英语PK台 第847期:英语里有趣的猫猫狗狗俚语

 　　Dialogue 1

　　Mark: Jingjing, check out what I got at the supermarket near your office.
　　马克: 京晶，看看我在你办公室附近那间超市买到了什么。
　　Jingjing: Pistachios? Those are my favorite nuts. That big jar must have cost a lot.
　　京晶: 开心果么? 那可是我最喜欢的坚果。这一大罐子一定花了不少钱吧。
　　Mark: They had a buy-one-get-one-free special.
　　马克: 他们正好有买一送一的特惠活动。
　　Jingjing: You lucky dog! I go to that supermarket a few times a week and have never seen nuts on sale.
　　京晶: 你真是只幸运的狗!（意思是你真幸运!）我每周都会去那家超市几次，但从来没见过坚果打折。
　　Mark: Are you trying to insult 1 me?
　　马克: （你怎么说我是狗）你想侮辱我吗?
　　Jingjing: Huh? Haven't you ever heard that idiom? A lucky dog is someone who doesn't work very hard but has good things happen to them.
　　京晶: 咦? 你没听过那个俚语吗? “幸运的狗”是指那些不需要做出什么努力，就会有好事发生在他们身上的人。
　　Mark: Oh, so you're just saying I'm lazy. I see.
　　马克: 哦，所以你就是说我懒惰咯。我明白了。
　　Jingjing: Take it easy, Mark. Hey, come to think of it, most idioms in English about dogs have to do with being lazy yet fortunate.
　　京晶: 放轻松，马克。嘿，仔细一想，英语中大多数关于狗的俚语都与懒惰但幸运有关。
　　Mark: Yeah, like “it's a dog's life.”
　　马克: 对，就比如“这过的简直是狗的生活”。
　　Jingjing: Exactly. You might say, it's a dog's life for foreigners who teach English in China.
　　京晶: 没错。你可以说，在中国教英语的外国人“简直过的是狗的生活。”
　　Mark: Hmm. I'll admit we don't have to work especially hard, and still have everything we need. Wait a second, what about “working like a dog”?
　　马克: 嗯…我承认我们确实不必特别辛苦地工作，就能获得我们所需要的一切。等一下，那“像狗一样地工作”怎么解释呢?
　　Jingjing: Could you use it in a sentence?
　　京晶: 你能用它造个句吗?
　　Mark: Sure. “I'm so tired this afternoon, because I was working like a dog all morning.”
　　马克: 当然。我今天一整个下午都很疲惫，因为我上午一直都在“像只狗一样地拼命工作”。
　　Jingjing: Yeah, I guess that means working very hard. Hey, there was one I wasn't sure about: “Love me, love my dog.”
　　京晶: 对哦，我想这里的含义是指要非常努力地工作。嘿，有一种说法我不是很确定：“爱我，就要爱我的狗。”
　　Mark: That's a saying, which means if you expect someone to love you, they should love everything about you.
　　马克: 这种说法也是个谚语，意思是如果你期待某人爱你，他们应该爱你的一切。（相当于汉语的“爱屋及乌”。）
　　Jingjing: Why does a dog get mentioned in that saying?
　　京晶: 那为什么要提到狗呢?
　　Mark: I think it's because some dogs smell bad or behave badly. So, if you love a person, you should accept that about them—even their pets.
　　马克: 我想这是因为有些狗闻起来很臭，或者行为习惯不好。所以，如果你爱一个人，就你应该接受他们的一切，包括他们的宠物。
　　“
　　New words : 习语短语
　　lucky dog 幸运儿
　　a person who doesn't try very hard but is still fortunate
　　idiom 俚语
　　a phrase that couldn't be understood from the dictionary meanings of the words, and is rather tricky 2 to use
　　it's a dog's life 不用特别辛苦工作，也能过得有模有样
　　not having to work very hard, but still having everything you need
　　working like a dog 特别努力工作，尤其体力工作
　　working very hard, doing work that is tough physically 3 but doesn't make you think much
　　Love me, love my dog. 爱屋及乌
　　Love everything about me, accept me totally.
　　saying
　　谚语，格言
　　a certain sentence that expresses wisdom or an attitude (i.e. “Don't put all your eggs in one basket.”)
　　Dialogue 2
　　Jingjing: We talked about dogs. What about cats?
　　京晶: 我们谈到了很多关于狗的俚语。那猫的呢?
　　Mark: A lot of those are negative. People tend to think of cats as bad luck, or as selfish.
　　马克: 很多关于猫的俚语都是负面的。人们倾向于认为猫代表坏运气，或自私。
　　Jingjing: I wish more people would understand cats.
　　京晶: 我真希望更多的人能正确地了解猫。
　　Mark: Me too. Nevertheless, when you say someone is being catty, it means they sound like they are being polite, but they are really insulting 4 you and being mean.
　　马克: 我也是。尽管如此，当说到某人像猫（一样狡猾）的时候，通常是指他虽然表面上听起来很有礼貌，但实际却是在刻薄地侮辱你。
　　Jingjing: That reminds me of another idiom I'm not sure I understand. “Let the cat out of the bag”—I know it's about telling a secret; but why a cat and why a bag?
　　京晶: 这让我想起了另一个我不太明白的俚语：“把猫从袋子里放出来”——我知道它的意思是泄露、揭开秘密; 但是这跟猫和袋子有什么关系呢?
　　Mark: I read somewhere that it was about merchants at a market. Pigs were usually sold in bags. And, when one guy accidentally 5 opened a bag before buying it, there was a cat.
　　马克: 我在哪儿读到过，这种说法缘起于市场上的商贩。通常在市场上装在袋子里出售的是猪，但当一个顾客在付款之前不小心打开一个袋子时，却发现在里面的是一只猫。
　　Jingjing: Oh, so it's about a disappointing surprise.
　　京晶: 哦，所以这句俚语可以指泄露了令人失望的消息。
　　Mark: Yeah, if someone told you what your birthday present was going to be, and the gift was something like a cheaper mobile 6 phone than the one you have now, you might say they let the cat out of the bag.
　　马克: 对，比如有人告诉你，他要送你的生日礼物是一部手机，但是比你现在用的手机更廉价的那种，你就可以说对方“把猫从袋子里放了出来”。
　　Jingjing: Hmm, I know sometimes guys are referred to as cats.
　　京晶: 嗯，我还知道有时候可以把男人引用称为猫。
　　Mark: Yeah, it's a slang 7 term that means “guy”, as in, “he's a cool cat”.
　　马克: 对，有一个俚语就是把一个男人比喻做“一只很酷的猫”。
　　Jingjing: That doesn't sound very negative.
　　京晶: 这种说法听起来并不负面啊。
　　Mark: That's right. It'd be about a guy you don't know very well; but you think he's sly 8 and able to handle himself in most situations.
　　马克: 没错。它是形容一个人你不太了解，但你感觉他很圆猾，无论什么情况都能应付自如。
　　Jingjing: Ok. One more, what about the Cheshire cat?
　　京晶: 这样啊，好吧。还有一个俚语，“柴郡的猫”是什么意思?
　　Mark: Oh, that's a reference 9 to Alice in Wonderland. If someone has a big smile, because they're confident about something, but you don't know what it is, you could say they're smiling like the Cheshire cat.
　　马克: 哦，那是来自《爱丽丝梦游仙境》的一个典故。如果某人咧嘴笑得很开心，因为他对某事很自信，但是你并不知道背后的缘故是什么，你就可以说他笑得像“柴郡的猫”。
　　Jingjing: That sounds good. I guess cats aren't getting such a bad rap 10 after all.
　　京晶: 听起来不错。这样一说，猫的名声似乎也没那么坏嘛。
　　Mark: Yeah, English idioms are kinda tricky.
　　马克: 是啊，英语的俚语挺有些复杂难懂的。
　　New words : 习语短语
　　(being) catty 说话表面客气，实则恶毒的
　　speaking politely but insulting someone in a mean way
　　let the cat out of the bag 走漏风声，泄露秘密
　　make a secret known to others, typically if it turns out to be disappointing
　　slang 俗语
　　a word that has a meaning different from the dictionary with certain groups of people
　　reference 提及，引用，参照
　　the name of a popular movie or book character, used to describe a person you know (among other things)
　　a bad rap 坏名声
　　a bad reputation, a way someone or something is often described badly