A British Obsession英国人迷恋的话题

British people are famous for always talking about the weather, but the weather also affects the way we speak and the phrases we use.

As more winter weather batters the UK, this week's Take Away demonstrates how the British obsession with weather has influenced our language.

The return of snowstorms to the UK proves that when it comes to bad weather it never rains but it pours.

The police have warned that unnecessary road travel is not recommended but some motorists have thrown caution to the wind and made their journeys anyway, claiming that it's all a storm in teacup.

Those whose cars are stuck in the snow may consider themselves to be twisting in the wind.

There are problems too for local councils who are running out of sand and grit for the roads, having not saved enough supplies for a rainy day.

However it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good and breakdown services will be seeing an increase in business at this time of year.

And every cloud has a silver lining for plumbers too as the cold weather brings burst and frozen pipes in homes and businesses.

What has become apparent from the cold snap is that seasonal weather forecasting is not a precise science.

The UK Meteorological Officepredicted that this winter would be mild and warm so the bad weather came like a bolt from the blue, defying predictions.

It's no wonder then that many people are feeling under the weather with flus and colds an ever-present danger, especially for the very old and very young.

The best thing to do then is to wrap up warm, stay at home and weather the storm and hopefully in a few weeks everything will be as right as rain.

• running [´rʌniŋ]   a.奔跑的；流动的   (初中英语单词)
• frozen [´frəuzn]   freeze 的过去分词   (初中英语单词)
• apparent [ə´pærənt]   a.显然的；表面上的   (初中英语单词)
• caution [´kɔ:ʃən]   n.&vt.小心；告诫；警告   (高中英语单词)
• seeing [si:iŋ]   see的现在分词 n.视觉   (高中英语单词)
• lining [´lainiŋ]   n.衬里；衬料   (高中英语单词)
• precise [pri´sais]   a.精确的；清楚的   (英语四级单词)
• breakdown [´breikdaun]   n.崩溃；倒塌；损耗   (英语六级单词)
• hopefully [´həupfəli]   ad.抱着希望地   (英语六级单词)