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在线翻译:
szdaily -> Speak Shenzhen
Dog breeds (II)
     2015-March-3  08:53    Shenzhen Daily

    Becky and her classmate Lily talk again in the common room of their dorm.

    Lily: Hi, Becky. It was fun learning about dog breeds. Can we do some more?

    Becky: Sure. What would you like to know?

    Lily: Some more about the meanings of the breeds' names, if possible.

    Becky: Sure! Here's what we'll do: I'll give you hints, and you try to guess the breed.

    Lily: Sounds hard, but let's try.

    Becky: First, these breeds--and there are lots of them--were bred to dig in the earth to get small animals.

    Lily: Oh, like the dachshund we talked about?

    Becky: Like that, yeah. The key word here is "earth."

    Lily: Ummm... "earth dogs"?

    Becky: No, silly! What's the Latin word for earth?

    Lily: That would be "terra"... Oh! Terriers!

    Becky: That's right! There are lots of different terriers, with many different uses, but most of them were bred to dig out rats, foxes, and other burrowing animals.

    Lily: But now they're mostly pets, right?

    Becky: Right. I think that's true of most working dogs. Okay, here's another: this dog looks like it has a beard, and its name comes from a German word for "snout," which is an animal's nose.

    Lily: Snout... Schnauzer!

    Becky: Yes! The schnauzer is named for its distinctive-looking snout. Incidentally, it's considered a terrier, too.

    Lily: Hah. Okay, give me another.

    Becky: This dog is considered delicate now, but it was bred for jumping into water.

    Lily: Like a kind of retriever?

    Becky: Exactly. But you'd never guess it. They jumped into lakes... and rivers... and puddles...

    Lily: Poodles!

    Becky: You got it! "Splash" in German was something like "puddeln." We get both the words "poodle" and "puddle" from it.

    Lily: So it was a "splash hound?"

    Becky: Yes, it was! Now, this one will be too easy. These dogs were bred for attacking bulls.

    Lily: Bulldogs!

    Becky: Bingo! They're strong in the front quarters, and the weird way their mouth is designed was for breathing while they held onto an angry bull.

    Lily: Why would they do that, anyway?

    Becky: Believe it or not, there was a sport called bull baiting, where dogs would attack a bull and hang on.

    Lily: Disgusting.

    Becky: I know. Okay, one more. The Welsh word for "dwarf" is "cor."

    Lily: Cor... Cor... I don't know.

    Becky: The Welsh word for "dog" is "ci," but got changed to "gi."

    Lily: Still, nothing.

    Becky: Haven't you ever heard of a breed called "corgi?"

    Lily: Nope.

    Becky: It's the kind of dog you see with England's Queen Elizabeth.

    Lily: Well, now I know. Thanks, Becky.

    Becky: It was fun!

    Lily: Yeah--'til the last one!

    Becky: Ya can't win 'em all!

    Lily: I guess not!

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