李华和Larry在夏威夷渡假, 俩人今天坐着帆船出海。今天我们要学两个常用语：the ropes和get the hang of.
LH: Wow, Larry, 我太喜欢坐帆船了。你看，蓝天白云，海天一色，微风拂面，我好象已经融化在大自然里了。
LL: Yeah, this is really great! Do you think the captain would teach me how to sail the boat?
LH: 你想试试看吗？可是Larry, 这么大一条船，驾驭起来可没那么简单，肯定不是一下子就能学会的。
LL: That’s OK, Lihua. I don’t expect to become an expert in one day. I just want to learn the ropes a little bit.
LH: Learn the ropes? 你是指如何用这些绳子来控制船帆吗？
LL: Exactly! Actually, when you learn the basic rules of how to do something, you can say that you learn the ropes.
LH: 哦，the ropes, 就是指最基本的知识和技巧，那你的意思是，不是真要学会驾驶帆船，只是要了解一些皮毛。
LL: Right! Or, here is another example. When you start a new job and don’t know how to do things, you should find a more experienced colleague to teach you the ropes.
LH: 没错，到了一个新的工作单位，是要找个熟悉工作的同事带你入门，给你介绍一下工作的基本要求和流程。
LL: So Lihua, do you like sailing or surfing better?
LH: 坐帆船出海更放松，去海边冲浪更刺激，嗯，我更喜欢冲浪，而且我冲浪已经入门了，可以自己练习了。
LL: Right. Once the surfing instructor has shown you the ropes, you can practice by yourself.
LH: 今天出来坐帆船算是休息，明天我们加大活动量，去爬山！
LL: Sure! But since we are visitors and don’t know anything about hiking in Hawaii, we should find a local guide to show us the ropes.
LH: Come on Larry! 你的冒险精神都跑到哪里去了？好了，我们还是去找船长，让他教我们几招show us the ropes, 好不好？
******
两小时后，Larry和李华回到岸上。
LH: Wow, Larry, 看不出，你还真有两下子，船长教了你一下，你就自己把船开了回来，真是让我刮目相看。
LL: Thanks, Lihua. You weren’t nervous when the captain let me sail the boat?
LH: 那有什么好紧张的？你的飞车我都敢坐，更别说帆船了，大不了掉到海里去，反正我会游泳。驾驶帆船难不难？
LL: Well learning to sail was pretty hard at first, but after a little while I got the hang of it.
LH: You got the hang of it? 这是什么意思啊？
LL: When you get the hang of something, that means that you succeed in learning it.
LH: 哦，我明白了，to get the hang of something, 就是学会、掌握的意思。你是说驾驶帆船虽然并不容易，但是练习一会，就能学会基本技巧。
LL: Exactly. Or for another example, I could say that John is a really talented athlete in whatever sport he tries. When I showed him how to play football, he got the hang of it very quickly.
LH: 就是说John有体育天分，凡是体育项目一教就会，所以没用多久就掌握了橄榄球的基本技巧。
LL: Right. So Lihua, you don’t think I’m a good driver?
LH: 这么说吧，我倒是觉得在海上开船更安全，地方大，足够你横冲直撞。
LL: Well driving is hard! Remember when I taught you? It took a long time before you started to get the hang of it.
LH: 怎么会，我可是天生的司机，考驾照都是一次通过。对了，Larry, 我们明天真的要去钓鱼吗？我可从来没钓过鱼，you have to show me the ropes. 你得手把手地教我。
LL: Sure. Fishing is pretty simple. so I’m sure you won’t have problem getting the hang of it.
LH: 好，如果咱俩明天真能钓到鱼，我保证回去做给你吃。
LL: That’s a great idea. I’ve never got the hang of how to cook Chinese food. All the dishes I make taste terrible!
LH: Right…Larry, 你难道就想不出更好的借口逃避做饭吗？
LL: Haha… I’m still trying to get the hang of it.
今天李华学了两个常用语。一个是the ropes, 意思是基本技巧和要领。另一个是get the hang of, 意思是学会，掌握。