节目简介

“Walk around on your toes（踮着脚尖走路）” 不省力，而且走的过程中还需要时刻注意周围的路面，避免摔跤。表达 “keep someone on their toes” 正是借用了 “踮着脚尖” 这个动作来表达 “让某人保持警觉，时刻注意突发情况”。听节目，跟主持人 Georgie 和菲菲学习这个表达的用法。

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
Hello and welcome to Authentic Real English, where we explain expressions used by fluent English speakers so that you can use them, too! I'm Feifei, and I thought Georgie was going to join me today…

Georgie
BOO!

Feifei
Oh, you were hiding under the desk! Why did you do that? We're supposed to be recording a programme.

Georgie
Feifei, I love playing jokes on people. You should never get too relaxed around here. I'm just trying to keep you on your toes.

Feifei
Keep me on my toes… Well, shall we learn that expression then?

Georgie
I think that's a good idea. If you keep someone on their toes, it means you do something to make sure a person stays alert. Think about it literally – if you're standing or walking around on your toes, you're slightly tense and ready to move, rather than being relaxed. You're ready for anything that might happen.

Feifei
Yes. Think about a boxer being on their toes. The phrase 'keeps someone on their toes' has a sense of being prepared in case something unexpected happens. For example, at the moment my working week looks very different from one week to another. So every week I'm doing different things, so that really keeps me on my toes.

Georgie
I bet it does. OK, let's hear some more examples.

Examples
I never really liked science class because the teacher would always ask us a question, and we had to answer quickly in front of the whole class. It really kept us on our toes.

The chef at the restaurant changes the menu every week. That really keeps the staff on their toes.

There's always new roadworks in different places in my town at the moment, but at least it keeps me on my toes. I need to pay attention when I'm driving.

Feifei
你正在收听的是 BBC 英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。刚刚我们一起学习了表达 “keep someone on their toes” 的用法。这个表达中的 “on someone's toes” 的意思是 “踮着脚尖” 这个动作。我们会用这个动作来形容人 “保持着警觉，随时准备行动”。因此，“keep someone on their toes” 的含义也就是 “让某人保持警觉，时刻做好应对突发情况的准备”。

Georgie
That's right. But if you want a phrase to describe yourself or another person, you can use 'be on the ball'. If you are on the ball, it means you're quick to understand or react. I've had a couple of coffees this morning so I'm feeling very on the ball.

Feifei
Yes, it seems like it. “Keep someone on their toes” 这个表达通常用来描述 “让他人保持警觉”。而如果我们想说自己 “注意力十分集中，能够快速地理解和应对突发情况”，就应该用 “on the ball” 这个短语。

Georgie
Let's recap. We learnt 'keep someone on their toes', which means to cause someone else to stay alert and ready for anything to happen.

Feifei
Thanks for joining us. Bye!

Georgie
Goodbye!