Stand-up comedy is a popular form of entertainment in the U.S. In a comedy club, you pay a “cover charge” (fee to enter) to hear one or more comics tell jokes.
單口喜劇是美國一種受歡迎的娛樂形式。在喜劇俱樂部，你需要支付“入場費”（進場費用）來聽一個或多個喜劇演員講笑話。If you’ve ever been to a “live” (performed in front of you, not recorded) comedy show or have seen one on television, you know that many comics like to use “profanity” (offensive language). Some of the most famous comics of all time are known for their “foul-mouthed” (using bad language) performances.
如果你曾經參加過現場喜劇演出（面對面的表演，不是錄影）或在電視上看過，你就會知道很多喜劇演員喜歡使用“髒話”（冒犯性語言）。一些最著名的喜劇演員以他們的“粗口”（使用壞話）的表演而聞名。
However, as one owner of a comedy school in New York City points out, having a foul mouth can lose comics jobs. That’s because, in addition to working in comedy clubs, a large number of comics are hired for “corporate gigs” (live performance at a company event).
然而，正如紐約市一家喜劇學校的老闆所指出的，使用髒話會讓喜劇演員失去工作。這是因為，除了在喜劇俱樂部工作外，大量的喜劇演員被雇用進行“企業表演”（公司活動的現場表演）。
For these gigs, “bookers” (people who find entertainment for an event) are looking for entertainers who will not offend most people and have performances that are appropriate for families. Having a foul mouth may get quick laughs, but he or she may get “passed over” (overlooked; not get the opportunity) for these “lucrative” (paying a lot of money) jobs.
對於這些演出，“預訂者”（為活動尋找娛樂節目的人）在尋找不會冒犯大多數人且適合家庭觀看的表演者。使用粗口可能會迅速引來笑聲，但他或她可能會錯過（被忽視；沒有獲得機會）這些“有利可圖的”（高收入的）工作。
Having “clean” (not offensive) sets or performances may be difficult for some comics, since part of the nature of stand-up comedy is to “push the envelope” (do things that go beyond what is socially acceptable) and to challenge “conventional” (traditional; normal) thinking or behavior. But it may be “worth their while” (worth it; worth doing) to develop clean “routines” (performances) if they want to work more and to earn more money.
擁有“乾淨的”（不冒犯的）表演對一些喜劇演員來說可能很困難，因為單口喜劇的部分本質是要“挑戰極限”（做超越社會可接受範圍的事情）並挑戰“傳統的”（傳統的；正常的）思維或行為。但如果他們想要更多的工作並賺更多錢，發展乾淨的“表演”（演出）可能是“值得的”（值得；值得做的）。
重點單字
- Cover charge 入場費 /ˈkʌvər ʧɑrʤ/
- Live 現場的 /laɪv/
- Profanity 髒話 /prəˈfænɪti/
- Foul-mouthed 粗口的 /faʊl maʊðd/
- Retaliating 反擊 /rɪˈtæliˌeɪtɪŋ/
- Banning 禁止 /ˈbænɪŋ/
- Corporate gigs 企業表演 /ˈkɔrpərɪt gɪgz/
- Bookers 預訂者 /ˈbʊkərz/
- Passed over 被忽視 /pæst ˈoʊvər/
- Lucrative 有利可圖的 /ˈlukrətɪv/
- Clean 乾淨的 /klin/
- Push the envelope 挑戰極限 /pʊʃ ði ˈɛnvəˌloʊp/
- Conventional 傳統的 /kənˈvɛnʃənl/
- Worth their while 值得 /wɜrθ ðɛr waɪl/
- Routines 表演 /ruˈtinz/
