世足賽在昨日完美落幕,阿根廷睽違36年再次獲得冠軍,令不少球迷興奮不已。但除了各國球隊之間精彩的表現受到討論,場外的黃牛票同樣引發熱議,票價屢創新高。然而不只世足,先前Blackpink與Super Junior等韓團來台開唱,更是黃牛猖獗。本次我們來學黃牛票與相關詞彙的英文,也是TOEIC測驗常出現的單字喔!
scalp黃牛票
黃牛的英文源自於scalp「頭皮」,來自於印地安人戰爭之後會把敵人的頭皮剝下作為戰利品的行為。「黃牛」因為藉由獲取門票多賺一手,因此也常稱作ticket scalper。
The barber carefully shaved the customer’s scalp.
(理髮師小心翼翼地為顧客剃頭。)
The ticket scalper sold tickets for a steep markup outside the stadium.
(那個黃牛販在體育場外以高價出售門票。)
販賣黃牛票的行為,就是把scalp作為動詞加上ing,成為動名詞scalping。
The police were trying to crack down on ticket scalping outside the stadium.
(警方嘗試在體育館外打擊賣黃牛票的行為。)
transferable可移轉的
黃牛票會出現,就是因為門票可以被transferable「移轉」。在一般售票的情況下,有分成可移轉與non-transferable「不可移轉」的票。不可移轉的門票上通常會綁定身份證字號或姓名作為認證,雖然售票過程較為麻煩,但卻可以大幅降低黃牛票發生的機會。
His communication skills are transferable to almost any job.
(他的溝通技巧幾乎適用於任何工作。)
The knowledge acquired in this course is transferable to other classes.
(在這堂課程中所習得的知識可以移轉到其他課程上。)
transaction交易
買賣票務跟交易有關係,因此英文transaction與transferable相同,字根為trans-「移轉」。
I completed the transaction online with my credit card.
(我用信用卡在線完成了交易。)
The transaction was successfully processed and the funds were transferred to my bank account.
(交易成功完成,資金已移轉至我的銀行帳戶了。)
reselling重售
黃牛的行為是票務重售,重售二手貨物本身不違法,黃牛會違法的原因是因為售票商明令禁止,所以才不能進行。
She made a large profit by reselling her old clothes online.
(她透過在線上販售舊衣獲利頗豐。)
The company specializes in reselling used electronics.
(該公司專精於重售二手電子產品。)
controversial具有爭議性的
黃牛哄抬原先售票價格,讓真正想去看表演觀眾無法進場,因此具有爭議性(controversial)。字根「contro-」是「相反的」意思,拉丁字根「verse」的原文則是「轉動」,代表事情往相反的地方轉,解釋為「有爭議性」。
The decision to build a new highway through the protected forest was highly controversial.
(蓋一條新的高速公路穿過保護林地的決定引起了極大的爭議。)
The use of genetically modified crops is a controversial topic.
(使用基因改造穀物是個有爭議性的話題。)
priority access優先入場權
除了黃牛票票價昂貴,有些門票也會因為可以取得(access)特權(privilege/perk)而價格不斐。例如priority access「優先入場」,對於沒有劃位的音樂會或演講而言,可以優先進場就更有機會占到更好的位置。
As a VIP, I was granted priority access to the event.
(作為VIP,我得到了該活動優先入場的機會。)
Our company is offering priority access to members of its loyalty program.
(我們公司對積點活動中的會員提供優先入場。)
【TOEIC模擬試題】
1. The ______ waited outside the concert venue, hoping to find someone willing to pay a premium price for the tickets he had in his hand.
(A) ticket buyer
(B) ticket counterfeiter
(C) ticket scalper
(D) ticket loser
2. After much negotiation, the concertgoer and the scalper finally agreed on a price for the tickets and completed the ________.
(A) competition
(B) artwork
(C) puzzle
(D) transaction
3. The practice of scalping tickets to popular events is often ________, as it can make it difficult for regular fans to obtain tickets at face value.
(A) legal
(B) acceptable
(C) controversial
(D) praised
解析:
1. 正解為(C)。題意為「黃牛等在音樂會場外,希望找到願意支付高價買他手上票的人。」(A)買家,(B)偽造者,(D)輸家或丟掉票的人。ticket scalper「黃牛」符合句意,故(C)為正解。
2. 正解為(D) 。題意為「在好一段談判後,要去音樂會的人與黃牛終於在票價上達成共識並完成交易。」(A) 競賽,(B)藝術品,(C)拼圖或謎題。transaction「交易」符合句意,故(D)為正解。
3. 正解為(C)。題意為「在火紅活動中賣黃牛票的行為通常是具有爭議性的,因為這讓平常就有在關注的粉絲很難用票面價值買到票。」(A)合法,(B)可接受(D) 受到讚揚的。controversial「有爭議性的」符合句意,故(C)為正解。
文/李海碩
延伸閱讀》推特、臉書大裁員!認識職場必學英文