77. Think Before You Speak p. 18

　　Sometimes we say things without thinking. Very often a thoughtless remark may hurt others' feelings or cause a misunderstanding or an embarrassment¹. We must， therefore， always think before we speak.

　　Once I told an old friend how beautiful his girlfriend looked when I saw them together at a movie theater the other day. Unfortunately， I made a mistake. It happened that she wasn't with my friend. She was with someone else. I had let the cat out of the bag， so to speak. I'd never been so embarrassed in my life. I certainly learned my lesson， but at a very high price. His girlfriend never spoke² to me again！ And to make matters worse， it is rumored³ that they eventually broke up.

　　halfway⁴  adv.在中途   Do not give up halfway.       persistent⁵ 持久的

　　look before you leap 三思而后行

　　Anyone likes Sam， because he is so thoughtful of others.

　　make a remark     make a statement （正式）

　　the other day  最近几天前的一天    cinema （文诌）

　　error = mistake n.      mistake A for B 误将A当B

　　It happened that…… = It turns out that …… 原来是

　　let the cat out of bag = reveal the secret  泄露秘密

　　Bruce is a scholar， so to speak. 可以这么说

　　learn one's lesson 学了教训

　　cheat on sb 对……不忠