather be, an eagle or a bear, and why?

Feifei: What?

Phil: Quickly, what’s your answer? How do you explain it?

Feifei: Erm, maybe a bear, but what on earth was that, Phil?

Phil: Well, I’ve just been reading a book about the world’s worst job interview questions. And apparently, that’s a good one to see how well people think on their feet.

Feifei: Ha ha! Did I get the job? Never mind maybe we should learn that expression – ’think on your feet’? I’m sitting down, so can you think on your feet, when you’re not on your feet?

Phil: I mean it’s a good question? But yes, you can – it’s not literal. If you can think on your feet, it means you can think quickly and make a decision when you’re under pressure.

Feifei: Yes, I’m not sure about that interview question, but being able to think on your feet is really important in a lot of jobs – it means you can deal with fast-moving, stressful environments.

Phil: Yeah, and it’s not just work either, if you want to be good at playing sport or even video games, you often need to think on your feet to beat your opponent.

Phil: Let’s hear some other people using ’think on your feet'.

Examples:

• I really hate when plans change. I’m not great at thinking on my feet.
• I lost my whole presentation just before the meeting, so I had to think on my feet and invent the whole thing.
• My three-year-old niece asked lots of difficult questions and I always have to think on my feet to answer her.

Feifei: We’ve been learning the expression ’think on your feet’ to mean ’think and make decisions quickly'.

Phil: Yes, we can also use ’think on the spot’ to mean the same – immediately decide what to do.

Feifei: OK. And that’s it for this programme, but join us next time to learn more English phrases and expressions.

Phil: Because having a wide vocabulary is really helpful when you need to think on your feet.

Feifei: That’s right! Goodbye!

Phil: Bye!

重点词汇与短语

中文总结

本期BBC英语学习节目介绍了习语 “think on your feet”，这个表达形象生动地描述了在压力下快速思考和做决定的能力。这个习语并非字面意思（字面上是"站在脚上思考"），而是比喻能够在紧急或意外情况下迅速做出反应。

主要用法：

1. 工作场景：在快节奏、高压力的工作环境中，能够快速应对突发情况
2. 面试场景：面试官常用意外问题测试应聘者的应变能力
3. 体育竞技：运动员需要在比赛中快速思考以击败对手
4. 日常生活：应对突发变化或意外问题

同义表达：

• think on the spot：意思相同，强调立即做决定
• quick thinking：快速思考

节目中给出的三个真实例子很好地展示了不同场景下的应用：有人不擅长应对计划变更，有人在会议前丢失演示文稿需要即兴发挥，还有人需要应对三岁小孩提出的各种难题。这些都体现了"think on your feet"在日常生活中的实际运用。

通过学习这个习语，你可以更自然地描述在压力下保持冷静、快速思考的能力，这在现代职场和生活中都是一项重要的软技能。

练习题

1. 理解性问题：

• Phil为什么要问Feifei“你愿意做鹰还是熊”这个奇怪的问题？
• “Think on your feet"这个表达的字面意思和实际含义有什么不同？
• 除了工作面试，还有哪些场景需要"think on your feet”？

2. 词汇匹配（将左侧的英语单词与右侧的中文释义连线）：

• under pressure — 对手
• opponent — 在压力下
• literally — 字面地
• fast-moving — 快速变化的

3. 填空练习（根据听到的内容，补全下面的句子）：

• Being able to think on your feet is really important in a lot of ______.
• If you want to be good at playing sport, you often need to think on your feet to beat your ______.
• We can also use ’think on the spot’ to mean ______.

4. 应用练习：

• 描述一次你需要"think on your feet"的经历
• 用"think on your feet"造三个句子，分别描述工作、学习和生活中的场景

学习提示

• 建议先完整听一遍音频，获取整体理解，不要看文本
• 第二遍听时，关注重点词汇和表达方式，注意语调和连读
• 第三遍听时，可以对照原文检查理解程度，注意不熟悉的短语
• 模仿语音语调，跟读重点句子，提升口语表达
• 学习习语时，注意理解其比喻含义，不要只停留在字面意思
• 创造机会在实际对话中使用，才能真正掌握这些表达
• 定期复习，将这些新词汇和表达融入你的主动词汇库

标签: BBC, Listening, B1, idioms, expressions, The English We Speak