BBC地道英語口語:Pay As You Go 電話充值
Helen: Hello, this is Real English from BBC Learning English, I’m Helen.
Zoë: 還有我，劉佳。
Helen: In Real English, we look at words and phrases that you might not find in your dictionary.
Zoë: 那Helen, 我們今天要學的新詞是什麼呢？
Helen: Today’s phrase is ‘pay-as-you-go’. Pay-As-You-Go.
Zoë: Pay as you go. 這個短語對於一些在英國留學過的人一定不陌生。還是讓我們來先聽聽它的英文解釋吧.
Helen: Well, if you have a mobile phone you can pay for your calls on a monthly contract or you can pay as you go – paying for calls as you make them
Zoë: 你猜對了嗎？和我們的中國聯通一樣，英國的手機也有那種邊打電話邊充值，沒有月租的服務，就叫pay as you go, 說的就是先買充值卡，再打電話。
Helen: That’s right. The meaning is in the phrase: Pay-As-You-Go.
Insert
A: Is that a new mobile phone?
B: Yes, I got it last week.
A: Did you change your contract?
B: No, it’s a pay-as-you-go phone.
Zoë: 爲什麼在英國，有些人是和電話公司籤的合同，有些人用的是手機充值卡呢？
Helen: Good question, Zoë. In the UK a contract usually lasts for 12 months and you have to pay every month for a year no matter if you don’t use the phone.
Zoë: 哦，和電話公司籤合同，至少是一年，這就意味着，你要一直被束縛在和這個公司的合同上。
Helen: Yes, but with pay-as-you-go you only pay for the calls you make. So for some people it’s more flexible and economical.
Zoë: 如果你是用充值卡來打電話，就不會被任何公司的合同束縛，所以這是個既經濟又自由的辦法。
Helen: That’s what a lot of people think. Well, that’s all we have time for today.
Zoë: Bye.
Helen: See you next time.
