和美國人聊天必須注意的小細節

Small Tips You Need to Know When Talking with Americans

和美國人聊天必須注意的小細節

Standard American English Tips

標準英語小貼士

Speaking English is not only about using proper grammar. To use English effectively, you need to understand the culture in which it is spoken. Here are a number of important tips to remember when speaking English in the United States.

說英語不僅僅要語法正確。想要有效地使用英語，你需要了解語言使用國的文化。如果你在美國說英語，那么下面這些注意事項是你應該了解的。

General Points to Remember

需要記住的概念

Most Americans only speak English: While it is true that more and more Americans speak Spanish, most Americans only speak English.

Americans have difficulty understanding foreign accents: Many Americans are not used to foreign accents. This requires patience from both of you!

大部分美國人只說英語：現在越來越多的美國人能說西班牙語是事實，但是大部分的美國人只說英語。

美國人在理解外國口音上有困難：很多美國人不習慣外國口音。這就需要你們交談雙方都有耐心才行。

Conversation Tips

交談溝通秘籍

Speak about location: Americans love to talk about location. When speaking to a stranger, ask them where they are from and then make a connection with that place. For example, “Oh, I have a friend who studied in Los Angeles. He says its a beautiful place to live.” Most Americans will then willingly talk about their experiences living or visiting that particular city or area.

Talk about work: Americans commonly ask “What do you do?”. Its not considered impolite (as in some countries) and is a popular topic of discussion between strangers.

Talk about sports: Americans love sports! However, they love American sports. When speaking about football, most Americans understand “American Football”, not soccer.

談論地點：美國人喜歡談論地點。和陌生人說話的時候，可以問問他們從哪里來然后找到自己跟那個地方的聯系。比如可以說：“啊，我有個朋友在洛杉磯學習，他說那地方很漂亮。”這時大部分美國人就會很愿意談起他們居住或者到過那個特殊的城市或地區的經歷。

談論工作：美國人通常會問“你是做什么工作的？”在某些國家會被認為這是不禮貌的，但美國不是的，這只是陌生人之間聊天的一個流行話題。

談論運動：美國人超愛運動！然而，他們喜歡美國的運動。如果說到足球，大部分美國人會理解成“美式足球”（橄欖球）而不是足球。

Addressing People

對人的稱呼

Use last names with people you do not know: Address people using their title (Mr, Ms, Dr, etc.) and their last names.

Always use “Ms” when addressing women: It is important to use “Ms” when addressing a woman. Only use “Mrs” when the woman has asked you to do so.

Many Americans prefer first names: Americans often prefer using first names, even when dealing with people in very different positions. Americans will generally say, “Call me Tom.” and then expect you to remain on a first name basis.

Americans prefer informal: In general, Americans prefer informal greetings and using first names or nicknames when speaking with colleagues and acquaintances.

對不認識的人要稱呼他們的姓：用他們的頭銜（先生、女士、博士等）加上他們的姓來稱呼人。

稱呼女性的時候通常用“女士”：稱呼女性的時候用“女士”是很重要的。如果對方要求你稱呼“夫人”那再照辦好了。

很多人喜歡被叫名字：美國人通常喜歡用他們的名字，甚至是和身份非常不同的人打交道時。美國人通常會說，“叫我湯姆”，然后真的希望你用他們的名字來稱呼他們。

美國人不拘小節：通常情況下，美國人喜歡非正式的問候，提到他們的同事或熟人的時候他們喜歡使用名字或昵稱。