大本鐘是世界上最著名的哥特式建築之一。它坐落於英國倫敦泰晤士河畔，於1858年4月10日建成，是英國最大的鐘，也是倫敦的標誌性建築之一。下面，讓我們走進這篇英語聽力短文，看看大本鐘。
The Big Ben is located in the tower at the eastern end of the Houses of Parliament, Westminster, Greater London. It was designed by Edmund Beckett and Baron Grimthorpe.
大本鐘在倫敦威斯敏斯特英自治領會議院的最東邊。它的設計者是埃德蒙·貝克特和拜倫·格里姆索普。
The Big Ben is very famous throughout the world, but nobody really knows why it is called Big Ben. There are two hearsays about this. Some people say that it was named after Benjamin Caunt, a boxer, who was called Big Ben. More people believe it was called after Welshman, Sir Benjamin Hall. He was the commissioner of the work at the time of its installation in 1859.
大本鐘在世界上家喻戶曉，但實際上沒有多少人知道為何它叫大本鐘。關於這個問題有兩個傳言：有人認為它是從一個叫做本傑明·考特的拳擊家而來。更多人認為它以一個威爾士人——本傑明·霍爾先生的名字命名的。他是安裝工程的監督者。
A story was told that during a debate iin the Commons on what to call the bell, Sir Benjamin was about to give his ideas when a MP who sat behind the front bench shouted, "Let's call it Big Ben!" Then this name came into being.
在經過在下議院討論中應該叫什麼名字後，本傑明先生準備給出結果時，一位在前凳後的國會議員喊道：“我們叫它‘大本’吧!”於是這個名字就誕生了。
The bell hasn't gone through a smooth road since the beginning of its design. Because there was great disagreement about the design of the clock, it took fifteen years to build. In 1857, the bell was completed and tested on the ground, but a four-foot crack appeared and the bell had to be cast again. Finally, the clock started ticking on 31 May, 1859, and struck its first chime on 11, July.
從大本鐘的設計到建造結束，這個鍾誕生的道路就荊棘滿途。因為當時關於這個鐘的設計大家有著很大的分歧，建造它就用了15年。1857年，大本鐘完工，並在地上做了測試。但是當鍾要掛上去時，4尺長的裂縫就出現了。1859年5月31日，大鐘的指標終於開始移動並在7月11日進行了它的`第一次報時。
Then in September, the bell cracked again. It was silent for four years but was eventually turned a quarter of a revolution. In this way, the crack was not under the striking hammer. Craftsmen made a square above the crack to stop it graving longer and it can still be seen today.
然而在九月份的時候，鍾又裂開了。它沉靜了四年，直到在革命後裂縫終於被轉了一個角。這樣，裂縫就不在敲鐘槌的下面。工匠在裂縫上做了一個方框，以此來阻止裂縫的延長，所以現在我們還能看到它。
The Big Ben is famous not only for its 13-ton weight, but also for its accuracy which is a result of its precise mechanism. Even one extra penny's weight on the balance will cause a gain of two fifths of a second in twenty four hours. Although there have been several problem, the bell is still striking today. Its chimes can be heard all over the world on the B.B.C.
大本鐘聞名全球不僅僅因為它的13噸重量，還因為它的精準——那是因為它嚴謹的機械結構。在平衡上增添額外的一便士重量都會造成每24小時多五分之二秒的後果。儘管有過幾次故障，直到今天大鐘仍然在報時。它的鐘鳴會通過B.B.C.廣播電臺傳遍全球。
