Sandy和外籍同事聊天,聊到新主管很多新做法,外籍同事不以為然,說了自己的想法,問Sandy:
“Do you get my drift?”
“什麼draft啊?你傳給我什麼文件了嗎?” Sandy很納悶,牢騷還要打草稿嗎?別搞錯喔,是drift,不是draft。
“Drift”不是「漂流」嗎?這和「漂流」又有什麼關係。一起來看看 “get my drift"這個片語,摸清老外「想說卻不明講」的溝通撇步。
1. Do you get my drift?
(X)你有收到我的草稿嗎?
(O)你懂吧?
Drift大家較熟悉的意思是「漂流」,可以是名符其實的漂流:
He watched the boat drift downstream. 他看著船往下游漂去。
也有抽象一點的漂流:
Many country boys drifted into cities to seek work. 許多鄕村男孩流入城市找工作。
但這裡的漂流可以理解為「思路的漂流」,想著想著,思緒就往那裡去了,引申為「要旨、大意」。
"Get the drift"的drift就是這個意思,整個片語指「明白、懂得」。例如:
Do you get my drift? Should I explain it again? 你懂我的意思嗎?要我再解釋一遍嗎?
I didn't get the drift of his argument. 我沒有聽懂他的論點。
和understand又有點不同,"Get the drift"這種明白,經常用在話沒講那麼白,但對方卻聽得出你的暗示或言外之意。來看一段對話情境:
A:My parents are coming over for the weekend and I wanted to spend time with them, but I couldn't get off of work, and hmm ……這周末我爸媽要來,我得陪他們,又不能不上班,哎……
B:I get your drift. I will fill your shift for you. 我知道你在想什麼,我來幫你代班吧!
"Get the drift"中的get可以用catch替換,變成catch the drift例如:
When my boss mentioned possible changes in the project, I quickly caught the drift that some adjustments might be necessary. 當老闆提到專案可能會有變化時,我很快就明白他的意思,我必須得做一些調整。
2. I drifted off for a few seconds.
(X)我離開了幾秒鐘。
(O)我剛恍神了幾秒鐘。
"Drift off" 描述一種狀況,「精神不集中、失去專注力、或進入睡眠狀態」,就像漂浮走了一般。多看幾個例句,熟悉用法:
Don't let your focus drift off during the important presentation. 在重要的簡報中,別恍神了。
I was so tired during the meeting that I started to drift off. 我在會議中太累了,開始昏昏欲睡。
As the soothing music played, she began to drift off into a peaceful sleep. 當輕柔的音樂響起,她逐漸沉入寧靜的睡眠中。
3. Over the years, we slowly drifted apart.
(X)多年後,我們慢慢地離開了。
(O)多年後,我們漸漸疏遠了。
"Drift apart" 是「原本親近的人逐漸變得疏離」,像漂流一般,漸行漸遠:
Ten years into the marriage we started to drift apart. 結婚十年了,我們漸行漸遠。
Over the years my schoolfriends and I have drifted apart. 這麼多年了,我和同學們逐漸疏遠。
Sometimes, relationships can drift apart if both parties are not actively maintaining them. 有時,如果雙方都不積極維護關係,雙方可能會漸漸疏離。
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