And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English.
现在是美国之音慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。
On this program we explore words and expressions in the English language.
在这个节目中，我们会探索英语中的单词和表达。
Today we talk about an important part of every plant – the roots.
今天我们来谈谈对每种植物来说都很重要的一部分——根。
The roots of most plants grow below the ground.
大多数植物的根长在地下。
There, they have some very important jobs.
它们在地下完成一些非常重要的工作。
The roots anchor the plant.
根固定住植物。
They secure it in the ground.
它们把植物固定在土里。
Roots also take in water and minerals to feed the plant.
根也会吸收水分和矿物质来滋养植物。
And in many plants, the roots store food and nutrients.
在许多植物中，根储存食物和营养。
So, roots are the foundation of the plant: the supporting structures.
所以，根是植物的基础：供养结构。
And that gives us our first expression: "to put roots down".
那就引出了我们第一个表达：“扎根”。
When you put roots down, you make a place your home by creating connections.
扎根就是指你就通过建立联系把一个地方变成了你的家。
You get a job and maybe buy a house.
你可以找一份工作，或许买套房子。
You also make friends and join activities.
你还可以结交朋友以及参加一些活动。
You might start a family.
你也可以成家。
As your children start school, your ties to the school and other parents are also roots.
当你的孩子开始上学时，你与学校和其他家长的联系也是“根”。
All these things connect you to a place.
所有这些东西都将你和一个地方联系在一起。
Each connection makes it harder for you to leave.
每一个联系都会让你更难离开这个地方。
Just like the roots of a plant, they ground you.
就像植物的根一样，它们让你扎根在这个地方。
If you want to move a plant, you must be careful not to disturb the roots too much.
如果你想挪动一棵植物，你必须小心，不要过多地碰植物的根部。
If you do, you could kill the plant.
如果你过多地碰根部，你可能会把植物弄死。
And that brings us to another way we use the word root.
这就引出了“root”的另一种用法。
The root can also be the start or cause of something.
“root”也可以是某事的起源或原因。
For example, I could say that my love of mystery stories is rooted in my childhood full of Agatha Christie books!
例如，我可以说，我对神秘故事的热爱源于我的童年，我的童年被阿加莎·克里斯蒂的书所填满！
Now, problems have roots too.
问题也有根源。
So, people could say that a small town's problems are rooted in a lack of good jobs.
所以，人们可以说，小城镇问题的根源在于缺乏好工作。
That suggests our next expression: Get to the root of the problem.
这暗示了我们的下一个表达：找到问题的根源。
When we get to the root of the problem, we get to the cause of it.
当我们寻找问题的根源时，我们就是寻找它的起因。
You can also strike at the root of a problem if you are looking for a way to solve it.
如果你正在寻找解决问题的方法，那么你也可以从问题的根源入手。
Sometimes we use the verb "dig" to go with some root expressions.
有时候我们会把动词“dig”与一些和“root”有关的表达使用。
As we said, roots are underground.
正如我们所说过的，根在地下。
You must dig to reach them.
你必须挖掘才能触及它们。
So, we could say, "A lack of jobs is just one issue.
所以，我们可以说：“工作缺乏只是一个方面。
To get to the root of the city's larger problem, we must dig deeper." Here's an example: I just heard that the city council is going to add more money to this year's school budget.
为了找到这个城市更大问题的根源，我们必须深入挖掘。”下面是一个例子：我刚听说市议会要提高今年的学校预算。
That's good news!
那是个好消息！
But I'm not sure more money is going to fix high truancy rates and poor classroom behavior.
但我不确定更多的资金是否能解决高逃课率和不良的课堂行为。
Well, it can't hurt.
嗯，它不会带来什么坏处。
True. But to really help students, we need to get to the root of the education problem.
没错。但要真正帮助到学生，我们需要找到教育问题的根源。
And what do you think the root of the problem is?
那你认为该问题的根源是什么？
I think the "roots" to that problem are vast and complex.
我认为该问题的“根源”众多且复杂。
Now for our final expression.
现在来看最后一个表达。
There is a common saying in English that involves roots.
英语中有一句俗语和“root”有关。
You may hear people say that money is the root of all evil.
你可能听人们说“金钱是万恶之源”。
That expression comes from the Bible: "The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil." While it may not be root of all evil, I'm sure that greed has caused quite a few problems.
这句话来自《圣经》：“贪财是万恶之源。”虽然它可能不是万恶之源，但我确信贪婪已经引发了相当多的问题。
And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories.
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。
Until next time, I'm Anna Matteo.
下期节目再见，安娜·马特奥为您播报。
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