An important question about eating out we had better discuss right now,at the beginning,is who pays for the meal.If a friend of yours suggests you have lunch with him,you might simply say something like this,"I'm afraid it'll have to be some place inexpensive,as I have very little money."The other person may say,"O.K.,I'll meet you at McDonald's."This means it is agreed that the two will go Dutch,that is,each person pays for himself.He may also say,"Oh,no.I want to take you to lunch at Johnson's",or"I want you to try the steak there.It's great."This means the person intends to pay the bill for both of you.If you feel friendly towards this person,there is no reason why you shouldn't accept this invitation.You may simply say,"Thank you.That would be very nice."

　　American customs about who pays for a date are much the same as those in other parts of the world.American women used to expect men to pay for all the meals.But,today,a woman who is a university student or is working in the business world will usually pay her way during the day.If,however,a man asks her to attend something special outside the normal working hours-cocktails or dinners or dances or movies-invitation itself means"come as my guest."So,as you can see,it is a polite thing to make the situation clear at the very beginning.Lack of clarity will often cause losing of face.

　　双方约会时该谁来付账

　　关于上馆子，我们现在首先应当讨论的重要问题，是谁来付账。如果你的朋友建议你和他一起用午餐，你可以这样说："我恐怕得找个便宜的地方，我没带多少钱。"对方可能说："好吧，我在麦克唐纳快餐店等你。"这意味着大家均摊，就是自己付自己的这份饭钱。他也可能会说："哦！不，我想请你上约翰逊饭店去吃午饭。"或者说："我想请你尝尝那里的牛排，那可真是没得说的。"这就意味着他打算付两个人的账。如果你和他交情不错，也就没有什么理由不接受邀请，你可爽快地说："谢谢，那可太好了。"

　　在美国，关于约会时谁来付账的习惯与世界各地都及其相似。过去，美国妇女总习惯让男人做东请客。但是，今天美国的女大学生和工商界的职业妇女，白天上餐馆总是自己付账。不过，如果有一位男士邀请她参加工作之余的活动，譬如鸡尾酒会、晚餐、舞会或看电影等，这种邀请本身就意味着"请你来做客"。因此，你们看得出来，一开始就把情况说清楚是很有礼貌的。不说清楚倒是常会弄得尴尬丢脸。

　　(文/河北乐亭沈文荣；英语辅导报高三版03～04学年第18期；版权归英语辅导报社所有，独家网络合作伙伴新浪教育，未经许可，不得以任何形式进行转载。)