🎙️ Today’s Vocabulary｜今日词汇

1. 毒打 · Severe Beating / A Harsh Lesson

毒打
dú dǎ

Severe beating / Brutal beating
/ˌsɪvɪə ˈbiːtɪŋ/ · /ˌbruːtəl ˈbiːtɪŋ/

🇨🇳 字面上指狠狠地殴打某人；但现在网络和日常表达中，经常出现在“社会的毒打”里，比喻经历现实中的挫折、失败和残酷教训。
🇬🇧 Literally, it means a severe physical beating. Figuratively, especially in the expression “社会的毒打,” it refers to harsh lessons learned from real-world setbacks and difficulties.

🌏 Culture Note｜文化小注
“被社会毒打”并不是真的被打，更接近英语里的 get a reality check 或 learn a harsh lesson from the real world。

💬 Example｜例句
工作以后，我终于体会到了什么叫“社会的毒打”。
After I started working, I finally got a serious reality check from the real world.

2. 牛仔裤 · Jeans

牛仔裤
niú zǎi kù

Jeans
/dʒiːnz/

🇨🇳 通常用牛仔布制成的裤子，是非常常见的日常服装。
🇬🇧 Casual trousers typically made from denim.

💬 Example｜例句
我平时最常穿的就是牛仔裤。
Jeans are probably what I wear most often.

3. 小混混 · Troublemaker / Hooligan

小混混
xiǎo hùn hun

Troublemaker / Hooligan / Punk
/ˈtrʌbəlˌmeɪkə(r)/ · /ˈhuːlɪɡən/ · /pʌŋk/

🇨🇳 通常指给人“不守规矩、爱惹事”印象的年轻人，有时也暗示打架、逃学或混社会等行为。
🇬🇧 An informal and often judgmental term for a young person seen as rebellious, disruptive, or involved in troublemaking.

🌏 Language Note｜语言小注
三个英文词语气不一样：troublemaker 最宽泛；hooligan 更强调闹事；punk 很口语，但也可以指朋克文化，所以不能在所有语境下直接对应“小混混”。

💬 Example｜例句
为什么有些穿着和发型会让我们觉得一个人像“小混混”？
Why do certain clothes or hairstyles make us see someone as a troublemaker?

4. 运动裤 · Sweatpants

运动裤
yùn dòng kù

Sweatpants / Track pants
/ˈswetpænts/ · /ˈtræk pænts/

🇨🇳 为运动或休闲设计的舒适裤装。
🇬🇧 Comfortable trousers designed for exercise or casual wear.

💬 Example｜例句
我在家的时候几乎每天都穿运动裤。
I wear sweatpants almost every day when I’m at home.

5. 矛盾 · Contradiction / Conflict

矛盾
máo dùn

Contradiction / Conflict / Feel conflicted
/ˌkɒntrəˈdɪkʃən/ · /ˈkɒnflɪkt/ · /kənˈflɪktɪd/

🇨🇳 可以指两个观点、需求或情况互相冲突；“我很矛盾”通常表示自己同时有两种相反的想法或感受。
🇬🇧 A conflict between different ideas, desires, or situations. When describing your own mixed feelings, I feel conflicted is often the most natural expression.

💬 Example｜例句
我很矛盾：我既想要稳定，又不想失去自由。
I feel conflicted: I want stability, but I don’t want to lose my freedom.

6. Figure Out · 弄明白 / 搞清楚

弄明白 / 搞清楚 / 想出办法
nòng míng bai / gǎo qīng chu / xiǎng chū bàn fǎ

Figure out
/ˌfɪɡə(r) ˈaʊt/

🇨🇳 通过思考逐渐理解某件事情，或者找到解决问题的方法。
🇬🇧 To understand something after thinking about it, or to find a solution to a problem.

💬 Example｜例句
我到现在还没有搞清楚自己真正想要什么。
I still haven’t figured out what I really want.

7. Structure · 结构

结构
jié gòu

Structure
/ˈstrʌktʃə(r)/

🇨🇳 一个事物内部各部分之间的组织和关系；在社会科学中，也常指影响个人行为和机会的社会、经济或制度安排。
🇬🇧 The way different parts of something are organized and connected. In the social sciences, it can also refer to broader social, economic, or institutional arrangements that shape people’s actions and opportunities.

💬 Example｜例句
有些问题看起来是个人选择，其实也和社会结构有关。
Some problems may look like individual choices but are also shaped by social structures.

8. 规矩 · Rules / Norms

规矩
guī ju

Rules / Norms / Know how to behave
/ruːlz/ · /nɔːmz/

🇨🇳 指一个群体中应该遵守的规则、行为方式或社会规范；有些是明文规定，有些则是不成文的。
🇬🇧 Rules or expectations about how people are supposed to behave. Some are formal, while others are unwritten social norms.

🌏 Language Note｜语言小注
中文说一个人“懂规矩”，有时不只是 know the rules，而是 know how to behave 或 know what’s expected of you。

💬 Example｜例句
“懂规矩”意味着成熟，还是意味着学会服从？
Does knowing how to behave mean becoming mature, or learning to conform?

9. 案底 · Criminal Record

案底
àn dǐ

Criminal record
/ˈkrɪmɪnəl ˌrekɔːd/

🇨🇳 日常中文里通常指一个人因犯罪被定罪后留下的相关记录。
🇬🇧 A formal record of a person’s criminal convictions.

🌏 Language Note｜语言小注
“案底”是比较口语化的中文表达，而且具体法律含义因司法制度而异，所以并不是所有“被警察调查过”都能直接叫 criminal record。

💬 Example｜例句
如果你发现一个刚认识的人有案底，你对他的看法会改变吗？
If you found out that someone you had just met had a criminal record, would it change how you saw them?

10. 阻碍 · Barrier / Obstacle

阻碍
zǔ ài

Barrier / Obstacle / Hinder
/ˈbæriə(r)/ · /ˈɒbstəkəl/ · /ˈhɪndə(r)/

🇨🇳 阻止或使某件事情更难实现的人、条件或因素。
🇬🇧 Something that prevents progress or makes it more difficult to achieve something.

💬 Example｜例句
真正阻碍我们的，是现实条件，还是我们自己的恐惧？
What really holds us back—our circumstances or our own fears?

11. 话术 · Script / Talking Points

话术
huà shù

Script / Talking points / Sales pitch
/skrɪpt/ · /ˈtɔːkɪŋ pɔɪnts/ · /ˈseɪlz pɪtʃ/

🇨🇳 为达到某种沟通目的而提前设计或反复使用的一套表达方式，例如销售话术、客服话术或网络话术。
🇬🇧 Prepared or formulaic language used to achieve a particular communication goal, such as selling something, persuading someone, or handling customers.

🌏 Culture Note｜文化小注
“话术”没有一个能覆盖所有语境的英文词。销售场景可以说 sales pitch，客服可以说 script，政治或公共表达中可能是 talking points。

💬 Example｜例句
当你意识到对方在使用一套固定话术时，你还会觉得他说的话真诚吗？
When you realize someone is following a script, does what they say still feel genuine?

12. 公序良俗 · Public Order and Good Morals

公序良俗
gōng xù liáng sú

Public order and good morals / Public order and morality

🇨🇳 一个法律和社会规范概念，大致指维护公共秩序以及社会普遍认可的基本伦理和行为准则。
🇬🇧 A legal and social concept referring broadly to public order and widely accepted standards of morality and appropriate conduct.

🌏 Culture Note｜文化小注
这是一个比较正式的法律、政策表达。日常聊天如果只是说“社会认为合不合适”，social norms 或 accepted standards 会更自然。

💬 Example｜例句
如果一件事情不违法，但被认为违反公序良俗，我们应该怎么判断？
If something is legal but considered contrary to public morals, how should we think about it?

13. 社会时钟 · Social Clock

社会时钟
shè huì shí zhōng

Social clock
/ˈsəʊʃəl klɒk/

🇨🇳 社会对于一个人在什么年龄“应该”完成某些人生阶段的共同期待，例如毕业、工作、结婚、生育或退休。
🇬🇧 Shared social expectations about the age or stage of life when people are “supposed” to reach milestones such as graduating, finding a career, marrying, having children, or retiring.

💬 Example｜例句
如果30岁还没有结婚，我们为什么会觉得自己落后于“社会时钟”？
Why might we feel behind the social clock if we’re still unmarried at thirty?

14. 酒桌文化 · Drinking Culture at Social Dinners

酒桌文化
jiǔ zhuō wén huà

Drinking culture / Drinking culture at social dinners

🇨🇳 围绕聚餐、喝酒、敬酒、劝酒和人际关系形成的一系列社交习惯和规则。
🇬🇧 Social customs and expectations surrounding alcohol, toasting, dinners, relationship-building, and sometimes pressure to drink.

🌏 Culture Note｜文化小注
“酒桌文化”并不只是 drinking culture，因为“桌”很重要——它常常涉及饭局、人情、职场关系、敬酒顺序，以及谁可以拒绝喝酒等社会规则。

Jiuzhuo wenhua is about more than alcohol itself. It can include workplace hierarchy, social obligations, toasting etiquette, relationship-building, and expectations around refusing a drink.

💬 Example｜例句
一杯酒什么时候是在拉近关系，什么时候又变成了社交压力？
When does sharing a drink build relationships, and when does it become social pressure?

15. Farming · 农耕 / 种田

农耕 / 种田
nóng gēng / zhòng tián

Farming
/ˈfɑːmɪŋ/

🇨🇳 通过种植作物、饲养动物等方式进行农业生产；日常中文里的“种田”更口语。
🇬🇧 The practice of growing crops, raising animals, and carrying out other forms of agricultural production.

🌏 Language Note｜语言小注
Farming 强调实际的农业劳动。如果想说“田园生活”，更接近 rural life 或 country life。两者并不是一回事。

Farming means doing agricultural work. Rural life or country life refers more broadly to living in the countryside—and may sound much more romantic than farming itself.

💬 Example｜例句
我们真正向往的是种田，还是想象中的田园生活？
Do we really want to go farming, or do we want the romantic idea of rural life?

16. Gathering · 聚会 / 聚集

聚会 / 聚集
jù huì / jù jí

Gathering
/ˈɡæðərɪŋ/

🇨🇳 一群人为了社交、家庭、社区或其他目的聚在一起；比“派对”范围更广。
🇬🇧 An occasion when people come together for social, family, community, or other purposes.

🌏 Language Note｜语言小注
Gathering 比 party 更宽泛，也不一定热闹。Family gathering 是家庭聚会，social gathering 是社交聚会，informal gathering 是非正式聚会。

💬 Example｜例句
人聚在一起，就一定意味着彼此更亲近吗？
Does being at a gathering necessarily mean we feel closer to one another?