【经济学人】如何在家学习一门外语（1）

Living in lockdown has led many people to undertake some self-improvement. Alongside baking or cramped fitness regimes, some have chosen intellectual projects-such as picking up or mastering a foreign language.  

lockdown n.（对囚犯的）一级防范禁闭；禁闭

undertake vt.担任，承揽；保证；着手，开始

undertakings n.事业；担保，保证；承诺

cramp n.铁夹钳；痉挛，绞痛  vt.使……抽筋；束缚，限制  adj.狭窄的；难解的；受限制的

regime n.政权，政体；社会制度；管理体制  

military regime 军事政权

 intellectual projects 学习项目

This interactive skill might not seem to be one that is best honed alone. But learning a language in isolation is much easier than it used to be. One summer many years ago, as he spent many hours driving alone to work, your columnist learned French with the help of an ancient course developed to train American diplomats. Not only were its text basic and cassettes low-tech; it was also low-concept.

hone n.磨刀石；想念；抱怨  vt.用磨刀石磨

columnist n.专栏作家

diplomat n.外交官；有外交手腕的人

ca'ssette n.盒式磁带；暗盒；珠宝箱；片匣

 Exercises seemed to have much more repetition than was necessary: Mon frere va bien. Mon pere va bien. Mon fils va bien. Mon ami va bien, murmured the tape, with pauses for repetition. (My brother is doing well. My father is doing well… ) 

There was method in this drudgery. The skeleton of the sentence was drummed in, with just one word changing: Mon X va bien. Next, another variable was altered. A new list of six sentences cited feminine nouns （阴性名词）instead: Ma Z va bien.

'drudgery n.苦工，苦差事

drum v.击鼓；大力争取  n.鼓；鼓声

drum in 反复灌输；反复强调

drum up 招徕（顾客）；【口】鼓动；纠集；竭力争取

 With little instruction, the variation between feminine and masculine（阳性名词） was pounded home（这里译为反复强调）. It was slow, not much fun and incredibly effective. (Many of these old courses are now free online at www. fsi-language-courses. net. )

pound n.英镑；兽栏；重击；拘留所 v.捣烂；敲打；监禁；拘留

That primitive method has since been replaced by whizzy programmes promising easier progress. In the end, though, language is a skill more than a body of knowledge, acquired not so much by learning as by doing.   （然而，语言与其说是一种知识体系，不如说是一种技能，与其说是通过学习习得，不如说是通过实践习得。）

primitive adj.原始的；早期的；简单的；粗糙的 

whizzy adj.技术先进的，技术上创新的，高技术的

Put another way, learning a language with an app is a bit like getting fit with one. The device can guide you, but you still have to work. Duolingo（多邻国）, a popular "freemium" app, has bite-sized lessons and gamified exercises. Babbel, an inexpensive subscription service, offers more structured lessons and useful real-world material. Busuu, another subscription, focuses on networking with other users. 

freemium 免费增值

bite-sized adj.很小的

这里介绍三种软件功能分别用了 “has”、 “offers”和 “focuses on”

The best thing such apps can do is get you away from your screen, and talking. Learn a bit, then try to escape family or roommates and articulate your thoughts about your day and your life: J'aime la beurre. J'aime le pain. J'aime mon mari. Je n'aime pas le lockdown… It is better to repeat a formula to death than to move on too soon .（与其过早进行下一刻的学习，还不如重复一个句型。）

articulate adj.表达能力强的；口齿清楚的，发音清晰的 v.清楚地表达；形成关节；（用关节）连接

articulation(s)  n.关节；接合；发音