星期天-纪海星

[00:09.885]Now,the VOA Special English program WORDS [00:14.664]AND THEIR STORIES. [00:18.129]Hot is a simple,easily understood word. [00:24.284]So are most ofthe expressions made with [00:28.242]the word hot. [00:29.666]But not always, [00:31.597]as we shall see. [00:33.527]The words hot potato,for example, [00:38.855]give you no idea at [00:40.737]all to the meaning of the expression, [00:43.224]hot potato. [00:45.306]The potato is a popular vegetable in [00:48.909]the United States [00:51.143].Many people like baked potatoes, [00:53.178]cooked in an oven [00:55.108]or fire.Imagine trying to carry a hot,baked potato [00:59.583]in your hand.It would be difficult,even painful, [01:03.445]to do so. [01:05.530]Now we are getting close to the meaning of hot potato. [01:10.103]Some publicly disputed issues are highly emotional. [01:16.708]The issues must be treated carefully,or they will [01:22.193]be difficult and painful if an elected official [01:24.935]has to deal with them.As difficult and painful [01:29.726]as holding a hot potato. [01:34.652]One such hot potato is taxes. [01:39.474]Calling for higher taxes can mean defeat for [01:43.86]a politician.And yet,if taxes are not raised, [01:48.370]some very popular government programs could be cut. [01:53.244]And that also can make a politician very unpopular. [01:56.240]So the questions must be dealt with carefully, [02:01.674]the same way you would handle any other hot potato. [02:06.392]Another expression is not so hot.If you ask someone [02:14.822]how she feels,she may answer "not so hot. [02:20.405]"What she means is she does not feel well. [02:24.112]Not so hot also is a way of saying that you do not [02:27.872]really like something.You may tell a friend that [02:32.695]the new play you saw last night is not so hot. [02:37.60]That means you did not consider it a success. [02:41.481]A hot shot is a person,often a young person, [02:47.17]who thinks he can do anything.At least he wants to [02:51.180]try.He is very sure he can succeed.But often [02:55.904]he fails.The expression was born in the military [03:00.525]forces. [03:01.235]A hot shot was a soldier who fired without [03:05.701]aiming carefully. [03:07.72]Hot is a word that is often used to talk about anger. [03:13.933]A person who becomes angry easily is called a hothead. [03:20.88]An angry person's neck often becomes red. [03:23.642]We say he is hot under the collar.You could [03:28.220]say that your friend is no hothead.But he [03:32.432]got hot under the collar when someone took his radio. [03:37.55]In nineteen sixty-three,hot line appeared as a new [03:43.298]expression. [03:45.481]The hot line was a direct communications link between [03:49.898]the leaders of the Soviet Union and the United States. [03:54.371]The hot line had an important purpose:to prevent [03:57.974]accidental war between the two competitors during [04:00.358]the period known as the Cold War.The American president [04:06.406]and the Soviet leader were able to communicate [04:09.248]directly and immediately on the hot line.This helped [04:13.880]prevent any conflict during an international crisis.