白领的一天:咖啡对西方人究竟有多重要

我们先来看一下一位外国朋友对咖啡的看法。

I think it is the thing that keeps the western world functioning more than oil does. Really, I think so many people need their cup of coffee in the morning that if coffee suddenly was not available I think the western world would come to a grinding halt in 2 weeks! And a lot of people don't realize how addicted to coffee they really are... it is "only a drink".
But so many people get really tense until they get that coffee. I used to drink up to 6 or 7 cups a day but now I usually only have 1 or 2.

讲解

这里我们重点讲解一下:a grinding halt这个片语的用法

a grinding halt: a situation in which something stops operating completely

come to a grinding halt 就是突然，紧急停止的意思。

这里可以看出，这位老外虽然有点夸张，但却用这个come to a grinding halt 表达出了咖啡对西方人的重要性。

Addicted: unable to stop taking harmful drugs, or using or doing sth as a habit; spending all your free time

doing sth because you are so interested in it上瘾，成瘾，有瘾;入迷

Tense: feeling worried, uncomfortable, and unable to relax 神经紧张的，担心的，不能松弛的；