托福阅读材料：十大热门求婚地点

 　　Traditional marriage proposals could soon be consigned 1 to the history books – with almost half of them now happening at home in front of the TV.

　　传统的求婚方式可能很快就只在历史书里出现了，现在几乎有一半的求婚是在家里看电视的时候完成的。
　　A study of newlyweds has found modern men are ditching age-old traditional proposal custom in favour of a more lacklustre approach.
　　一项针对新婚夫妇的调查发现，现代人渐渐地不再遵循传统的求婚习俗，而更倾向于没有惊喜的平凡求婚方式。
　　The study found only a third of men now go down on one knee to pop the question as their fathers and grandfathers’ generations would have done.
　　研究发现，只有三分之一的男性现在还会像他们的父辈和祖辈那样单膝下跪求婚。
　　And the age-old tradition of asking the bride’s father for her hand in marriage is also on the verge 2 of dying out with 63% of recently married males claiming they “didn’t bother”.
　　而另一项古老的传统——就结婚事宜请求新娘父亲的首肯——也在慢慢消失，有63%的新婚男性说他们不再“这么费事了”。
　　Even the idea of picking a romantic location to propose has fallen by the wayside, with the typical ‘Will you marry me?’ now most likely to take place at home.
　　连选一个浪漫求婚地点的想法也乏人问津了。那句经典的“你愿意嫁给我么？”大多是在家里说出来的。
　　十大热门求婚地点 猜猜第一名是哪里？
　　Only six percent bothered to take their partner abroad on holiday – but the same number of men proposed in the local pub – and 5.5% popped the question in the car.
　　只有6%的人会花心思把他们的伴侣带到国外度假然后求婚，但是也有6%的男性在当地酒吧就求了婚，还有5.5%在汽车上求婚。
　　The study also found the average amount of time in a relationship before a proposal is now three years – so British women are taking matters into their own hands in a bid to get a proposal.
　　研究还发现求婚前平均恋爱时间是三年，所以英国女性们都会自己想办法让他们的伴侣向他们求婚。
　　Almost a third of women 29% now end up choosing their own ring, rather than letting their partner decide.
　　约有三分之一（29%）的女性现在连戒指都是自己选，而不是让他们的伴侣选。
　　The typical bride-to-be will also enlist 3 the help of at least one friend to help speed up a proposal – as well as dropping two major engagement hints to encourage their partner to pop the question.
　　一般准新娘也会至少让一个朋友帮忙推进求婚的进程，比如抛出两个重要的关于订婚的暗示来鼓动伴侣早些求婚。
　　Casually 4 asking ‘Who would you want as your best man?’, commenting on celebrities 5' engagement rings - and jokingly suggesting you apply for the TV show ‘Don't Tell the Bride’ are the most common tactics.
　　不经意间问他们“你想找谁当伴郎？”，评论一下名人的订婚戒指，还会开玩笑建议你去参加电视节目《新娘不得知》，这些都是最常用的技巧。
　　十大热门求婚地点 猜猜第一名是哪里？
　　Lorna Haddon, diamond ring and jewellery buyer at Beaverbrooks who commissioned the study of 1,500 newlyweds, commented: "The stresses and strains of modern life mean we don’t always have the time to be as romantic as we would perhaps like to be.
　　比弗布鲁克公司的钻戒及珠宝买手洛娜?哈顿负责此次针对1500位新婚夫妇的调查。她表示：“现代生活的压力和负担意味着我们不是总有时间像期望中的那么浪漫。”
　　"Busy lives and hectic 6 schedules mean we have fewer hours in the day for romance – however our study shows women do still want the ‘picture perfect proposal’ – and it's not only picking the perfect engagement ring that counts.
　　“忙碌的生活和紧张日程表意味着我们一天中没有那么多时间来浪漫，然而我们的研究显示女性仍然希望有一场‘十全十美的求婚’。挑选完美的订婚戒指并不只是唯一重要的环节。”
　　“The location, atmosphere and little details that mean a lot to them really make a proposal personal and truly special, and as it’s a once in a lifetime occasion it’s well worth making the effort."
　　“地点、环境和一些小细节对她们来说十分重要，这也能使求婚更具个人特色，也更特别。求婚是人生一次的大事，值得好好花心思准备。”
　　十大热门求婚地点 猜猜第一名是哪里？
　　Top 10 modern proposal destinations
　　十大现代求婚地点
　　1. At home – 49%
　　1. 家中-49%
　　2. On a day out – 7%
　　2. 出门约会-7%
　　3. On holiday abroad – 6%
　　3. 出国度假-6%
　　4. The local pub – 6%
　　4. 当地酒吧-6%
　　5. On holiday in the UK – 5%
　　5. 国内度假-6%
　　6. In the car – 5.5%
　　6. 车内-5.5%
　　7. At a restaurant – 4.5%
　　7. 餐厅-4.5%
　　8. In the garden – 2%
　　8. 花园-2%
　　9. On the beach – 2%
　　9. 沙滩-2%
　　10. In a Hotel – 1%
　　10. 酒店-1%