2022年11月20日 VOA慢速英语：你有没有感觉到“墙壁正在向你靠近”？

And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.
现在，来自美国之音慢速英语的单词和他们的故事。
 
On this program, we explore words and expressions in the English language. We give you examples and notes on usage.
在这个节目中，我们探索单词和英语中的表达。我们会为您提供示例和使用注意事项。
 
Today we go inside a building and talk about a feature of every building – walls.
今天我们走进一栋建筑物，讨论每栋建筑物的一个特征 - 墙壁。
 
Walls protect us from the outside world. They can help us stay safe and give us comfort.
墙壁保护我们免受外界的影响。它们可以帮助我们保持安全并给我们带来舒适感。
 
But what if we are inside a room too long? Those same walls can start to feel like a prison. We can feel trapped by them. When that happens, we can say the walls are closing in on us.
但是如果我们在房间里待的时间太长怎么办？那些相同的墙可能开始感觉像一座监狱。我们会感到被他们困住了。当这种情况发生时，我们可以说墙壁正在逼近我们。
 
This means you are feeling confined, or stuck, in an area.
这意味着您感觉被限制或困在某个区域。
 
For example, after a year of living with the COVID-19 pandemic, I felt like the walls of my house were closing in on me. When that feeling came over me, I knew I needed to go outside for a walk!
例如，在与 COVID-19 大流行病共存一年后，我感觉房子的墙壁正在向我逼近.当那种感觉袭上心头时，我知道我需要出去走走！
 
When you feel trapped or confined indoors, a walk outside usually helps. Not only are you in the fresh air, but you are also looking at different things. A change of scenery can help when you feel like the walls are closing in.
当您感觉被困在室内或被限制在室内时，到外面走走通常会有帮助。你不仅在新鲜空气中，而且你也在看不同的东西。当您感觉墙壁正在关闭时，换个环境会有帮助。
 
Sometimes the "walls" in this idiom are not actual walls in a building. Instead, they are walls in our minds or in a certain situation. We can use the expression the walls are closing in when we are sick and tired of something.
有时这个成语中的“墙”并不是建筑物中的实际墙壁。相反，它们是我们心中或某种情况下的墙。当我们厌倦了某事时，我们可以使用墙壁正在关闭的表达方式。
 
For example, if you unable to make advances in your job, you could feel like the walls have closed in on your career. You may feel like you don't have the chance to advance or try new things.
例如，如果您无法在工作中取得进步，您可能会觉得墙壁已经关闭了你的职业。您可能会觉得自己没有机会取得进步或尝试新事物。
 
It can feel like the "walls" are closing in on a relationship too. When people find themselves in very restricted relationships with someone who is trying to control them, it may feel like the walls are closing in on them.
感觉“墙”也在关闭一段关系。当人们发现自己与试图控制他们的人的关系非常受限时，他们可能会觉得高墙正在向他们逼近。
 
In these cases, a change of scenery is not found outside in the woods. The change of scenery is a new job or a new relationship.
在这些情况下，外面的树林里并没有发现风景的变化。风景的变化是一份新的工作或一段新的关系。
 
When the walls feel like they are closing in, we can also use another word to describe what we are feeling: claustrophobic.
当墙壁感觉像在关闭时，我们也可以用另一个词来形容我们的感受：幽闭恐惧症。
 
Claustrophobia is defined as an abnormal fear of being in closed or confined spaces. Sometimes, we use the term "claustrophobic" to mean we feel uneasy by a situation that is limiting or restricting. This feeling of unease could be from physical or non-physical reasons. A job and a relationship can also feel claustrophobic.
幽闭恐惧症被定义为对处于封闭或受限空间内的异常恐惧。有时，我们使用“幽闭恐惧症”一词来表示我们对受限制或限制的情况感到不安。这种不安的感觉可能来自身体或非身体原因。一份工作和一段感情也会让人感到幽闭恐惧。
 
Now let's listen to two people use the words and expressions you heard in this story.
现在让我们听听两个人使用您在这个故事中听到的词语和表达方式。
 
A: Hey, what happened to Chad? I haven't seen him around DC lately.
A：嘿，Chad 怎么了？我最近没在华盛顿附近见过他。
 
B: During the pandemic, he moved out west…somewhere in the desert.
B：在大流行期间，他搬到西部……在沙漠的某个地方。
 
A: The desert? What made him do that!?
A：沙漠？是什么让他这么做的！？
 
B: He said he felt too claustrophobic in the city and was sick and tired of being around so many people. He needed more space and open skies!
B：他说他觉得在城市里太幽闭了，和这么多人在一起感到厌倦。他需要更多的空间和开阔的天空！
 
A: I can understand that. Sometimes the walls of my apartment feel like they are closing in on me. But moving to the desert is a pretty extreme decision.
答：我能理解。有时我公寓的墙壁感觉它们正在向我靠近。但是搬到沙漠是一个非常极端的决定。
 
B: He'll be back. He texted me last night complaining that it takes him 30 minutes to drive to the nearest store.
B：他会回来的。他昨晚给我发短信抱怨说他开车到最近的商店需要 30 分钟。
 
A: Well … he wanted more space. Now he's got it!
答：嗯……他想要更多空间。现在他明白了！
 
B: Yep.
B：是的。
 
And that brings us to the end of this Words and Their Stories.
这让我们到了这个词和他们的故事的结尾。