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Non-starter 注定行不通的计划，无法接受的条件

Episode 260901 / 01 Sep 2026

节目简介

常有人说：“Well begun, half done（好的开始是成功的一半）”。而在英语中，如果有一个想法太过离谱，听起来 “注定行不通，甚至不值得一试”，就可以用 “non-starter” 来形容。在谈判中，人们还会用 “non-starter” 指那些 “触碰底线、完全无法接受或没有讨论余地的条件”。听节目，跟主持人菲菲和 Phil 学习复合名词 “non-starter” 的用法。

文字稿

（关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。）

Feifei
Hello and welcome to Authentic Real English, where we explain phrases and expressions used by fluent English speakers so that you can use them too. I'm Feifei.

Phil
And I'm Phil.

Feifei
What are you working on there, Phil?

Phil
I've been putting together a business idea: mail-order coffee.

Feifei
What's that?

Phil
Yeah, you could have an app, and then when you fancy a coffee, you press a button, and someone makes you one and sends it to you through the post.

Feifei
Um… I think that's the worst business idea I've ever heard. In fact, I'd say that's a complete non-starter.

Phil
Hm… Maybe you're right. I'll have to think of something else. In the meantime, let's look at that expression 'non-starter'. Can you explain it, Feifei?

Feifei
Yes, we describe something as a non-starter if we think it has absolutely no chance of succeeding. I think a mail-order coffee business is pretty much guaranteed to fail – it's a non-starter.

Phil
It's an expression that we can use to talk about a business idea, but it's also something that can be about any plan, project or initiative. We often use the expression to say that something hasn't been approved.

Feifei
Yes. So, it's also what we use to reject a proposal. For example, 'I've seen your suggestion, but I'm sorry, that's a non-starter'.

Let's listen to some other people using the expression 'non-starter'.

Examples
I've got some friends who live in Scotland. They've invited me up to their house for Christmas, which is great. But they want me to go for a freezing cold swim in the sea on Christmas day, and that is a non-starter.

You want me to leave at 6.30 in the morning for this hike? That's a non-starter.

I pitched an idea at work to make a podcast series about monkeys learning English. My boss said it was a non-starter.

Feifei
你正在收听的是 BBC 英语教学制作的 “地道英语” 节目。在本期节目中，我们正在学习表达 “non-starter” 的用法。“Non-starter” 是一个复合名词，字面意思是 “无法开始的事情”。在实际使用中，它常被用来比喻那些 “一开始就注定难以成功、听起来就没有希望实现的计划、提议或想法”。

除此之外，在谈判和讨价还价的时候，我们也可以用 “non-starter” 来描述 “完全无法接受、连考虑余地都没有的条件或提议”。换句话说，如果某个条件触碰了底线，以至于谈判根本无法继续进行，那么这个条件就是一个 “non-starter”。

Phil
Yes, it might come from horse-racing, where a horse that just stays at the start line and refuses to run is described as a 'non-starter'. Literally, it didn't start the race.

Feifei
OK. That's it for this programme but join us again next time. When it comes to ideas, learning English is definitely not a non-starter, and we have lots of different ways to help you!

Phil
See you next time!

Feifei
Bye-bye!

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