美国人在五月的最后一个星期一庆祝阵亡将士纪念日。这个联邦假日是为了纪念在战争中牺牲的美军将士。
Schools and government offices close. Most people in the U.S. have this day off from work. People celebrate Memorial Day with parades, outdoor musical events as well as picnics and parties.
学校和政府部门放假，很多美国人在这天休假。人们以游行、户外音乐活动以及野餐和聚会来庆祝阵亡将士纪念日。
Most Americans consider it the start of summer, although the season really begins in June. With so many people off work, Memorial Day has also become a popular shopping day.
大多数美国人认为这天是夏天的开始，尽管这个季节实际上是从6月开始的。因为有这么多人不上班，阵亡将士纪念日也成了热门的购物日。
However, for many people Memorial Day is a serious, even sad, holiday. Those who have lost family members to war visit burial sites to decorate their graves. They place flowers, wreaths and U.S. flags on grave markers.
然而，对于大多数来说，阵亡将士纪念日是一个严肃甚至悲伤的假日。那些因为战争失去家人的人们去墓地给他们扫墓，他们把鲜花、花圈和美国国旗放到墓碑上。
Memorial Day comes from a tradition that began after the U.S. Civil War called Decoration Day.
阵亡将士纪念日来自于美国内战之后一项被称之为先烈纪念日的传统。
The Civil War was a very dark time in U.S. history. Historians have long thought that about 620,000 soldiers died in the fighting. However, new research suggests that the dead numbered closer to 750,000.
内战是美国历史上的一段非常黑暗的时期。历史学家一直认为大约有62万士兵在这场战争中死亡。然而，新的研究表明死亡人数接近75万人。
In 1868, about 5,000 people gathered at Arlington National Cemetery on the edge of Washington, D.C. They decorated the more than 10,000 graves of Union and Confederate soldiers. They called it Decoration Day.
1868年，大约有5千人聚集在华盛顿郊区的阿林顿国家公墓，他们给一万多名内战牺牲的南北双方士兵扫了墓。他们称其为先烈纪念日。
The tradition spread to other areas of the country. In 1873, New York State called it Memorial Day and was the first to make it a legal holiday. Other states followed. But not all. Some southern states had (and still have) separate celebrations that honor only dead Confederate soldiers.
这项传统传播到了美国其它地区。1873年，纽约州称之为阵亡将士纪念日，并第一个将其作为法定节假日，其他州紧随其后，但是并非所有州都如此。一些南方州拥有（到现在还有）独立的庆祝活动来单独纪念牺牲的南军士兵。
After World War I ended in 1918, Memorial Day became a day to honor all American soldiers killed in war. In 1971, Congress passed a law making it an official federal holiday.
1918年一战结束之后，阵亡将士纪念日成为纪念所有在战争中牺牲的美军士兵的日子。1971年，国会通过一项法令，使其成为了正式的联邦节假日。
Along with Memorial Day, the Civil War is also the origin of a common and very useful word: deadline.
除了阵亡将士纪念日之外，美国内战也是一个常见和实用的单词的起源，这个单词就是deadline（截止日期）。
Now, I have used this word probably thousands and thousands of times. But I honestly never thought about why "dead" and "line" came together to mean a time limit. It might sound very strange to an English learner -- dead + line = time limit.
现在，我可能已经把这个词用过了上千遍。但是老实说，我从未想过为什么dead和line连在一起，就意味着一种时限。dead加上line就等于时间限制，这可能也会让英语学习者听上去很奇怪。
Deadline comes from Civil War prisons. A "do-not-cross" line circled these prison. Guards were told to shoot and kill any prisoner who might "touch, fall upon, pass over, under or across the said 'dead line.' "
Deadline这个单词出自于美国内战中的监狱,一条禁止跨越（do-not-cross）的线把监狱围了起来。警卫被告知要射杀任何触碰、落在、越过、穿过或跨越这些所谓警戒线的囚犯。
The Online Etymology Dictionary says, this quote comes from the trial of a man name Henry Wirz, a commander of a Confederate prison called Fort Sumter.
在线词源词典称，这条引述来自于对苏姆特堡监狱的监狱长亨利·维尔兹（Henry Wirz）的审判。
Wirz, a Swiss-born Confederate soldier, was tried and executed on October 31, 1865. He was found guilty of treating Union prisoners inhumanely and for killing some unlawfully. But his trial was very controversial.
维尔兹是一名出生在瑞士的南军士兵，他于1865年10月31日被审判并处决。他被判犯有不人道对待北军士兵和非法杀害一些北军士兵的罪名。但是他的审判非常有争议。
According to a Report of the Secretary of War, dated October 31, 1865, Wirz established a ‘dead line' around the prison. He instructed prison guards "to fire upon and kill any of the prisoners" who might touch, fall upon or pass over the dead line.
根据作战部长在1865年10月31日的一份报告，维尔兹在监狱周围建立了一条警戒线。他指示监狱警卫向任何触碰、落在或越过这条警戒线的囚犯开枪并击毙他们。
By 1920, the word "deadline" worked its way into the American news media industry. It means the time by which a writer must complete a story for publication.
到了1920年，deadline这个单词进入了美国新闻媒体行业。它的意思是作家必须完成作品发表的时间。
Now, we use the word "deadline" everywhere. People shopping for a home might have a deadline for offering a bid on a house. Students have deadlines on their homework and reports. There are deadlines for paying taxes, applying for college and accepting membership to a club. Many things have deadlines.
现在，我们到处都在使用deadline这个单词。买房者可能有一个出价的截止期限。学生可能有完成作业和报告的截止期限。还有纳税、申请大学和接受俱乐部会员资格的截止期限。很多事情都有截止期限。
When you are under a deadline you can feel pressure. This is especially true if it's a tight deadline. A tight deadline means there is not much time to get something done.
当你面临截止期限时，你就会感受到压力，尤其是当截止期限紧迫（tight deadline）的时候。截止期限紧迫是指完成任务的时间不多了。
Some people do not like tight deadlines. Those people might say they do not work well under deadlines.
有些人不喜欢截止期限紧迫。这些人可能会说，他们在规定时限内的工作表现不好。
If you say you have a deadline hanging over your head, you are worrying about meeting your responsibility on time. Nobody likes anything hanging over their head!
如果你说你头上悬着时限，你是在担心自己能否按时完成任务。没有人喜欢自己头上悬着什么东西。
Some people work very well under deadlines. They meet their deadlines with no problem. If you are this kind of person, you can call yourself deadline driven. This means that you like deadlines and are successful at meeting them. Employers like to see this on a resume.
有人在规定时限内的工作表现很好。他们满足时限毫无问题。如果你是这种人，你可以称自己是时间导向者，意思是你喜欢时限并且成功地满足了时限。雇主们喜欢在简历上看到这个。
Now, let's hear deadline used in a short dialogue.
现在，让我们听一段简短对话。
Hey, do you want to grab some lunch with me?
嘿，咱俩吃午饭去啊？
I would love to. But I can't. I'm on deadline for a big story. So, I'll eat something quick at my desk.
我想去，但是去不了啊。我有条大新闻要截稿了。所以我准备在办公室对付一口得了。
When is your deadline?
你什么时候截稿啊？
My editor needs my story by 2 pm.
编辑让我下午2点前交稿。
That's a pretty tight deadline. Do you think you'll finish?
这个截稿时间太紧张了。你觉得你能完成吗？
I have to! I've never missed a deadline in my five years working here.
我必须完成啊。我在这工作这五年还从没错过截稿时间。
Wow, you're really deadline-driven. I hate to say it, but I've missed a couple of my deadlines this month.
哇，你是真正的时间导向者。我简直说不出口，这个月我已经错过几次截稿时间了。
I just don't like a deadline hanging over my head. I just want to get it done or it's all I think about.
我只是不喜欢要去担心截稿时间。我只想把它做完，我想的都是这个。
Well, I won't keep you from your deadline! Call me when you're done. I'll buy you a cup of coffee.
好吧，我不会让你错过截稿时间的。做完了给我打电话，我给你买杯咖啡。
Deal.
好的。
My deadline for Words and Their Stories is every Thursday. When I meet my deadline, I can relax and enjoy my Friday.
我每周词汇掌故的截稿时间是周四。当我赶上截稿时，我周五就能放松享受。
And I like meeting my deadlines so they aren't hanging over my head. I'm Jonathan Evans ...
我喜欢在截稿时间前做完，这样就不用操心了。我是乔纳森·埃文斯。
... and I'm Anna Matteo.
我是安娜·马特奥。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利，未经授权请勿转载，违者必究！)