buy time爭取時間

把「預言會自我實現」說得乾脆，是整段的題眼。

If you believe X and put weight in it, it will become reality.

勸人別把別人的判斷當真時用；正式報告裡這麼說會顯得太隨性。

If you buy into it, it becomes true. ／ Feed a fear and it grows into fact.

中性

them 和 and 連讀，重音落在 weight，句尾放平。

If you believe the rumor and repeat it, it will become the story. 你要是信了那傳言還到處說，它就會變成大家認定的故事。

一句大白話把安慰變成行動命令，是她本人的口氣。

have got to roll one's sleeves up

鼓勵別人動手做事時用；對長輩或正式場合少用這種命令口氣。

Time to roll up your sleeves. ／ We just have to get our hands dirty.

口語

have got to 連成 gotta，sleeves up 尾音上揚。

We have got to roll our sleeves up if we want this done. 想把這活幹完，我們就得擼起袖子動手。

用最小的詞卸下最重的診斷，親密又倔強。

They're only + noun.

想給壞訊息降調、安慰身邊人時用；別在當事人剛得知噩耗時搶著說。

It's just talk. ／ Words are only words.

口語

only words 連讀，honey 輕輕落下，句尾下沉。

Don't panic, they are only words on a form. 別慌，那不過是表格上的幾句話。

用 picture 把病情說成一張圖，再用 not at all 收死希望，醫生的剋制反而更讓人心沉。

It's not a good picture at all.

轉述壞訊息、形容局面糟糕時用，語氣要平；安慰人時別用，會把人按下去。

The picture is not good. ／ This does not look good at all.

中性

It's not a good 連讀輕帶，picture 重讀，at all 壓低收住。

For the third quarter, it's not a good picture at all. 第三季度的情況一點也不樂觀。

用 the one thing 把恐懼收成一個點，再輕輕說出「不想要」，剋制的失望最扎人。

That was the one thing I didn't want.

面對最怕的結果時用，語氣要低；用來責怪別人會變成指責，別用。

That was exactly what I feared most. ／ It was the outcome I dreaded.

中性

I mean 輕帶，the one thing 重讀，I didn't want 放慢收住。

A delay was the one thing I didn't want this week. 這週我最不想要的就是延期。