Joining in an office outing
Colleagues invite Yuanfang Chen and Lilly to their office outing.
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Wu:
嘿，Leon，这个星期五晚上组织大家一起出去活动吧？
Leon:
好啊。我们这个月还没在一起玩过呢。
Wu:
就是。大家也可以借此机会多了解了解莉莉和小陈。
Leon:
好主意。你说我们做什么比较好？去茶餐厅？唱卡拉OK？打桌球？
Wu:
唱卡拉OK吧。大家可以唱歌，也可以聊天，吃东西。
Leon:
好，我们问问莉莉和小陈他们喜不喜欢唱歌。
Leon:
Hi, 莉莉，工作忙吗？
Lilly:
还好，不是很忙。我需要熟悉一下工作，有很多东西要学。
Leon:
慢慢来。有什么问题都可以问我。
Lilly:
好的，谢谢！
Leon:
莉莉，你喜不喜欢唱卡拉OK?
Lilly:
卡拉OK？嗯，我喜欢。虽然我不太会唱，但是我很喜欢听别人唱。
Wu:
你呢，小陈？
Chen:
挺喜欢的，我以前常常和我的朋友们一起去唱卡拉OK。
Leon:
太好了！我们这个星期五晚上一起去唱卡拉OK，怎么样？
Chen:
让我查一下我的记事本。哦，还好，没事儿。
Wu:
你呢，莉莉？你有空吗？
Lilly:
我有空，其他同事都去吗？
Leon:
我一会儿去问问大家。小林出差还没回来，我希望其他的人都能去。
Lilly:
公司附近有唱卡拉OK的地方吗？
Wu:
有，附近就有，那里还有自助餐。唱歌加自助餐一共是100元一个人左右。
Lilly:
好极了。
Chen:
是啊，太好了。我很期待！
Wu:
Hey, Leon, shall we organise an outing for this Friday evening?
Leon:
Sure. We haven't gone out together (lit. play together) this month yet.
Wu:
Exactly. People can also use this chance to get to know Lilly and Xiao Chen better.
Leon:
Good idea. What do you think would be the best thing to do? Go to a tea house? Sing Karaoke? Play snooker?
Wu:
Let's sing Karaoke. People can sing, but they can also chat and eat.
Leon:
OK, let's ask if Lilly and Xiao Chen like singing or not.
Leon:
Hi, Lilly, are you busy?
Lilly:
I'm OK, not too busy. I need to get familiar with the work and have many things to learn.
Leon:
Take your time. You can ask me if you have any questions.
Lilly:
OK, thanks!
Leon:
Lilly, do you like Karaoke?
Lilly:
Karaoke? Yes, I like it. Although I am not very good at singing, I enjoy listening to other people.
Wu:
What about you, Xiao Chen?
Chen:
I quite like it, I used to go out a lot with my friends to Karaoke.
Leon:
Great! Shall we go to Karaoke together this Friday evening?
Chen:
Let me check my diary. Oh, it's OK, all free.
Wu:
What about you, Lilly? Do you have time?
Lilly:
I have time, will other colleagues go?
Leon:
I'll go round and ask everyone in a second. Xiao Lin is still on a business trip and has not come back yet, I hope everyone else will be able to go.
Lilly:
Is there a Karaoke place near the office (lit. company)?
Wu:
Yes, quite nearby, there is a buffet menu. It's about 100 yuan per person, including singing and eating as much as you want.
Lilly:
Great.
Chen:
Yes, great. I really look forward to it!
These are notes about potentially difficult key expressions. They are listed in the order in which they appear in the dialogue.
1. 吧, 啊 and 呢
吧, 啊 and 呢 are all modal particles.
吧 is put at the end of a suggestion or a proposal to soften the tone, when expecting a reply.
e.g. 这个星期五晚上组织大家一起出去活动吧？ Shall we organise an outing for this Friday evening?
呢, when put at the end of a statement, is used to emphasize the stated fact.
e.g. 我们这个月还没在一起玩过呢。 We haven't gone out together this month yet.
啊 is used for exclamation.
e.g. 好啊！ Sure!
2. 过
我们这个月还没在一起玩过呢。We haven't gone out together this month yet.
过 is a grammar particle. It is put after a verb to indicate the past experience. To negate, add 没 before the verb, as illustrated below.
e.g. 我去过北京，没去过上海。 I have been to Beijing, (but I) have not been to Shanghai.
3. 借此机会
大家也可以借此机会多了解了解莉莉和小陈。 People can also use this chance to get to know Lilly and Xiao Chen better.
借此机会 literally means 'by means of this opportunity'. It is used as a fixed expression. 借 means 'to borrow', 此 is the ancient Chinese word for 'this 这', and 机会 means 'opportunity'.
4. 了解了解
大家也可以借此机会多了解了解莉莉和小陈。People can also use this chance to get to know Lilly and Xiao Chen better.
了解 to know about someone is repeated here to indicate the colloquial register. One-syllable verbs, together with some two-syllable verbs, tend to be repeated to indicate the colloquial register, and also to imply a short duration. e.g. 我一会儿去问问大家。 I'll go around and ask everyone in a second.
Apart from repeating the verb, 一下 'briefly' can be added after the verb, for the same purpose.
e.g. 让我查一下我的记事本。 Let me check my diary.
5. 你说
你说我们做什么比较好？ What do you think would be the best thing to do? (lit. You say what would be good to do?)
你说 means 'you say' literally. It is put at the beginning of a sentence to invite other people's suggestions or ideas.
e.g. 你说我们该怎么办？ What do you think we should do? (lit. You say what should we do?)
你看 (lit. you look) is sometimes used instead of 你说.
e.g. 你看我们这么做行不行？ Do you think it's OK that we do it like this? (lit. You look is it OK that we do it like this?)
6. 可以
大家可以唱歌，也可以聊天，吃东西。People can sing, but they can also chat and eat.
可以 'can' is used here to indicate suggestion.
7. 慢慢来
慢慢来 means 'take your time to do something'. 慢慢 slowly can also be used with other more specific verbs, e.g. 慢慢吃 take your time to eat, 慢慢想 take your time to think, etc.
8. 什么……都
有什么问题都可以问我。You can ask me if you have any questions.
什么……都 'whatever/any… all' is a structure used to indicate inclusiveness. e.g.
什么时间都可以。Any time is fine.
我什么人都不想见。I don't want to see anyone.
9. 虽然……, 但是
虽然我不太会唱，但是我很喜欢听别人唱。 Although I am not very good at singing, (but) I enjoy listening to other people.
Connectors, such as 虽然……,但是 'although, but' often appear in pairs in Chinese.
10. 能
我希望其他的人都能去。 I hope everyone else will be able to go.
能 here means 'to be able to', 'to manage to'.
True or False
Listen to the audios and decide whether the statements are true or false according to the dialogue 'Joining in an office outing'. You can click on 帮助 to access the Chinese transcript and translation. Check your answers.