内容简介

登高望远是人生的一大乐事。然而，我们先要克服向上攀登过程中的种种疲惫与艰险才能最终勇攀高峰。英语短语 “an uphill task” 正是借登山的辛苦来比喻 “一项任务十分艰巨”。听节目，学习如何使用 “an uphill task”。

文字稿

（关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。）

Feifei
大家好，欢迎收听 BBC 英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。在每期节目中，我们都会介绍一个英语母语人士或讲英语流利的人会用到的习惯用语或短语。I'm Feifei, and I'm here with Phil.

Phil
Hello everyone. 

Feifei
本期节目中我们要学习如何使用 “an uphill task” 这个短语。

Phil
How are you, Feifei? Have you been busy? 

Feifei
How can you tell? Yes, I have. I've been trying to sort out all the photos I've taken over the last few years, but there are so many! Choosing which ones to print out really is an uphill task.

Phil
I don't even want to think about sorting out the pictures on my phone, but I do want to think about that phrase you used – 'an uphill task'. We use it to talk about something difficult.

Feifei
So, think about walking up a steep hill. It takes a lot of energy and effort, doesn't it? So, 'an uphill task' is something that's difficult and takes a lot of energy. I've literally got thousands of pictures to sort through.

Phil
That definitely sounds like an uphill task! Any task that looks difficult and takes a lot of determination to complete can be an uphill task. We often use it when there is something working against us. So, if I fix something in my home, there's always something else that goes wrong straight afterwards. Keeping everything OK just feels like an uphill task.

Feifei
Oh Phil, you're doing really well dealing with all the uphill tasks in life. Here are some more examples of people using 'an uphill task'.

Examples
Sorting out my unread emails is such an uphill task. As soon as I delete the ones I haven't read, more come in. 

I'm going on holiday next week, and I've got so much to do before I go. Getting it all done is such an uphill task. 

I've got so many lines to memorise for a play this weekend. It's such an uphill task. 

Feifei
So, we're talking about the phrase 'an uphill task'. Phil, I think we can use other words to replace 'task', can't we?

Phil
Yes, we can use 'uphill' with 'struggle' or 'battle', and it has this same idea – that it will take a lot of determination to complete. The meaning is almost the same. 

Feifei
OK, let's recap.

英语短语 “an uphill task” 用来指 “一项艰巨的任务”。“Uphill” 的意思是 “上坡的”。想象一下在爬山的时候每向上一步都要付出比平时在平地上行走更多的力气，那么就不难理解为什么 “上坡（uphill）” 这个动作被用来比喻 “完成一项困难且费力的任务” 了。比如，我们可以说：“Keeping a good habit can be an uphill task at first. 一开始的时候，保持一个好的习惯可能会是一项艰巨的任务。”

我们还可以把这个短语中的 “task（任务）” 换成其它代表 “一件难事” 的名词。比如，“struggle（奋斗，努力）” 或 “battle（斗争，较量）”。

Well, learning a language can sometimes feel like an uphill struggle, but we're always here to help.

Phil
Yes, and that's all from us. We'll be back next time with another useful English phrase.

Feifei
See you then.

Phil
Bye!