Alice: I’m thinking about joining the business club that you’re involved in but I’m not completely sure yet.
Jason: Oh really? Well, I suggest you attend a few of our meetings to test the waters. Then you can decide.
Alice: Good idea. I will test the waters first.

본문에서 Alice가 Jason에게 “I’m thinking about joining the business club that you’re involved in but I’m not completely sure yet. 네가 활동하고 있는 비즈니스 클럽에 가입하려고 생각 중이야. 그런데 아직은 잘 모르겠어.”라고 하자 Jason이 “Oh really? 오, 그래? Well, I suggest you attend a few of our meetings to test the waters. Then you can decide. 그럼 모임에 몇 번 나와 봐. 그러고 결정하면 되잖아.” 라고 조언하네요.

이어 Alice가 “Good idea. I will test the waters first. 좋은 생각이네. 그렇게 해서 먼저 좀 알아보는 게 좋겠다.”라고 하네요. Now keep today’s expression ‘Test the waters’ in mind and let’s hear the conversation again. 그럼 다시 한번 대화를 들어볼까요?

Alice: I’m thinking about joining the business club that you’re involved in but I’m not completely sure yet.
Jason: Oh really? Well, I suggest you attend a few of our meetings to test the waters. Then you can decide.
Alice: Good idea. I will test the waters first.

Today’s expression is test the waters. When you test the waters it means that you try to discover what you think about an idea, product or a situation before you do anything about it or become very involved.

Test the waters는 말 그대로 발가락을 물에 넣어 물이 얼마나 차가운지 알아보다 라는 의미에서 유래했습니다. 비슷한 표현으로 dip one's toe in the water를 들 수 있고요. 결국 “어떤 행동을 하거나 결정을 내리기 전에 미리 상황을 살피다, 조사하다”, “새로운 걸 시도해보다”는 뜻입니다.

오늘 본문에서 Alice가 Jason이 활동하고 있는 비즈니스 클럽에 가입할까 말까 생각하고 있다고 하자 Jason이 결정 내리기 전에 먼저 그 클럽 모임에 몇 번 참석해 보라고 조언해줬죠. “Well, I suggest you attend a few of our meetings to test the waters. Then you can decide.”라고요.

Now let me give you an example. 그럼 예문 들어 드릴게요. “Our company is testing the waters to see if radio advertisements increase sales.” 라고 하면 “우리 회사는 라디오 광고가 상품판매를 늘리는지 보기 위해 반응을 살피고 있는 중이다.” 라는 뜻이 됩니다.

이 표현 잘 기억하시고요. 오늘의 대화를 마지막으로 들어보겠습니다. Now that you know what today’s expression means, let’s listen to the conversation for the last time.

Alice: I’m thinking about joining the business club that you’re involved in but I’m not completely sure yet.
Jason: Oh really? Well, I suggest you attend a few of our meetings to test the waters. Then you can decide.
Alice: Good idea. I will test the waters first.

Let’s review. When you test the waters, it means that you try to discover what you think about an idea, product or a situation before you do anything about it or become very involved. TEST THE WATERS. Now try using this expression on your own.