Jo: Hello, welcome to Real English from BBC Learning English. I’m Jo.
Sun Chen: Hello. I’m Sun Chen.
Jo: Today we’re going to look at words and phrases that you might not find in your dictionary.
Sun Chen: 地道英语和大家一起学习现代英式英语中最新出现的流行词汇和新鲜表达。那Jo,今天给我们带来的新词是什么呢？
Jo: Well today we are going talk about - Gap year. Gap year.
Sun Chen: Gap year？这个词是挺时髦的，尤其是对学生来说。
Jo: Yes, this is a very popular phrase among students and it’s made up of two simple words. Gap G.A.P. and year Y.E.A.R.
Sun Chen: 就象 Jo 说的这样，这个词组是由两个单词组成，第一个是 gap, 意思就是空隙，空位，那第二个单词是year, 年。 So what does gap year mean?
Jo: Gap year usually refers to one year taken off by a student between leaving school and taking up a place at a university.
Sun Chen: 那不就是同学们经常说的空档年或者是间隔年, 可以让学生们在大学之前有一年的时间好好享受人生。
Jo: That’s right.
Insert
A: Sarah, when are you going to start university?
B: Probably next year. I’m taking a gap year and hopefully I will be doing some voluntary work in Kenya.
A: Fantastic. I hope it goes well.
Sun Chen: 刚才那位同学的空档年计划很有志气，她想到平困的肯尼亚当益工。Jo, is it normal for students to take up voluntary work during their gap year?
Jo: Yes, many students want to do something different and have a good experience. Well, I’m afraid that we are out of time. Anyway, to recap a gap year is ….
Sun Chen: a gap year 就是空档年，是让中学生们进大学前好好享受人生经历的一次机会。
Jo: Well, you’ve been listening to Real English from BBC Learning English. Join us next time.
Sun Chen: 我们下次节目再会。