come to find out後來才發現

用「時間停住」寫驚愕，比描述槍聲更接近人在那一刻的真實感受。

It's always seemed like ...

回憶某個瞬間像被拉長時用；正式陳述事故要換更客觀的說法。

It felt as if everything froze for a moment. ／ The whole thing seemed to slow down.

中性

always seemed like 連讀，just stopped 重讀收住。

It's always seemed like time just stopped when the car spun. 車打滑那一下，我總覺得時間停住了。

說不清才最真實：反覆修詞，正顯出記憶裡那片空白。

... or something. I don't know what it is.

講某件說不清的感受時用；寫報告、做陳述別這樣含糊。

It was like everything froze. I can't explain it. ／ Something happened to time, and I have no words for it.

口語

Time stopped 後稍停，or something 輕帶，句尾放平。

The music stopped or something. I don't know what it was. 音樂好像停了一下，我也說不清是怎麼回事。

被晾在門外的一聲「我就走了」，平靜得讓人替他覺得冷。

Anyhow, ... and never came back out. So I left.

講被冷落、被放鴿子後自己的選擇時用；抱怨朋友時這樣說有點重。

In the end he never came back, and I drove off. ／ Nobody came out again, so I went on my way.

口語

Anyhow 輕起，never came back out 平推，So I left 短促收。

He went in to ask and never came back out. So I left. 他進去問一聲就沒再出來，我就走了。

用「軍火庫」輕描淡寫地交代危險，越平淡越讓人後怕。

After ...-ing, I come to find out ...

講相處久了才發現的真相時用；日常閒聊也常用 come to find out。

It took a few days to find out he had a whole arsenal. ／ Only later did I realise how many guns he kept.

口語

come to 連讀，find out 重讀，arsenal 落在首音節。

After working with her, I come to find out she runs three companies. 跟她共事之後我才發現，她經營著三家公司。

照說一遍的句式，把「什麼都由著他」的被動感寫了出來。

He wanted to ..., so we ...

講自己順著別人安排走時用；帶點自嘲或無奈，正式場合少用。

He felt like a film, so off to the cinema we went. ／ Whatever he wanted to do, we did that.

口語

兩個 the movies 音高相同，so we 輕讀，句式重複要念得平。

He wanted noodles, so we had noodles again. 他想吃麵，於是我們又吃了面。

一個自造的說法，把那一夜的鬆弛和即將到來的事擺在一起。

I call them ..., ... movies.

給某類活動起綽號、半開玩笑地形容時用；正式場合別這麼隨意。

Where I come from we call those beer-and-a-movie nights. ／ Those are what I'd call picnic-cinema evenings.

口語

call them 連讀，drive-in 連成一詞，兩個 movies 對稱重讀。

I call them lazy Sundays, do-nothing days. 我管這種叫懶人星期天，什麼都不幹的日子。