内容简介

“Shoehorn” 的意思是 “鞋拔子”，而与之有关的英语表达 “shoehorn something in” 的意思就是 “把某物硬塞进某处”。这个表达不但可以用于形容物理上的动作或行为，还可以比喻 “把想法、设计等抽象概念强加到某个不恰当的事情上”。听节目，学习表达 “shoehorn something in” 的正确用法。

文字稿

（关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。）

Feifei
大家好，欢迎收听 BBC 英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。在每期节目中，我们都会介绍一个英语母语人士或讲英语流利的人会用到的习惯用语或者短语。I'm Feifei.

Georgie
And I'm Georgie. Feifei, I've actually been reading a book lately and I was really enjoying it, but towards the end, the author just shoehorned in a random side plot that didn't really make sense with the rest of the story – it was quite disappointing.

Feifei
Oh no, what a shame! Now, you just used the phrase 'shoehorn something in', and that's what we're learning in this programme. It's a verb with a couple of meanings, but I think it'll help our listeners if we explain what the noun 'shoehorn' means first.

Georgie
OK, I can do that. A shoehorn is a piece of curved material like plastic or metal that we put in the back of a shoe to help our foot slide into the shoe more easily.

Feifei
Right. So you could say that it helps to squeeze your foot into a small or tight space. So the verb 'shoehorn something in' means you force something to be included somewhere it doesn't quite fit.

Georgie
Yes. So, Feifei, if you remember my example at the beginning about the author shoehorning a random plot into the story – that's about forcing ideas and concepts somewhere they don't belong. Let's hear more examples.

Examples
I used to love using this app, but now they've shoehorned in loads of features and it's just too complicated.

My friend recently started her own business, and now she just shoehorns it into every conversation we have. It's so annoying!

I really want to mention my website in the speech but I'm not sure I've got enough time. I'll just have to shoehorn it in at the end.

Feifei
你正在收听的是 BBC 英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。刚刚我们学习了表达 “shoehorn something in” 的用法。

So, metaphorically speaking, it can be about including ideas in places they don't belong. But, it can also be about physical space, fitting larger things in a smaller space – a bit like shoehorning your foot into a shoe.

Georgie
That's right. So, for example, last night I was really surprised the restaurant was able to shoehorn so many customers in such a small space.

Feifei
“Shoehorn” 的意思是 “鞋拔子”，我们在穿皮鞋等比较硬的鞋子的时候可以用它来帮助我们穿鞋。表达 “shoehorn something in” 不但可以表示 “把某物强塞进狭小的地方”，它还可以用来比喻 “把想法、设计等抽象的事物强加到可能并不恰当的事情上”。

Georgie
So, to recap, we learned 'shoehorn something in' which means to force something to be included somewhere it doesn't quite fit or belong.

Feifei
Join us again next time for another useful English phrase.

Georgie
Bye!

Feifei
Bye!