VOA慢速英语2012 Words and Their Stories: Fall Guy

Words and Their Stories: Fall Guy

词汇典故：替罪羊

Now, the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.

现在是美国之音慢速英语词汇典故节目。

Every week at this time, the Voice of America tells about popular words and expressions used in the United States. Some expressions have made a jump from sports events to everyday life. One such expression is fall guy. A fall guy is the person who someone decides will be the loser or victim.

每周这个时候，美国之音都会讲述美国的常用词汇和短语。一些短语从体育赛事演变到日常生活中，fall guy（替罪羊）就是这样一个短语。替罪羊是指由他人决定成为输家或牺牲者的人。

The first fall guys were men who wrestled 1 for money. At the end of the nineteenth century, wrestling was a very popular sport in the United States. Wrestling competitions were held not only in big cities, but also at country fairs and traveling shows. As the sport became more popular, it became less and less of a sport. Many of the matches were fixed 2. The wrestlers knew -- before the match -- which one of them would be the winner.

最早的“fall guy”是一些靠摔跤挣钱的人。20世纪末，摔跤在美国是一项十分盛行的运动。摔跤比赛不仅在大城市里举行，也在乡村集市和巡回表演中进行。随着这项运动越来越流行，它也变得越来越不像一项体育运动。许多比赛都是安排好的表演。摔跤手在赛前就知道谁是赢家。

The goal in wrestling is to hold your opponent's shoulders down against the floor. This is called a fall. Sometimes, one of the wrestlers would be paid before the match to take the fall. He would agree to be the loser...the fall guy.

摔跤的目的是把对手的双肩按在地板上。双肩着地就是所谓的fall。有时，其中一名摔跤手会在赛前被买通被打败（take a fall）。他就会同意成为输家，也就是fall guy。

Today, a fall guy is anyone who is tricked into taking the blame for the crime or wrongdoing of someone else. There are fall guys in many situations -- people who publicly take the blame when something goes wrong.

如今，fall guy是指被诱骗为他人的犯罪或不正当行为担责的人。许多情况下都有在出问题是公开承担责任的替罪羊。

A fall guy takes the rap 3 for something wrong or illegal. He accepts responsibility and punishment for what someone else did. The fall guy may have been involved in the situation, but was not the person who should be blamed.

替罪羊为错误或非法的事情承担责任，也就是承担他人犯事的责任和惩罚。替罪羊可能已经被卷入这种状况，但不是应当受到责难的人。

The word rap has meant blame for several hundred years. The expression to take the rap first was used about one hundred years ago.

Rap这个单词几百年前就指“惩罚”。Take the rap这个短语最初被用到是在大约一百多年前。

Another similar expression is bum 4 rap. A person receives a bum rap if he is found guilty of a crime...but is really innocent 5.

另一个类似短语是bum rap（不公正的责难或惩罚）。受到不公正惩罚的这个人被认为有罪，但实际上很无辜。

Sometimes, a fall guy may not realize he is the fall guy until he is the victim of a bum rap. In that case, he may feel that he has been framed 7. To frame 6 someone is to create false evidence to make an innocent person seem guilty.

有时候，替罪羊在自己成为不公正惩罚的牺牲者前，可能没有意识到自己是替罪羊。在这种情况下，他可能认为自己被诬陷。诬陷他人是指制造虚假证据使得无辜者看上去好像有罪。

Some word experts say the expression to frame someone comes from the way wood must be fitted closely 8 around a painting or photograph to frame it. In the same way, evidence must be designed perfectly 9 if it is to frame an innocent person to make him or her seem guilty.

有些词汇专家表示，to frame someone这个短语源自做相框时木板必须和画或照片紧密贴合。同样，如果要诬陷一个无辜者使其看上去像有罪，证据必须被设计得非常完美。

This VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES was written by Marilyn Rice Christiano. This is Warren Scheer.