House of Horrors 恐怖鬼屋嚇嚇叫‏

On Halloween night, many children dress up in scary costumes and try to frighten their neighbors into giving them treats. But for some people, this is not horrifying2 enough. There are those out there that like the feeling of being in a cold sweat or having their hearts skip a beat. In fact, they want to be scared out of their pants. That is why they choose to go to haunted3 houses. 　 　　在萬聖節當晚，許多孩子會穿上嚇人的服裝，試著要讓他們的鄰居嚇得乖乖交出糖果來。但對某些人而言，這還不夠恐怖。有些人就是喜歡那種被嚇得冷汗直流，或是心臟快要停止的感覺。事實上，他們巴不得自己能被嚇得兩腿發軟。而這就是他們選擇去鬼屋的原因。 　　These are not old, abandoned houses that are said to be haunted. In fact, these places are specially designed to frighten anyone who is brave enough to enter. Eerie4 music and sound effects are played, and everything is dark and scary. Visitors are guided through passageways5 and rooms that look like scenes from horror movies. Then just when they least expect it, actors that are dressed like vampires, zombies6, ax7 murderers, and more jump out and make them scream in fright. 這些房子並不是那種據說會鬧鬼的老舊廢棄房屋。這些地方其實是特別設計用來將任何膽敢入內的人給嚇個半死。房子裡會播放令人毛骨悚然的音樂和音效，而且到處都烏漆抹黑、陰森恐怖。造訪鬼屋的人會被引導通過看起來像是恐怖片場景裡會有的長廊和房間。然後就在他們最意想不到的情況下，裝扮成吸血鬼、殭屍、斧頭殺人魔及其它更多角色的演員便會跳出來，把他們嚇得尖叫連連。 　　Of course, all of this is done in good fun, and measures are taken to ensure people's safety. With over 1,500 places in the US, people just can't get enough of haunted houses.

當然，這一切都只是為了好玩，而且鬼屋裡會採取一些措施來確保人們的安全。以全美各地有超過一千五百間的鬼屋來看，人們就是無法抗拒它的魅力。

Questions

1. Why do people choose to go to haunted houses even though they are horrifying?
(A) To see if they can see real ghosts.
(B) Because they enjoy the feeling of being frightened.
(C) To give special treats to their neighbors.
(D) Because they want to exchange their old pants for a new pair.
1. 為什麼就算鬼屋如此恐怖，人們還是選擇要去？
(A) 為了看看他們能否撞見真的鬼。
(B) 因為他們喜歡被嚇到的感覺。
(C) 為了給他們鄰居特別的招待。
(D) 因為他們想把舊的褲子換成新的。
2. According to the article, which of the following is NOT true about haunted houses?
(A) Actors make themselves look scary to frighten visitors.
(B) There are more than 1,500 haunted houses in the US.
(C) Designers of haunted houses get their ideas from horror movies.
(D) These haunted houses are in fact old and abandoned houses.
2. 根據本文，關於鬼屋的敘述下列何者為非？
(A) 演員把自己打扮得很可怕來嚇倒遊客。
(B) 全美各地有一千五百多間鬼屋。
(C) 設計鬼屋的人是從恐怖片裡得到靈感。
(D) 這些鬼屋其實本身就是老舊廢棄的房子。
答案：1. (B)　2. (D)

Building Your Vocabulary

1. abandoned　a. 廢棄的；被遺棄的
Lisa found an abandoned puppy in her yard.
莉莎在她家的院子裡發現了一隻遭人遺棄的小狗。
2. measure　n. 措施，辦法
New measures were taken to fight crime.
一些新措施的實施是為了要打擊犯罪。
3. ensure　vt. 確保；保證
David ensures that he will be there on time.
大衛保證他會準時出席。

Phrases for Learning

1. frighten + 人 + into + 動名詞　　嚇得∕威嚇某人（做）……
Darren frightened me into helping him.
達倫威嚇我要幫他的忙。
2. a cold sweat　　（因害怕或緊張而出的）一身冷汗
I was in a cold sweat when Ms. Li called on me.
當李老師叫到我的名字時，我緊張得冷汗直流。
3. 所有格 + heart skips a beat　　某人（因害怕或興奮等）心跳停一下
Lily's heart skipped a beat when she saw the cute guy smiling at her.
莉莉看到那個帥哥對她微笑時，她的心跳差點就要停了。
4. be said to + 原形動詞　　據說……
This drink is said to help people lose weight.
這種飲品據說有助於減重。
5. exchange A for B　　把 A 換成 B
Where can I exchange dollars for pounds?
我可以到哪裡把美金換成英鎊呢？

Extra Words

1. horror　n. 恐怖（本文中亦作形容詞用）
2. horrifying　a. 可怕的
3. haunted　a. 鬧鬼的
4. eerie　a. 令人毛骨悚然的
5. passageway　n. 走廊
6. zombie　n. 殭屍
7. ax　n. 長柄斧（亦常拼為axe）

Tips In Use

In fact, they want to be scared out of their pants.
（事實上，他們巴不得自己能被嚇得兩腿發軟。）
　　scare 和 frighten 皆表『使某人受到驚嚇』，但如果各位讀者想用更生動有趣一點的方式來強調某人『被嚇個半死』，那麼就可以使用上述的"scare + 人 + out of + 所有格 + pants"的說法。其它一些同樣活潑的用法尚有：
1. scare the pants off + 人
2. scare the living daylights/life out of + 人
3. scare/frighten + 人 + to death
4. scare/frighten + 人 + out of + 所有格 + wits
Marcus appeared out of nowhere and scared the life out of me.
（馬克斯不知從哪兒冒出來，把我嚇個半死。）
The strange noise really frightened all of us out of our wits.
（那個怪聲真的把我們所有人嚇得腦筋一片空白。）