EZCNN 易英网

It’s All About the Convenience 有便利商店真好！

课文朗读

课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

It’s midnight, and your stomach won’t stop rumbling. Your mind starts to race. Wasn’t today the last day to pay your phone bill? Oh, and you’re hosting that get-together tomorrow night, but you won’t have time to pick up drinks and snacks during the day. If only there were a place where you could meet all of these needs at once, quickly and conveniently!

午夜时分，肚子还在咕噜咕噜叫；脑中的思绪一刻也停不下来。今天不是电话账单缴费的截止日吗？喔，还有，明晚家里有个聚会，可是白天一整天都没时间去采买饮料和点心。要是有个地方能让人立刻把这些琐事都迅速、方便地处理掉就好了！

It’s easy to see why we have convenience stores. They’re abundant all over the world, especially in Taiwan, where we have the most convenience stores per person on the planet. It’s not unusual to see two of the same store on opposite sides of the street. The reason for their popularity lies right in their name. They’re just so convenient!

这就不难想见为何会有便利商店的存在。便利商店遍布全世界，尤其在台湾，相对于人口数来说，超商密度更是位居全球之冠。两家品牌相同的超商开在同一条街的两对面并不稀奇。它们之所以如此受欢迎，从名字上就可看出的端倪－「便利」商店就是那么便利！

The world’s first convenience store opened in 1927 in the United States, starting the chain that would later become 7-ELEVEN. It was a place where people could buy food, fuel, and other useful items. The name originated from the fact that 7-ELEVEN stores were open from 7 in the morning until 11 at night. This was quite a big deal back then – not like today when most convenience stores are open 24 hours a day.

世界第一家便利商店于1927年在美国开幕，也就是现在7-ELEVEN连锁店的始祖。早期的便利商店贩卖食物、燃料及其他实用物品。而7-ELEVEN名字的由来，是因为当初营业时间从早上七点钟到晚上十一点为止。这在当时是件很了不得的事，不过现在，几乎所有便利商店都是廿四小时不打烊。

Vocabulary

单词发音

rumbling [ˋrʌmb!ɪŋ] adj. 辘辘声的

at once  立刻, 马上 all at one time; simultaneously

abundant [əˋbʌndənt] adj. 大量的；充足的

popularity [͵pɑpjəˋlærətɪ] n. 普及，流行

chain [tʃen] n. 连锁店

fuel [ˋfjʊəl] n. 燃料

originate [əˋrɪdʒə͵net] v. 发源；来自

big deal  至关重要的大事，了不起的事情

More Information

单词发音

get-together  n. 聚会；联欢会

课文讲解

The first convenience stores spawned heaps of copycats offering similar services, each trying to increase the level of convenience. Shelves began to be stocked with retail items like CDs and DVDs. You could buy stamps, withdraw cash from ATMs, and even purchase things like concert tickets. Convenience stores were becoming banks, post offices, and box offices, which were all rolled into one!

首批便利商店的问世引发后辈群起效尤，除了类似的服务外，它们也试着提供更广泛的便利服务。货架上开始摆满如CD及DVD之类的零售商品。买邮票、提款机领现、甚至购买音乐会门票，你都可以在这里办到。便利商店成了集银行、邮局及售票处于一身的综合体。

Despite the imitators, 7-ELEVEN remains on top in Taiwan thanks to its leading position in innovation. Need something delivered fast? Just head down to your local 7-ELEVEN and ship it by express delivery. The stores now also offer the “iCash” card, which is a special debit card that allows customers to purchase goods.

虽然效尤者众，7-ELEVEN在创新上的领导地位使其在台湾仍为业界第一把交椅。需要快递服务？只要到家附近的7-ELEVEN就能搞定。现在它还发行iCash卡，是一种可让顾客消费购买东西的特殊金融卡。

7-ELEVEN is also getting in on the online shopping market. Its patrons can pre-order certain items to ensure they’ll have what they need when they need it. One of the most popular orders was moon cakes ahead of this year’s Moon Festival. And as if people needed another reason to shop at 7-ELEVEN, who can resist collecting Doraemon magnets?

7-ELEVEN也跨足在线购物市场。顾客们可预购某些商品以确保他们能准时提货。中秋月饼就是今年中秋节前最受欢迎的预购商品之一。如果还需要其他在7-ELEVEN消费的理由，谁能抗拒收集多拉A梦磁铁？

The reason why people keep coming back to 7-ELEVEN, and convenience stores in general, is that the stores offer not only daily convenience, but also a concept of a carefree lifestyle. Convenience stores are ensuring that they’ll be making lives easier for generations to come.

人们之所以不断回到7-ELEVEN之类的便利商店消费，不单因为这些商店提供日常便利的服务，它更代表一种逍遥无忧的生活方式。便利商店可以确保的是，未来世代的生活会更加便利轻松！

−by Joe Henley

Vocabulary

单词发音

spawn [spɔn] v. 大量产生

stock [stɑk] v.〔商店为销售而〕储备; 供应﹐ 提供

retail [ˋritel] adj. 零售的

withdraw [wɪðˋdrɔ] v. 提取

get in on 参加, 参与; 跨足 to get in on refers to becoming involved in something or becoming a part of the action

patron [ˋpetrən] n. 主顾（尤指老顾客）

in general 总的来说,一般说来,大体上 in most cases

carefree [ˋkɛr͵fri] adj. 无忧无虑的；轻松愉快的

More Information

单词发音

heap [hip] n.【口】大量，许多[（+of）]

copycat [ˋkɑpɪ͵kæt] n. 模仿者

express [ɪkˋsprɛs] adj. 快递的，快运的

debit card【会计】（银行存款户持有的）借方卡

as if 好像 like something was actually so

Reading Questions

1.  What does it mean when a person’s stomach is rumbling?

A.  The person is afraid of the dark.

B.  The person is hungry.

C.  The person wants to get some sleep.

D.  The person is extremely bored.

2.  Which of the following is something that 7-ELEVEN had begun doing recently?

A.  Offering fuel for sale.

B.  Staying open late.

C.  Selling useful items.

D.  Allowing pre-orders on the Internet.

3.  Which is NOT something mentioned in the article that you can do at convenience stores?

A.  Withdraw cash from an ATM.

B.  Buy tickets to a concert.

C.  Ship something via express delivery.

D.  Exchange money for foreign currency.

4.  What can we infer about convenience stores?

A.  They are a fad that will not be around for much longer.

B.  Without them, most people would never pay their bills.

C.  They have made life much easier for a large number of people.

D.  People would be able to save much more money if they weren’t around.

Answer