被听写支配的恐惧来袭：巴黎街头5000人听写大赛

近日，法国举办了一场史上规模最大的“听写大赛”，著名的香榭丽舍大道（Champs-Elysees）化身露天考场，场面颇为壮观。

🤔️小作业：

A. To celebrate the French language and culture.

B. To create a new Guinness World Record.

C. To provide a platform for writers to showcase their skills.

D. To challenge people and increase interest in literacy.

A. It promotes spelling competitions in France.

B. It breaks the Guinness World Record, making France globally recognized.

C. It fosters unity and cohabitation among the participants.

D. It challenges the traditional norms of literacy events.

无注释原文：

A massive dictation event takes over the iconic Champs-Élysées in Paris

From: NPR

The iconic Champs-Élysées in Paris was taken over by writers on Sunday in perhaps the world's largest-ever dictation event.

Instead of car traffic, the famed boulevard was covered by some 1,779 desks organized into rows for the more than 5,000 applicants chosen to participate in the exercise, the AFP reported.

The dictation was run by novelist Rachid Santaki, who began an initiative in 2013 called La Dictée Geante — or the Giant Dictation — to improve literacy across France.

"It's about bringing people together, having fun around spelling and the French language," Santaki told RFI in 2018. "I often talk about the pleasure of reading, of writing, and that means having fun, we take the drama out of it, turn the experience upside down."

On Sunday, applicants ranging in age from 10 to 90 and equipped with a pen and paper attempted over three rounds to transcribe excerpts of text read aloud by three different people: Libraries Without Borders journalist Augustin Trapenard, writer Katherine Pancol and rugby player Pierre Rabadan.

"It was impossible! The dictation was for adults," said primary school student Antoine, according to AFP. "I only made two mistakes!" retiree Touria Zerhouni, 65, told the outlet. "I expected it to be much harder."

Guinness World Records, which sent a representative to the event, confirmed that it set the record for the most people taking dictation simultaneously.

Spell it out: Paris' Champs-Elysees hosts mass 'dictation'

From: AFP

Not to be outdone by US-style spelling bee extravaganzas, Paris's most famous street the Champs-Elysees was transformed into an open-air mass "dictation" spellathon Sunday, pitting thousands of France's brainiest bookworms against one another.

Revealing a very French love affair with words, over 50,000 applied to participate in the event, a world first, in which hopefuls attempt to faithfully and without error transcribe a text read to them.

Over 5,000 applicants aged 10-90 were chosen to participate in three sessions led by novelist Rachid Santaki.

With 1,779 desks laid out on Paris' most famous boulevard in each session, organisers had sought to break the world record for a dictation spelling competition.

In the first round, an excerpt of La Mule du Pape by renowned French writer Alphonse Daudet was read by journalist Augustin Trapenard, of Libraries Without Borders.

Silence fell when the first session started, but for 10-year-old Samson, the dictation was "too fast". He gave up.

In his final year of primary school, top student Antoine attended with his father and, despite being a star pupil, he had struggled to fill his page.

"It was impossible! The dictation was for adults," he said.

His father Adrien Blind, 42, was equally relieved when the session wrapped, saying he "was in a state of stress and worry".

But 65-year-old retiree Touria Zerhouni was more upbeat.

"I only made two mistakes! I expected it to be much harder," she said.

The competition went beyond the French classics, with a sport themed round read by rugby player Pierre Rabadan, and another with a contemporary flavour read by writer and journalist Katherine Pancol.

Marc-Antoine Jamet, president of the Champs-Elysees Committee which hosted the dictation, said the event went beyond spelling.

"Dictation helps us to live together. It's unifying," he said.

- ◆ -

注：中文文本为机器翻译并非一一对应，仅供参考

含注释全文：

A massive dictation event takes over the iconic Champs-Élysées in Paris

From: NPR

The iconic Champs-Élysées in Paris was taken over by writers on Sunday in perhaps the world's largest-ever dictation event.

上周日，人们相聚在巴黎标志性的香榭丽舍大道（Champs-Elysees）进行了可能是世界上规模最大的听写活动。

表示“偶像的；图符的；象征性的；非常出名的，受欢迎的”，英文解释为“An iconic image or thing is important or impressive because it seems to be a symbol of something.”举个🌰：He gained iconic status following his death. 他死后成了偶像级人物。

dictation /dɪkˈteɪ.ʃən/ 表示“听写”，英文解释为“a test in which a piece of writing is dictated to students learning a foreign language, to test their ability to hear and write the language correctly”举个🌰：Our French dictation lasted half an hour. 法语听写持续了半个小时。

Instead of car traffic, the famed boulevard was covered by some 1,779 desks organized into rows for the more than 5,000 applicants chosen to participate in the exercise, the AFP reported.

据法新社报道，著名的香榭丽舍大道上，车流不见了踪影，取而代之的是1,779张桌子整齐划一地排列在一起，供超过5,000名入选者在此进行听写比赛。

famed /feɪmd/ 表示“著名的，闻名的”，英文解释为“famous or known to many people”举个🌰：It's a city famed for its ski slopes and casinos. 这座城市以其滑雪场和赌场闻名。

boulevard /ˈbuː.lə.vɑːd/ 表示“大道，大街”，英文解释为“a wide road in a city, usually with trees on each side or along the centre”举个🌰：We strolled along the boulevard. 我们沿着林阴大道散步。

The dictation was run by novelist Rachid Santaki, who began an initiative in 2013 called La Dictée Geante — or the Giant Dictation — to improve literacy across France.

这场听写活动由小说家拉希德·桑塔基（Rachid Santaki）发起，他于2013年创立了一个名为“La Dictée Geante”（大规模听写）的倡议，旨在提高法国各地识字率。

表示“倡议；新措施”，英文解释为“a new plan or process to achieve something or solve a problem”举个🌰：The peace initiative was welcomed by both sides. 和平倡议受到了双方的欢迎。

1）表示“识字；读写能力”，英文解释为“Literacy is the ability to read and write.”举个🌰：Many adults have problems with literacy and numeracy. 很多成年人有读写和计算的困难。

反义词：

📍illiteracy表示“文盲”（Illiteracy is the state of not knowing how to read or write.）

2）表示“（某领域或某方面的）知识，能力”，英文解释为“knowledge of a particular subject, or a particular type of knowledge”举个🌰：Computer literacy is becoming as essential as the ability to drive a car. 会用计算机与会开车一样将成为一种必备的技能。

"It's about bringing people together, having fun around spelling and the French language," Santaki told RFI in 2018. "I often talk about the pleasure of reading, of writing, and that means having fun, we take the drama out of it, turn the experience upside down."

桑塔基在2018年接受RFI采访时表示：“这是为了把人们聚集在一起，在拼写和法语学习中寻找乐趣。我经常谈论阅读的乐趣、写作的乐趣，这意味着我们要寻找快乐、摒弃沉闷，让体验焕然一新。”

On Sunday, applicants ranging in age from 10 to 90 and equipped with a pen and paper attempted over three rounds to transcribe excerpts of text read aloud by three different people: Libraries Without Borders journalist Augustin Trapenard, writer Katherine Pancol and rugby player Pierre Rabadan.

周日，年龄从10岁到90岁不等的参与者们，带着纸和笔，在三场比赛中听写分别由“无国界图书馆”记者奥古斯丁·特拉普纳德（Augustin Trapenard）、作家凯瑟琳·潘科尔（Katherine Pancol）和橄榄球运动员皮埃尔·拉巴丹（Pierre Rabadan）三人大声朗读的文本片段。

equipped /ɪˈkwɪpt/ 表示“有能力的；受过（专业）训练的”，英文解释为“having the skills needed to do something”举个🌰：Many consider him the leader best equipped to be president. 很多人都认为他是最有条件当总统的一位领袖。

2）表示“配有必要的工具（衣物、设备等）的；装备齐全的”，英文解释为“having the necessary tools, clothes, equipment, etc.”举个🌰：Their schools are very poorly equipped. 他们学校的教学设备很简陋。

表示“转录（为另一种书写形式）”，英文解释为“to change a piece of writing or music into another form, for example into a different writing system or into music for different instruments”。

excerpt /ˈeksɜːpt/ 表示“（演讲、书、电影等的）摘录，节录，片断”，英文解释为“a short part taken from a speech, book, film, etc.”举个🌰：An excerpt from her new thriller will appear in this weekend's magazine. 本周末出版的杂志将选登她的最新惊险小说片断。

rugby /ˈrʌɡ.bi/ 表示“橄榄球”，英文解释为“a sport where two teams try to score points by carrying an oval ball across a particular line or kicking it over and between an H-shaped set of posts”

"It was impossible! The dictation was for adults," said primary school student Antoine, according to AFP. "I only made two mistakes!" retiree Touria Zerhouni, 65, told the outlet. "I expected it to be much harder."

据法新社报道，小学生安托万（Antoine）表示：“太难了！这个听写是给大人准备的。”65岁的退休人员图里亚·泽胡尼（Touria Zerhouni）告诉记者：“我只错了两个！我原以为这要难得多。”

outlet/outlets一词经常出现，media outlet / news outlets 都可以表示媒体/新闻机构；outlet本身表示“商店，商行；销售公司；专卖店；直销店”，英文解释为“An outlet is a shop or organization which sells the goods made by a particular manufacturer or at a discount price, often direct from the manufacturer.”如：a fast-food outlet 快餐店 a retail outlet 零售店，举个🌰：At the factory outlet you'll find discounted items at up to 75% off regular prices. 在工厂的直销店里，你会找到比常规价低75%的打折商品。

📍而我们日常生活中常见的“奥特莱斯”商场就是outlets的音译，指的就是品牌直销购物中心。

此外，也可以指“（情绪或精力的）发泄方式，发泄途径，施展的机会”，英文解释为“a way in which emotion or energy can be expressed or made use of”举个🌰：Her work provided no outlet for her energies and talents. 她的工作没有给她提供发泄精力及施展才华的机会。

Guinness World Records, which sent a representative to the event, confirmed that it set the record for the most people taking dictation simultaneously.

吉尼斯世界纪录（Guinness World Records）官方派了代表参加了这次活动，并证实这次活动创造了最多人同时听写的纪录。

simultaneously /ˌsɪm.əlˈteɪ.ni.əs.li/ 表示“同时地”，英文解释为“in a way that is simultaneous (= happening or being done at exactly the same time)”举个🌰：Two children answered the teacher's question simultaneously. 两个孩子同时回答了老师的问题。

Spell it out: Paris' Champs-Elysees hosts mass 'dictation'

From: AFP

Not to be outdone by US-style spelling bee extravaganzas, Paris's most famous street the Champs-Elysees was transformed into an open-air mass "dictation" spellathon Sunday, pitting thousands of France's brainiest bookworms against one another.

上周日，巴黎最著名的街道香榭丽舍大道化身为大型露天“听写”大赛赛场，成千上万智慧满满的法国读书人在此较量，这并不逊于美式拼写大赛。

表示“不甘落后，不服输，不甘示弱”，英文解释为“not wanting someone else to do something better than you”举个🌰：She was wearing an purple dress, so, not to be outdone, I put on my new gold suit. 她穿了件紫色连衣裙，我不甘示弱，穿上了那套新买的金色套装。

📍outdo /ˌaʊtˈduː/ 表示“胜过，超越；优于”，英文解释为“to be, or do something, better than someone else”举个🌰：He always tries to outdo everybody else in the class. 他总是想超过班里的每一个人。

spelling bee /ˈspel.ɪŋ ˌbiː/ 表示“（正确拼出单词数量最多者获胜的）拼字比赛”，英文解释为“a competition in which the winner is the person or group who is able to form correctly the highest number of the words they are asked to form”

extravaganza /ɪkˌstrævəˈɡænzə/ 表示“盛大展示；盛大表演”，英文解释为“An extravaganza is a very elaborate and expensive show or performance.”如：a magnificent fireworks extravaganza 一场壮观的焰火表演，a musical/dance extravaganza 场面宏大华丽的歌曲汇演/舞蹈盛宴。

"Spellathon"是一个由两个单词"spelling"和"marathon"组成的混成词，通常用于描述一个长时间或强度大的拼写比赛。

这个词的构词规则是把"spelling"的"spell"和"marathon"合并。在这种构词方式中，通常将描述活动的词（在这里是"spell"）和"marathon"结合，以表示这个活动是持续时间长或者强度大的。

这种构词方式常用于英语中，以创建新的词语来描述特定的事件或活动。以下是其他的例子：

📍"Hackathon"：这个词由"hacking"和"marathon"组合，用来描述一个团队或个人在一段固定的时间内不间断地进行编程的活动。

📍"Walkathon"：这个词由"walk"和"marathon"组合，通常指的是一种慈善步行活动，参与者会长时间或者长距离地步行以筹集资金。

📍"Readathon"：这个词由"read"和"marathon"组合，通常指的是一个长时间的阅读活动，经常用于学校来激发学生对阅读的热情。

pit sb/sth against sb/sth 表示“使相斗；使竞争；使较量”，英文解释为“to cause one person, group, or thing to fight against or be in competition with another”，也有用pitch sb/sth against sb/sth这个表达，英文解释为“to make someone fight or compete against someone else”，互相较劲/较量/对立/对战，举个🌰：The climbers pitted themselves against the mountain. 攀登者与大山一较高下。It was a bitter war, that pitted neighbour against neighbour. 那是一场可怕的战争，使人和人之间相互为敌。

bookworm /ˈbʊk.wɜːm/ 表示“书虫；书迷”，英文解释为“a person who reads a lot”

Revealing a very French love affairwith words, over 50,000 applied to participate in the event, a world first, in which hopefuls attempt to faithfully and without error transcribe a text read to them.

五万多人申请参加这项世界首创的活动，透露出法国人对文字深深的热爱。活动中，要求参赛者准确无误地听写下所朗读的文本。

表示“揭露；泄露；透露”，英文解释为“to make known or show something that is surprising or that was previously secre”举个🌰：He was jailed for revealing secrets to the Russians. 他因为向俄国人泄密而被监禁。

love affair /ˈlʌv əˌfeər/ 表示“挚爱，热爱”，英文解释为“a strong liking for a particular activity or place”举个🌰：Her love affair with ballet began when she was ten. 她10岁的时候开始爱上了芭蕾。

2）表示“私情，风流韵事”，英文解释为“a romantic and sexual relationship between two people who are not married to each other”

hopeful /ˈhəʊp.fəl/ 作名词，表示“希望成名的人（设法参与电影拍摄，戏剧演出，著名足球俱乐部等等）”，英文解释为“a person who is trying to get a part in a film, play for a famous sports team, etc.”

📍在这个上下文中，"hopefuls"是指希望能在比赛或者活动中取得成功的人。

Over 5,000 applicants aged 10-90 were chosen to participate in three sessions led by novelist Rachid Santaki.

五千多名年龄在10至90岁的申请者被选中，参加了由小说家拉希德·桑塔基（Rachid Santaki）发起的三场听写比赛。

session /ˈseʃ.ən/ 1）表示“（议会等机构的）会议；（法庭的）开庭”，英文解释为“a formal meeting or series of meetings of an organization such as a parliament or a law court”举个🌰：The parliamentary session is due to end on 10 November. 议会会议将于11月10日结束。

2）表示“（从事某项活动的）一段时间（或集会）；一场；一节”，英文解释为“a period of time or meeting arranged for a particular activity”举个🌰：The runner twisted his ankle in a training session. 这位赛跑运动员在训练时扭伤了脚踝。

3）表示“学年；学期；上课时间”，英文解释为“at a college, any of the periods of time that a teaching year or day is divided into, or the teaching year itself”举个🌰：He taught a class during the summer session. 在夏季开学期间他教了一堂课。

With 1,779 desks laid out on Paris' most famous boulevard in each session, organisers had sought to break the world record for a dictation spelling competition.

在每场比赛中，香榭丽舍大道上摆放了1,779张桌子，组织者试图打破听写比赛的世界纪录。

In the first round, an excerpt of La Mule du Pape by renowned French writer Alphonse Daudet was read by journalist Augustin Trapenard, of Libraries Without Borders.

在第一场比赛中，“无国界图书馆”记者奥古斯丁·特拉普纳德（Augustin Trapenard）朗读了法国著名作家阿尔丰斯·都德（Alphonse Daudet）的《La Mule du Pape》片段。

表示“有名的；闻名的；受尊敬的”，英文解释为“famous and respected”举个🌰：She is renowned for her patience. 她的耐心是出了名的。

Silence fell when the first session started, but for 10-year-old Samson, the dictation was "too fast". He gave up.

第一场比赛开始时，现场鸦雀无声。但对于10岁的萨姆森（Samson）来说，听写速度“太快了”。他放弃了。

In his final year of primary school, top student Antoine attended with his father and, despite being a star pupil, he had struggled to fill his page.

正处于小学最后一年的尖子生安托万（Antoine）和他的父亲一起参加，尽管是学霸，但他仍然很难都听写出来。

"It was impossible! The dictation was for adults," he said.

他说：“这太难了！这个听写是给大人准备的。”

His father Adrien Blind, 42, was equally relieved when the session wrapped, saying he "was in a state of stress and worry".

他的父亲阿德里安·布林德（Adrien Blind）今年42岁，比赛结束时同样松了一口气，表示自己“处于紧张和担忧的状态”。

字面意思表示“用…包裹；用…覆盖”，英文解释为“to cover someone with a piece of material in order to protect them”举个🌰：She wrapped the baby in a blanket. 她用一条毯子把婴儿包起来。

📍在这个上下文中，wrap表示“一项工作或活动已经结束或完成”。通常会用wrap sth up表示“圆满完成”，英文解释为“to complete something successfully”举个🌰：That just about wraps it up for today. 这就差不多给今天画了个圆满的句号。

But 65-year-old retiree Touria Zerhouni was more upbeat.

但65岁的退休人员图里亚·泽胡尼（Touria Zerhouni）则比较乐观。

表示“乐观的；快乐的；积极向上的”，英文解释为“positive and enthusiastic; making you feel that the future will be good”举个🌰：The tone of the speech was upbeat. 这次讲话的语气颇为乐观。

🎬电影《新娘靠边闪》（27 Dresses）中的台词提到：Our advertisers want fun, upbeat, colorful human-interest stories... 广告商要生动有趣的故事。

"I only made two mistakes! I expected it to be much harder," she said.

她说：“我只错了两个！我原以为这要难得多。”

The competition went beyond the French classics, with a sport themed round read by rugby player Pierre Rabadan, and another with a contemporary flavour read by writer and journalist Katherine Pancol.

比赛内容不仅限于法国经典著作，还有一场比赛以体育为主题，由橄榄球运动员皮埃尔·拉巴丹（Pierre Rabadan）朗读，另一场则具有当代风味，由作家兼记者凯瑟琳·潘科尔（Katherine Pancol）朗读。

Marc-Antoine Jamet, president of the Champs-Elysees Committee which hosted the dictation, said the event went beyond spelling.

香榭丽舍大道委员会主席马克-安托万·贾梅特（Marc-Antoine Jamet）表示，这项活动的意义超越了拼写。

"Dictation helps us to live together. It's unifying," he said.

他说：“听写有助于我们生活在一起。它具有凝聚力。”

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