To be on the ball 機靈高效的

The script of this programme 本節目臺詞

Keep your eye on the ball when you play table tennis

Rob: Hello and welcome to Authentic Real English. I'm Rob and joining me today is Liz.

Li: Hi… everyone – err, Rob, my name is Li, not Liz.

Rob: Oh, I'm so sorry Li, I'm not really on the ball this morning.

Li: Nice phrase though. Why don't you go for a coffee and then you will be on the ball for today's Authentic Real English?

Rob: OK.

(A little later)

Rob: Right, oh, lovely. That's better. I've had a nice cup of coffee and I'm ready to explain the meaning of today's Authentic Real English. Here you go. When you are on the ball it means you're alert and quick to react to things.

Li: 是的。To be on the ball 意思是機警，機靈，往往形容一個人對事物反應迅速。Ball 的單獨意思是球。這個短語是不是從體育運動而來？It comes from sports, doesn't it?

Rob: Yes it does. And there is another phrase: 'to keep your eye on the ball' which has a very similar meaning.

Li: I guess we can use it for any situation which is changing quickly so that you need to be focused and sharp. 我們可以用這個短語來表示各種迅速變化的情況，看看你是否精神集中和思維敏捷。

Rob: Indeed. Let's hear some examples:

Examples

• The interviewer raised tough questions but Ma Yun was on the ball.
• Financial management is not a job that everyone can do. You have to keep your eye on the ball at all times.

Li: And if you want to learn English well you can stay on the ball with bbcukchina.com.

大家要想學好英語，不掉隊，請跟蹤我們每天都更新的教學網。

Rob: Also www.bbcukchina.com/learningenglish! Best of luck!

Li: Bye bye.