Some toys are simply fads that quickly fade away. Others stay with us for generations and become part of our shared popular culture. There's one toy that most people can relate to no matter where they are from, and that toy is Lego. For decades, the young and the young-at-heart have enjoyed putting the colorful blocks together to build interesting models. The Lego story goes all the way back to 1932 and the workshop of Danish carpenter Ole Kirk Christiansen. He started making wooden toys, and called his company Lego after the Danish words leg godt, which means play well. Later, Christiansen changed from wood to plastic. For the next decade or so, Christiansen and his son experimentedwith the bricks' design. Finally they got it right, and his famous bricks appeard in their modern form in 1947. From the 1950s on, Lego became a key part of children's lives across the globe. Thousands of different sets have been released over the years. Some are based on movies like Star Wars or the Indiana Jones series. Others deal withpirates, dinosaurs, space travel, and other themes that set imaginations flying. Lego is all about getting kids to think while they play.
有些玩具只是一時的流行，不久後就消失了。有些玩具則陪伴了我們好幾個世代，成為我們共同流行文化的一部份。有一種玩具能讓大部分不論來自何方的人產生共鳴，那個玩具就是樂高。數十年來，年輕人及童心未泯的人都很喜愛組合五顏六色的積木來建造有趣的模型。 樂高的故事可回溯到 1932 年以及丹麥木匠奧爾•科克•克里斯汀森的工作間。他那時開始製作木製玩具，並以丹麥語 leg godt 將他的公司命名為樂高，意思為『好好地玩吧』。後來，克里斯汀森把他的木製樂高改成塑膠製的。 在接下來的十年左右，克里斯汀森和他兒子用磚塊的外型來做實驗。最後他們終於走對了方向，而他著名的磚塊也在 1947 年時以現在的樣式登場。自 1950 年以來，樂高成了世界各地小朋友生活中很重要的一部分。多年來，數千種不同的組合陸續推出。有些是以像是《星際大戰》或《法櫃奇兵》系列的電影為基礎。有些則以海盜、恐龍、太空旅行及其他能激發想像力的事物為主題。樂高就是要讓小朋友在玩樂時也能動動腦。
fade away （逐漸）消失 Cindy could only hope that the pain of losing her husband would fade away quickly. 辛蒂只能期望失去丈夫的痛苦能盡快消退。
decade n. 十年 The civil war tore the small country apart for decades. 內戰使這個小國家分崩離析了幾十年。
put...together / put together... 裝配／組裝…… Jenny put together the bookcase on her own. 珍妮獨力將書架組裝起來。
數字 + or so 大約…… I heard that 6,000 or so people joined the march. 我聽說大約有六千人參與了這場遊行。
experiment with... 拿……來實驗，試驗…… The musician experimented with new ways of recording. 那位音樂家試驗了新的錄音法。
be based on... 根據…… This novel is based on a real event. 這本小說是根據真實事件而改寫成的。
deal with... 涉及／探討…… These essays deal with women's rights. 這些論文在探討女性權利。
imagination n. 想像力 Mike likes science fiction novels because they are full of imagination. 麥克喜歡科幻小說，因為它們充滿了想像的空間。
fad n. 一時的狂熱；時尚
young-at-heart a. 童心未泯的 the young-at-heart n. 所有童心未泯的人 = people who are young at heart
workshop n. 工場；研習會
carpenter n. 木匠，木工
pirate n. 海盜
dinosaur n. 恐龍
theme n. 主題
字尾 -less 的用法
本文 "...will surely have their imaginations improved by this timeless toy." 中的 timeless 表『永恆的』，其字尾 -less 為常見字尾型態，表『無……的』。-less 也可表『不……的』及『不會……的』，如 harmless（無害的）及 tireless（不知疲倦的）。例：
The dress Sophia is wearing has a timeless elegance. （蘇菲亞正穿著的洋裝有種永恆的優雅感。） The mean-looking dog is actually harmless. （那隻看起來很兇的狗其實不會傷人。） The manager is very grateful for Gina's tireless efforts. （經理很感謝吉娜堅持不懈的努力。）
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