[ti:'Housekeeping' and 'Clean House' Mean More Than Cleaning] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:07.36]And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English. [00:14.48]Spring is a time of the year when many people take time to clean. [00:27.44]They straighten up messy areas of their homes. They tidy up! [00:34.24]Spring cleaning is a popular activity for many people. [00:39.40]It is a chance to get rid of unnecessary items [00:43.72]and get their homes clean and organized. [00:49.08]Spring cleaning usually involves big projects, [00:53.12]such as taking down and washing curtains, [00:57.56]shaking out rugs and cleaning carpets, [01:01.84]perhaps clearing out and cleaning up cabinets and closets. [01:08.76]Spring cleaning is a thorough cleaning inside and out. [01:14.80]So, on today's program we are going to clean house, too! [01:20.08]Daily cleaning tasks like doing the laundry or dishes [01:24.52]are not considered spring cleaning. [01:28.08]That is often called housekeeping or cleaning house. [01:33.80]We use both of these terms in idiomatic ways. [01:39.72]First, let's talk about cleaning house. [01:43.08]When an organization, business or other group clean house, [01:49.00]it gets rid of people or policies that make trouble or that do not work. [01:56.20]Here's an example. [01:59.00]My friend has a company that is suffering from troublemaking [02:02.52]and non-productive employees. [02:05.88]If the owner wants the company to succeed, [02:08.80]she may need to clean house and fire anyone not contributing. [02:13.12]Cleaning house can also mean to wipe out corruption or inefficiency. [02:21.28]When we use it this way, [02:23.36]we are often talking about a political party or a governmental office. [02:30.84]Here's an example for that situation: [02:34.24]The city official in charge of education reform [02:38.08]made cleaning house on corruption and waste [02:41.64]the first item on his to-do list. [02:44.68]Sometimes we put words in between "clean" and "house" [02:49.68]to make the expression more specific, as in this example: [02:55.72]To help their company succeed, [02:57.92]the business partners needed to clean their financial house. [03:02.28]And that meant hiring a new financial manager – [03:06.00]one that wouldn't steal from them. [03:08.72]If you research the expression online, [03:12.16]you may find another meaning for "cleaning house" – [03:15.72]to punish or to give a beating. [03:20.36]For example, the bully threatened to clean house [03:24.24]on anyone who disagreed with him. [03:28.08]But this usage is not as common as getting rid of ineffectual, [03:34.00]troublesome or wasteful elements in a group. [03:39.48]Now let's talk about housekeeping. [03:43.20]Housekeeping defines the act of managing a household. [03:48.24]Cleaning, organizing, paying the bills, [03:52.20]and keeping food stocked can all be called housekeeping. [03:58.16]Sometimes we call this putting our house in order. [04:02.64]When we put our house in order we make sure it is running smoothly. [04:09.28]It can also mean to organize your finances and other responsibilities, [04:15.84]especially when preparing for a life-changing event. [04:21.64]Used as a noun, housekeeping is also the department at a hotel [04:26.80]in charge of keeping your room clean and stocked [04:31.28]with necessary items like towels and soap. [04:37.24]Housekeeping also describes any repeated tasks [04:41.16]that keep a business or organization running smoothly. [04:46.56]So, housekeeping issues for a business [04:49.48]could be managing and scheduling resources. [04:54.48]It could also be tasks like keeping your computer up and running [04:59.52]or updating staff on events or policy changes. [05:06.52]So, think of it this way. Housekeeping issues are the day-to-day, [05:11.96]ongoing tasks and responsibilities [05:15.20]that keep a business, home, or organization running smoothly. [05:20.76]And cleaning house is to get rid of anything that is not working [05:26.88]or is creating a mess – either literally or figuratively. [05:34.56]As for usage, both of these expressions [05:37.48]can be used in formal and informal situations. [05:42.08]That's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. [05:47.60]Until next time ... I'm Anna Matteo! 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM