一项报告称在英国，大约有两百万对夫妻相互隐瞒个人的经济状况。另有44%的已婚人士不知道自己配偶的收入是多少。《随身英语》和大家一起探讨感情与金钱之间的关系。

课文内容

词汇: Money 金钱

Do you usually go dutch when you take someone out to dinner? Do you expect your date to pay for the whole meal?

当你带别人出去吃饭时，你通常aa制吗?你希望你的约会对象付整顿饭的钱吗?

Many people say that as long as there's love, money doesn't matter much. But this might change when the relationship gets serious and it can involve mortgages, joint current accounts and debt.

很多人说，只要有爱，金钱并不重要。但当你们的关系认真起来，可能涉及抵押贷款、共同经常账户和债务时，这种情况可能会发生变化。

A survey in the UK suggested that 44% of married couples don't know exactly what their spouse earns. The research, conducted by a UK credit report service also found that an astonishing 1.9 million married couples actively try to keep their finances secret from their partners.

英国的一项调查显示，44%的已婚夫妇并不确切知道配偶的收入。这项由英国一家信用报告服务机构开展的研究还发现，有190万对已婚夫妇积极对伴侣隐瞒自己的财务状况，这一数字令人震惊。

British relationship therapist Arabella Russell says: "It’s very difficult to talk about money. Often there’s guilt, there’s shame. To start those conversations is complicated. Money can be about how we value ourselves, how we feel valued. It’s not just a simple case of talking about hard cash."

英国关系治疗师阿拉贝拉·拉塞尔说:“谈论金钱是非常困难的。通常会有内疚和羞耻。开始这样的对话是很复杂的。金钱可以决定我们如何评价自己，如何感受到自己的价值。这不仅仅是谈论现金这么简单。”

So if you are in a couple, it might be a good idea to check if you both are on the same page about money before bills pile up on the kitchen table and love flies out of the window. When moving in together, couples should not only talk about their personal habits but also about their financial ones.

所以，如果你是一对夫妻，在账单堆积在餐桌上，爱情飞出窗外之前，检查一下你们对钱的看法是否一致可能是个好主意。同居时，情侣们不仅应该谈论他们的个人习惯，还应该谈论他们的财务习惯。

Arabella Russell has a word of advice: "Accept the fact that in your relationship you might do money differently – there might be a spender there might be a saver. It’s very tempting if your partner does things differently to say they’re wrong. Do it differently but have a budget."

阿拉贝拉·拉塞尔给了我一个建议:“接受这样一个事实:在你们的关系中，你们对待金钱的方式可能会有所不同——可能有人会花钱，也可能有人会省钱。如果你的伴侣做事方式不同，你很容易就会说他们错了。用不同的方式，但要有预算。”

And now, back to that date… Would you be put off by someone who was attractive but expected you to pay the bill by yourself? There's food for thought…

现在，回到那个约会……你会被一个很有魅力但希望你自己付账的人拒之门外吗?有值得思考的东西……

词汇表

to go dutch    AA制
date (noun)    约会对象
mortgage    房屋抵押贷款
joint current account    两人共有的现金银行账户
debt    债务
spouse    配偶
credit report service    信用报告服务
astonishing    令人吃惊的
relationship therapist    情感咨询专家
hard cash    现金
to be on the same page    意见统一
bill    （煤气水电服务等）账单
spender    爱花钱的人
saver    省钱的人
budget    预算
put off    使反感
food for thought    引人思考的问题

测验与练习

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。

1. How many people are very careful not to let their husband or wife know how much money they make?
2. True or false? Some people feel ashamed when they have to tell their partner they don't earn much money.
3. What should couples do before they decide to live in the same house?
4. According to relationship therapist Arabella Russell, what should people do – no matter if they are savers or spenders?
5.What does the author mean by the expression 'food for thought'?

2. 请你在不参考课文的情况下完成下列练习。从每个表格中选择一个意思合适的单词填入句子的空格处。

1. Let's get a bank loan to buy a house. That bank offers good deals for a __________.

joint current account     mortgage      debt         hard cash

2. I bought a leather jacket, a pair of jeans and a very expensive watch to go with my diamond ring. What can I do, I'm __________!

a big spender  a big saver      a spouse    Dutch 

3. John, a lawyer, is my __________ tonight. He is very attractive and we might end up getting married!

date       relationship therapist      saver   spouse  

4. Do you understand my explanation? Great! It's good to know we are __________.

food for thought     differently   on the same page     put off

5. I'm very careful with money. I don't want to get into __________.

hard cash     debt      shame      a budget

答案

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。

1. How many people are very careful not to let their husband or wife know how much money they make?According to a UK survey, 1.9 million married couples.

2. True or false? Some people feel ashamed when they have to tell their partner they don't earn much money.
True. British relationship therapist Arabella Russell says this is one of the reasons some couples avoid talking about money.

3. What should couples do before they decide to live in the same house?
They should discuss the way they deal with financial matters because one of them might be a saver and the other might be a spender.

4. According to relationship therapist Arabella Russell, what should people do – no matter if they are savers or spenders?
They should make a budget.

5.What does the author mean by the expression 'food for thought'?
He means the reader has a lot to think about when considering if they would start a relationship with someone who expects them to pay for everything.

2. 请你在不参考课文的情况下完成下列练习。从每个表格中选择一个意思合适的单词填入句子的空格处。 

1. Let's get a bank loan to buy a house. That bank offers good deals for a mortgage.

2. I bought a leather jacket, a pair of jeans and a very expensive watch to go with my diamond ring. What can I do, I'm a big spender!

3. John, a lawyer, is my date tonight. He is very attractive and we might end up getting married!

4. Do you understand my explanation? Great! It's good to know we are on the same page.

5. I'm very careful with money. I don't want to get into debt.