双十一购物英语作文
China has 271 million online consumers, meaning that almost half of China's 591 million Internet users buy products online. E-commerce sites Taobao and Tmall, which saw a combined $$1 trillion in sales in 2012, will both be running promotional campaigns during China's Singles' Day. Among the offers: 50 percent discounts on products like boyfriend body pillows and hoodies that read "I am single because I am fat." Amazon。cn declared that the site would sell "20,000 products discounted by as much as 90 percent." That includes a wedding ring, which singles can presumably buy, just in case.
中国有2亿7100万网络消费者，这意味着中国的5亿9100万网民中有近半数在网上购物。如淘宝和天猫的网购网站，在2012年销售量加在一起有1万亿美元。这两家网站都会在中国的光棍节这天发起促销活动，他们的促销策略是相关商品的五折优惠、比如“男朋友抱枕”、上书“我肉多所以我单身”的套头衫等。亚马逊网称将该站上将有“2万件商品1折优惠”，这其中包括结婚戒指——也许单身人士会买一只来以备日后可用。
Jack Ma, founder of Internet giant Alibaba, told Chinese Premier Li Keqiang late last month that Alibaba's sales on Singles' Day 2012 were "nearly $$3.3 billion" -- more than double the roughly $$1.5 billion purchased on Cyber Monday in 2012. For Singles' Day 2013, Ma expects sales to exceed $$4.9 billion.
网络巨头阿里巴巴的创始人马云在10月底会见李克强总理的时候曾对总理坦言，2012年光棍节期间，阿里巴巴的销售量有“近33亿美元”——比2012年美国的“网购礼拜一”创下的约15亿美元销售量翻了一番。对2013年的光棍节，马云预测销售量将突破49亿。
The rise of singletons as a consumer group is not without its own costs. Chinese business magazine Caijing reported that big delivery companies were forced to scramble to find over 100 extra airplanes to handle the 323 million parcels they needed to deliver over the Singles' Day shopping period.
消费者群体中单身族的崛起并不是没有代价的。据《中国财经杂志》报道，在光棍节期间，为了处理3亿2300万份包裹，许多大型物流公司需要筹措超过100台货运飞机四处奔走。
The holiday strains the logistics system: Products frequently sell out or arrive late. Even when everything moves smoothly, consumers complain about commercial gimmicks. According to the Beijing Evening News, a popular local paper, some online retailers quietly raise prices before slashing them.
光棍节期间物流系统往往问题百出：商品常常已经断货或者送货延期。就算物流系统一切正常，网购公司的销售猫腻也常常引起消费者不满。根据北京一家知名报刊《北京晚报》报道，许多在线零售商都会先抬高商品价格，然后再鼓吹降价销售。
But Chinese have not forgotten about the true meaning of this holiday: hating singlehood. Singles' Day is an occasion on which Chinese confess their feelings and try to find significant others. On Nov. 7, with four days to go before the holiday, the top trending topic on Weibo, China's Twitter, was "Help Your Roommate Find Someone." Over 200,000 people participated in the discussion, posting pictures of their roommates (and sometimes themselves) in hopes of avoiding another lonely Singles' Day.
但是中国人也没有忘记这个节日的真正含义：厌倦单身。光棍节正是中国人承认自己对单身状态的厌倦，试着寻觅到另一半的日子。在11月7日光棍节前4天，微博（中国版的推特）上最热门的话题就是“为你的室友找到另一半”。超过20万人参与了讨论，上传自己室友的照片（有时就是自己的照片），希望能在光棍节前结束单身。
Chinese are no strangers to loneliness: There are tens of millions of men in China who may never find love due to the country's massive gender imbalance, a result of the One Child Policy and a longstanding preference for male children. Chinese women don't have it easy either: Those who remain unmarried at the ripe old age of 27 risk being labeled "leftover women".
孤单对于中国人来说并不陌生：由于中国长期实行计划生育政策，以及长久以来重男轻女的子女偏好，中国的性别比例严重失衡，有数以百万的中国男子也许一辈子都不会找到伴侣。中国女性的情况也不容乐观：那些在27岁的“熟女”年龄之后还未婚的女性会被贴上“剩女”的标签。
Although poverty and singledom are often linked outcomes in China, at least one web user was sure of which was worse. "Spending Singles' Day alone isn't that scary," he wrote. "What's scary is when you're so poor you can't even enjoy Taobao's ‘Double 11.'" Retail therapy indeed.
虽然在中国“贫穷”和“单身”往往是相互联系的，但网民们知道前者比后者更糟糕。如一位中国网民所说的，“一个人过光棍节并不可怕，可怕的是你没钱去参加淘宝的‘双11’庆典。”
In the United States， the lonely have Reddit and cats. In China， they have Singles' Day， which falls on Nov. 11 -- 11.11， the four ones symbolizing "bare branches，" Chinese slang for bachelors. Thought to have originated about 20 years ago as a joke on college campuses， Singles' Day was once an occasion for confessing one's feelings to that special someone. But since 2010， online retailers have transformed the holiday， also known as "Double 11，" into an epic online shopping extravaganza akin to America's Cyber Monday.
在美国，孤单的人有红迪网和猫。在中国，孤单的人有光棍节。光棍节在每年11月11日，即11.11象征着“光棍”，汉语中给单身人士的诨名。光棍节大约20年前兴起自中国大学校园，学生们借这个日子打趣，在这一天向自己心仪的对象表白。但是2010年之后，又称“双11”的光棍节，被网络零售商转变成了和美国的“网购礼拜一”相似的网购狂欢庆典。
China has 271 million online consumers， meaning that almost half of China's 591 million Internet users buy products online. E-commerce sites Taobao and Tmall， which saw a combined $$1 trillion in sales in 2012， will both be running promotional campaigns during China's Singles' Day. Among the offers： 50 percent discounts on products like boyfriend body pillows and hoodies that read "I am single because I am fat." Amazon。cndeclared that the site would sell "20，000 products discounted by as much as 90 percent." That includes a wedding ring， which singles can presumably buy， just in case.
中国有2亿7100万网络消费者，这意味着中国的5亿9100万网民中有近半数在网上购物。如淘宝和天猫的网购网站，在2012年销售量加在一起有1万亿美元。这两家网站都会在中国的光棍节这天发起促销活动，他们的促销策略是相关商品的五折优惠、比如“男朋友抱枕”、上书“我肉多所以我单身”的套头衫等。亚马逊网称将该站上将有“2万件商品1折优惠”，这其中包括结婚戒指——也许单身人士会买一只来以备日后可用。
Jack Ma， founder of Internet giant Alibaba， told Chinese Premier Li Keqiang late last month that Alibaba's sales on Singles' Day 2012 were "nearly $$3.3 billion" -- more than double the roughly $$1.5 billion purchased on Cyber Monday in 2012. For Singles' Day 2013， Ma expects sales to exceed $$4.9 billion.
网络巨头阿里巴巴的创始人马云在10月底会见李克强总理的时候曾对总理坦言，2012年光棍节期间，阿里巴巴的销售量有“近33亿美元”——比2012年美国的“网购礼拜一”创下的约15亿美元销售量翻了一番。对2013年的光棍节，马云预测销售量将突破49亿。
The rise of singletons as a consumer group is not without its own costs. Chinese business magazine Caijing reported that big delivery companies were forced to scramble to find over 100 extra airplanes to handle the 323 million parcels they needed to deliver over the Singles' Day shopping period.
消费者群体中单身族的崛起并不是没有代价的。据《中国财经杂志》报道，在光棍节期间，为了处理3亿2300万份包裹，许多大型物流公司需要筹措超过100台货运飞机四处奔走。
The holiday strains the logistics system： Products frequently sell out or arrive late. Even when everything moves smoothly， consumers complain about commercial gimmicks. According to the Beijing Evening News， a popular local paper， some online retailers quietly raise prices before slashing them.
光棍节期间物流系统往往问题百出：商品常常已经断货或者送货延期。就算物流系统一切正常，网购公司的销售猫腻也常常引起消费者不满。根据北京一家知名报刊《北京晚报》报道，许多在线零售商都会先抬高商品价格，然后再鼓吹降价销售。
But Chinese have not forgotten about the true meaning of this holiday： hating singlehood. Singles' Day is an occasion on which Chinese confess their feelings and try to find significant others. On Nov. 7， with four days to go before the holiday， the top trending topic on Weibo， China's Twitter， was "Help Your Roommate Find Someone." Over 200，000 people participated in the discussion， posting pictures of their roommates (and sometimes themselves) in hopes of avoiding another lonely Singles' Day.
但是中国人也没有忘记这个节日的真正含义：厌倦单身。光棍节正是中国人承认自己对单身状态的厌倦，试着寻觅到另一半的日子。在11月7日光棍节前4天，微博(中国版的推特)上最热门的话题就是“为你的室友找到另一半”。超过20万人参与了讨论，上传自己室友的照片(有时就是自己的照片)，希望能在光棍节前结束单身。
Chinese are no strangers to loneliness： There are tens of millions of men in China who may never find love due to the country's massive gender imbalance， a result of the One Child Policy and a longstanding preference for male children. Chinese women don't have it easy either： Those who remain unmarried at the ripe old age of 27 risk being labeled "leftover women".
孤单对于中国人来说并不陌生：由于中国长期实行计划生育政策，以及长久以来重男轻女的子女偏好，中国的性别比例严重失衡，有数以百万的中国男子也许一辈子都不会找到伴侣。中国女性的情况也不容乐观：那些在27岁的“熟女”年龄之后还未婚的女性会被贴上“剩女”的标签。
Although poverty and singledom are often linked outcomes in China， at least one web user was sure of which was worse. "Spending Singles' Day alone isn't that scary，" he wrote. "What's scary is when you're so poor you can't even enjoy Taobao's ‘Double 11.'" Retail therapy indeed.
虽然在中国“贫穷”和“单身”往往是相互联系的，但网民们知道前者比后者更糟糕。如一位中国网民所说的，“一个人过光棍节并不可怕，可怕的是你没钱去参加淘宝的‘双11’庆典。”
or those who just love to shop online, now is the best time of the year, because Nov 11, China’s Singles’ Day, will see some seemingly irrational discounts, in line with the tradition that was started in 2010.
对于“网购迷”而言，现在正是一年中的最佳时机；因为按照这项始于2010年的传统惯例，每年11月11日，也就是中国的“光棍节”这天，网上商品将会疯狂打折。
Last year, Taobao, a major online shopping website, set a record of 1 billion yuan in sales on that day alone, with a whopping 19.1 billion yuan exchanging hands on the website. The number of items sold paralyzed the delivery services due to overloading. On the verge of yet another annual spending spree, it’s worth reading up on tricks and tips to make the most of the shopping carnival.
去年，淘宝网光棍节当天的销售额破纪录地达到10亿元人民币，该网站交易额更是高达191亿元人民币。巨大的发货量几乎令整个快递业务难以负荷，接近瘫痪。现在，一年一度的“双十一”血拼日又要到了；为了乐享这场购物嘉年华，有必要补习一下网购技巧与小贴士。
Be prepared
做好准备
Select goods early and rationally
提前下手，合理选择
Put everything you want in the “shopping cart” to make a list of potential purchases. Then go through it carefully, removing anything you selected on impulse.
把你喜欢的货品统统放到“购物车”中，生成一个购物清单，然后再仔细筛选一遍，删除那些因一时冲动而拍下的货品。
Seal a deal in advance
提前下单
Talk to service staff as early as possible. They may have already decided on a discount policy for Nov 11 and may even ship the product to you in advance, which is a good way to avoid the heavy online traffic on the special day.
尽早询问网店客服。他们可能已经定下了双十一的打折政策，甚至还有可能提前发货给你，这就很好地避免了双十一当天的网络拥堵。
Manage your budget
精打细算
Popular items will be in strong demand, so make sure you’re ready to pay with the least number of procedures. It’s best to deposit a reasonable amount of money in your Alipay account so that you can pay without going through any lengthy verifications. If you’re planning on using a credit card, you can call the bank to apply for more credit, but only spend as much as you can afford to repay.
热销产品需求量大，因此要确保支付流程越简单越好。最好预先给支付宝充值，这样你不必通过繁琐的验证程序便可轻松付款了。如果你打算划信用卡，可以打电话给银行，申请提高信用额度，但是要量力而行，不要超支。
Look at the real items
查看实物
With many products, such as shoes and clothes, it’s better to look at them first to check their quality, size and appearance and ensure you’re buying the right one.
对于包括服装和鞋在内的很多商品而言，最好先查看一下实物的质量、大小和外观，以确保拍下的宝贝适合你。
Be smart
动动脑筋
It’s all about timing
时间选择是关键
According to Alipay, there are several peak hours when online traffic is heavy and there is a higher risk of failed transactions. Try to avoid the following time spans: 12 pm-1:30 am, 10-11 am, 3-5 pm, and 8-10 pm.
支付宝方面称，在几个上网高峰期中，你很有可能遭遇网络拥堵，最终导致交易失败。因此，尽量避免以下几个时段：晚12点-凌晨1点30分、上午10点-11点、下午3点-5点、晚8点-10点。
Apps as a helping hand
App小助手
Smartphone apps like Huihui Shopping list the best offers on a particular website, while Yitao, a software developed by Alibaba, compares prices of selected items across different websites to bring you the best deal.
诸如“惠惠购物助手”这样的智能手机应用能推荐哪些网站的性价比最高，而由阿里巴巴研发的软件——“一淘”则会针对你所选择的物品进行网络比价，将最实惠的商品推荐给你。
Track and open your package
跟踪物流，开箱验货
Because of the huge demand, delivery mistakes are inevitable, so try to track the package. If the product is perishable, keep the tracking record in case of a dispute. When the package arrives, check the item carefully before signing for it. Now you can go ahead and enjoy all your new stuff!
由于需求量巨大，物流难免会出错，因此要设法跟踪包裹。如果你购买的物品易变质，就要保留跟踪记录，以防发生购物纷争。包裹送达时，签字之前先要仔细检查物品。好了，现在就去尽情享受购物的乐趣吧！
Online retailer Alibaba says it sold $$2bn of goods in the first hour of China's annual "Singles' Day".
电商巨头阿里巴巴今日宣布，在今年双十一的头1个小时里，其交易额就达到了20亿美元。
也有分析师认为这一数字水份很大：《缩水的双十一 阿里巴巴销售数据虚高1/4》。
That compares to $$3.1bn in sales seen in the first half of last year's event - considered the world's biggest online retail sales day.
而去年双十一半天的销售额为31亿美元（约189亿人民币），当时被称为史上网购交易额最大的一天。
It compares with "Cyber Monday" in the US - the day after Thanksgiving marketed as a big online shopping day.
如今的双十一堪比美国的“网购星期一”。在美国，感恩节之后的那个星期一被认为是在线购物最疯狂的日子。
Alibaba said it expected to break sales records during the annual event, offering big discounts to boost sales.
此前，阿里巴巴曾预计，今年的打折促销会使销售总额破去年的记录。
"I bet the number [of goods bought] is going to be scary," said Alibaba's executive chairman Jack Ma last week. He estimated that 200 million packages would be shipped from orders made during the day.
“我打赌今年的商品成交量会相当惊人。”阿里巴巴的执行总裁马云上周表示。他还预计双十一当天的订单中会有约2亿的包裹发出。
Last year, Alibaba shipped more than 150 million packages or about $$5.75bn in gross merchandise volume.
去年，阿里巴巴运送包裹数量达到1.5亿，总商品量达57.5亿美元（约351亿人民币）。
Singles' Day in China was adopted by Alibaba in 2009 to boost sales, but dates back to at least 1993, when students at Nanjing University are believed to have chosen the date as an anti-Valentine's Day where single people could buy things for themselves.
双十一是在2009年阿里巴巴参与打折促销后开始成为网购狂欢节的，但是该节日最早起源于1993年南京大学学生们的光棍节。最开始光棍节被认为是一个与情人节相对的日子，那天很多单身的人会买东西犒劳自己。
Since then, it has gone on to become a massive day of sales for China's fast growing e-commerce market.
不过从阿里巴巴加入的那天起，双十一就成了中国日益扩大的电商市场中最重要的一天。
The market is expected to grow at an annual rate of 25% over the next few years, from $$390bn in 2014 to $$718bn in 2017, according to a recent study released by management consulting firm AT Kearney.
根据科尔尼管理咨询公司最近发布的一项研究可以预计，在接下来的几年里，中国电商市场将以每年25%的速度持续扩大，从2014年的3900亿美元（约23864亿人民币）上涨到2017年的7180亿美元（约43934亿人民币）。