L：嗨，Michael. 我在这儿！

M: Hey, Li Hua. Oh, the elephant house, let's go in and take a look.

L：噢，那是大象馆啊？好，进去看看。不行，不行，这儿太臭了。走吧！

M: Oh, yeah. Let's get out of here. In fact, I've got a lot of studying to do. I'm going to need to pull an all-nighter.

L：我知道你有很多功课，但是你在准备考试的时候也总得休息休息嘛。我听说这次考试会很难。你刚才说 all-nighter 是不是开夜车的意思呀？

M: Yeah, that's what I meant. Li Hua, you're smart!

L：我是猜出来的，all的意思是整个，全部，nighter和night 很像。我想一个人要整夜学习，那不就是开夜车吗？但是，有一点我不太懂，你说：to pull an all-nighter，什么是pull ?

M: Pull means to get yourself through a difficult time.

L：噢，pull an all-nighter，就是迫使自己整夜念书，因为要这样做是很辛苦的。

M: Yep. You wouldn't have to pull an all-nighter because you have been studying all semester, I haven't been.

L：这你可说对了。我不需要开夜车，因为我整个一学期都在学习。你要开夜车，因为你平时不学习。

M: I know, I know, you're a better student than I am.　

L：Michael, 我真喜欢纽约的秋天，空气很清新。你要是能跟我一起玩，不用回去念书，那该多好啊！

M: I don't want to go study either, but I should.

L：对啊，你要是上星期多花点时间念书不就好了嘛。现在你得临时抱佛脚了。

M: I perform better on tests when I cram.

L：Cram? Cram是把什么东西塞进去的意思，跟学习有什么关系呢？

M: Well, it's sort of the same meaning. I'm going to do a lot of studying at the last minute, that's what it means to cram.

L：意思差不多？噢，我知道了！Cram就是我们中文里说的填鸭式方法，就是硬把食品塞给鸭子吃，这样鸭子就长得肥。北京烤鸭 就是用这种鸭子做的。你说的cram是临时抱佛脚，在考试前猛记猛背，把知识往脑子里塞。你还认为这是好办法？

M: Well, everyone's different. Cramming works for me.

L：你认为临时抱佛脚对你来说行得通。可是，Michael，想把半学期的内容在一个晚上记住，这样做可真傻。

M: Stop being my mother, Li Hua!

L：我才不想当你妈呢，你不听我的话，那就算了。Michael，cram这个词是否还能用在别的场合呢？

M: Not really. It's only used to describe studying for a test, usually college or high-school level.

L：噢，只能指大学生或中学生在考试前开夜车，临时抱佛脚。

M: And that's what I need to do, right now. It's getting late and I know I will have to pull an all-nighter.

L：好吧，我明天早上给你打电话。

M: No, don't worry about me, I'm sure I will still be cramming.

L：哟，你还准备开夜车开到天亮呐？Ok, well, good luck!

　　今天李华向Michael学了两个常用语，一个是：all-nighter，意思是开夜车；另一个是：cram，这是指中学生或大学生在考试前临时抱佛脚。