五六月是畢業季，近兩年受到疫情影響，畢業生只能參加線上畢業典禮，完成校園的最後一哩路。但無論如何，懷抱夢想與抱負，大步邁向人生就是最重要且值得被祝福的。今年五月，流行音樂歌手泰勒絲（Taylor Swift）受紐約大學之邀於畢業典禮致詞，她的演說金句也受到外界讚賞，本次就讓我們從她的演說內容來認識多益測驗相關單字吧！
commencement address 畢業致詞
「畢業典禮」經常用commencement來形容，而這個單字當動詞commence時是代表「開始」（begin）的意思。需要注意的是commence和commerce「商業、貿易」拼法相似，但意思完全不同。
Photo courtesy of New York University / 照片：紐約大學提供
The construction of the stadium is scheduled to commence next month.
（體育場興建工程預計從下個月開始。）
Many retailers have increased their investment in mobile commerce since the outbreak of the pandemic.
（許多零售商自疫情爆發後，開始增加他們在行動商務上的投資。）
泰勒絲在她的畢業致詞（commencement address）中分享了她的人生經歷和體悟，並祝福所有即將踏入社會，或迎接下一段人生旅程的畢業生們。
I will, however, give you some life hacks I wish I knew when I was starting out my dreams of a career, and navigating life, love, pressure, choices, shame, hope and friendship.
（我將會提供一些希望我在職業生涯開始時，以及在面對生活、愛情、壓力、選擇、羞恥、希望和友誼時就能知道的生活小竅門。）
hack (v)常見的解釋是科技上的「駭入」，當名詞時則是hacker「駭客」。但在此hack解釋為處理某些活動和事情上的「策略、技巧」。
The IT department discovered that the company’s computer system was hacked.
（資訊部門發現公司的電腦系統被駭入。）
This Web page provides some practical shortcuts and hacks for Mac users.
（這個網頁提供了Mac使用者一些實用的捷徑和竅門。）
navigate (v)「導航、（用地圖）找到方向或位置」，這個單字也可以用在電腦網路的使用上，代表找到想要的資訊等。
The company’s Web site is well-designed so it’s easy to navigate.
（這公司的網頁設計非常好，所以很容易找到所需的資訊。）
It’s better to ask a real estate agent to help you navigate the complex process of buying a property.
（最好請房仲幫你了解購買房產的複雜過程。）
忠告1：catch and release
泰勒絲的第一個忠告是學會catch and release「何時放手」。她表示，生活是很沉重的，很難將所有事情一次扛起，因此要懂得分辨取捨，放開不重要或不值得的事物，把時間留給更美好的事物。
You can’t carry all things, all grudges, all updates on your ex, all enviable promotions your school bully got at the hedge fund his uncle started. Decide what is yours to hold and let the rest go.
（你不能背負所有的東西，所有的怨恨，所有關於你前任的最新消息，或者校霸在他叔叔創辦的對沖基金公司中得到的所有令人羨慕的晉升。決定你要保留什麼，其餘的就放手吧。）
grudge (n.)「怨恨、積怨」常和動詞hold一起做搭配詞使用，例如hold have a grudge。
After being dismissed from the company, Anna still has a grudge against her supervisor.
（被公司解雇後，安娜對她的主管仍心存怨恨。）
Oftentimes, the good things in your life are lighter anyway, so there’s more room for them. One toxic relationship can outweigh so many wonderful, simple joys. You get to pick what your life has time and room for. Be discerning.
（很多時候，生活中的美好事物總是更輕鬆，所以也有更多的空間來容納它們。而一段糟糕的關係可以重過許多美好、簡單的快樂。你可以自由選擇哪些東西來填補你的時間和空間。請保持辨別力。）
outweigh (v)「比…重要，大於」，這個單字是多益測驗的常見字，由out+weigh組合，類似的組合還有outrun「比…快」、outsmart「智勝」。
According to several studies, the benefits of the vaccine outweigh the risks.
（根據多項研究，疫苗的好處大於其風險。）
discern (v)「辨別、明白」。
It’s usually difficult for children to discern who they can really trust.
（小孩很難分辨誰是他們可以真正信任的人。）
忠告2：live alongside cringe
每個人的人生中常發生尷尬窘況，就連名人、成功人士都不例外，泰勒絲也明白地告訴大家這些事無法避免，儘管不舒適仍要懂得和這些情況與感受共存。
Secondly, learn to live alongside cringe. No matter how hard you try to avoid being cringe, you will look back on your life and cringe retrospectively. Cringe is unavoidable over a lifetime. Even the term “cringe” might someday be deemed “cringe.”
（其次，學會與尷尬或難為情共存。無論你多麼努力地避免它們，回首過往生活時一定會伴隨著尷尬或難為情，這些在一生中是無法避免的。甚至cringe這個詞有朝一日也可能被視為一種「尷尬、難為情」。）
cringe (v)「（因恐懼）畏縮」，口語的cringe也可解釋為feel embarrassed「尷尬、難為情」。
I cringed when my dad started singing and dancing in front of my classmates.
（當我父親開始在我的同學面前又跳又唱時，我覺得尷尬。）
retrospective (adj)「回顧」這個字是由retro「往後」與spec「看」兩個字根組合而成，字面上的意思就是looking back，最常用的名詞形式為retrospect。
In retrospect, Knoxx Inc. shouldn’t have expanded so quickly.
（回想起來，Knoxx公司不應該擴張的這麼快。）
【多益模擬試題】
1. The project will not commence ________ we get the approval from the management.
(A) during (B) by the time (C) in spite of (D) until
2. Mary shows little ________ when it comes to choosing friends.
(A) distinguished (B) discernment (C) discriminate (D) discrete
【解析】
1. 正解(D)。題意為「在我們得到管理階層的允許之前，該專案不會開始。」本句中有兩個子句，因此需要選擇可以連結兩個子句並能符合語意的連接詞，故(D) until為正確答案。
2. 正解(B)。本題是單字題，空格中需要填入符合題意「Mary在選擇朋友上，顯示了她沒有很好的分辨能力。」且詞性正確的單字。(A)傑出的，(C)歧視，(D)分離的。故(B)辨別力為正確答案。
SOURCE: https://www.englishok.com.tw/toeic/toeic-issue/taylor-swift-nyu-commencement
文章由 English OK 授權使用: www.englishok.com.tw
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