ラジオ英会話(20130321)

H: It says here that Bill Steel bought the old Rajiay Hotel.

W: Really? That place is really run-down.
H: Apparently, it’s going to be refurbished. It’s reopen soon.
W: They’re going to have to move mountains to do that.
H: Here’s a picture of the new lobby. Take a look.
W: Well, what do you know! They’ve made headway!

7a-24(20130407)-Avoiding blaming someone directly:受動態を使うのだ！

The sweater was folded up with my clothes.
The batteries weren’t included.
I think wrong cable’s been put in by mistake.
I think the instruction book’s been left out by accident.

店で問題を指摘する時には、客側はI guessやI imagineといったフレーズを使うことで問題点の説明を和らげることができます。
I imagine it was dropped at the factory.
I imagine the box was mislabeled.
I guess the sweater was just put in by mistake.
I guess the instruction book was left out of the box.

A: Can I help you?
B: Yes, I bought this PC here last Friday, but the wrong cable was put in with it. I didn’t realize until I got home.
A: I’m terribly sorry. Which cable did you need?
B: I need a four-meter cable. This one’s only two meters.
A: I see. If you could show me the receipt, I’ll get you the right cable.
* I bought this PC here last Friday.

*I’ll get you Oのパターンは「人に物を手に入れて（買って）やる」辞書的にはbuyよりも口語的とのこと。

A: Excuse me. I bought this coffee table here yesterday, but the wrong legs have been put in.
B: I’m terribly sorry. Can I have a look?
A: Sure. You can see here that they don’t match the screw holes at all.
B: You’re right. Just a moment, and I’ll bring you the right ones.


A: Excuse me. I bought this suitcase here last week, but I have a problem with it.
B: What’s wrong?
A: Well, the instruction booklet hasn’t been included, so I can’t use the combination look.
B: I’m very sorry about that. I think we have some booklets in the back. I’ll go get you one and show you how to do it.