Question

There are so many expressions in American English that sound pleasant but are not.

“Face the music” is a good example. When someone says they have to face the music, it does not mean they are going to a musical performance or concert. To face the music means to accept the unpleasant results of an action.

Imagine a friend asks you to take care of her beautiful red sports car. She gives you the keys and says, “Thanks so much for watching my car while I’m away. But please do not drive it. It is an extremely fast car.” But you do not listen. You want to show off and pretend the car is yours. So, you drive it around town. As bad luck would have it, you lose control of the car and drive it into a stop sign. The damage is serious. When your friend returns, you must tell her what you have done and “face the music”. That could mean losing her friendship or paying for repairs to her sports car or both. Whatever the music is, you must face it.

There are other American expressions that mean the same as “face the music”.

To “take your medicine” means to accept the results from something bad you have done. And if someone says, “You made your bed. Now lie in it.” He means you created a bad situation and now you will experience the results, or as we say in American spoken English, you must deal with it!

“Pay the piper” also means the same as “face the music”. But, that expression has its own very interesting beginning. We will talk about that on another Words and Their Stories.

1.What does “face the music” mean?

A. Going to a musical performance.    B. Apologizing to the person you have hurt.

C. Dealing with the situation you have caused.    D. Accepting the unpleasant results of an action.

2.Which of the following expressions doesn’t have the same meaning with the others?

A. Face the music.    B. Make your bed.

C. Take your medicine.    D. Pay the piper.

3.Which action belongs to a “take your medicine”？

A. You caught a cold and took some medicine.

B. You worked hard but failed in the exam.

C. You broke the traffic rules and caused an accident.

D. You moved to a new city and lost touch with your old friends.

4.What may be talked about in the next programme?

A. Other words and their stories.    B. The beginning of “pay the piper”.

C. The wider use of “face the music”.    D. An example of “take your medicine”.

Answer

1. D

2. B

3. C

4. B

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。用举例的方式阐述了face the music 这个词的寓意，它的意思是接受自己行为导致的不愉快结果，并介绍了它的几个其它的同义词。

1.词义猜测题。由第二段“ To face the music means to accept the unpleasant results of an action.”可知，“face the music”意思是接受自己行为导致的不愉快结果。故D选项正确。

2.细节理解题。文中对四个选项的意思分别进行了解释，Pay the piper 和Take your medicine 都是Face the music 的同义词，意思是接受自己行为导致的不愉快结果，由第七段的“You made your bed. Now lie in it.” He means you created a bad situation and now you will experience the results, or as we say in American spoken English, you must deal with it! 可知，“You made your bed. Now lie in it.”意思是说你造成了某种恶劣状况，现在你得承受这一结果，也就是我们在美式口语中所说的，你必须处理这一情况。所以Make your bed的意思是说你造成了某种恶劣状况，所以Make your bed 与其它几个词意思不同，故选B选项正确。

3.推理判断题。由第五段“To “take your medicine” means to accept the results from something bad you have done”可知，“take your medicine”意思是接受自己行为导致的不愉快结果。所以判断出C选项“你违反了交通规则，导致了交通事故”符合“take your medicine”。故C选项正确。

4.推理判断题。由最后段“Pay the piper” also means the same as “face the music”. But, that expression has its own very interesting beginning. We will talk about that on another Words and Their Stories.”可知，“Pay the piper” 和 “face the music”的意思同， 但是，这个表达有它自己非常有趣的开端。我们将用另外的词和它们的故事来讨论这个表达的开端。所以判断出下一段要讲的是Pay the piper 的开端。故B选项正确。