英式英語(yǔ)和美式英語(yǔ)之別——令美國(guó)人糊涂的英式短語(yǔ)

小編曾有一期文章展示部分令英國(guó)人困惑的美式短語(yǔ)，現(xiàn)在讓我們換換思路，看看一些令人困惑的英式短語(yǔ)。英國(guó)人常用的一些習(xí)慣用語(yǔ)或成語(yǔ)的出處含混不清，這使得親英派的人們怕是也不習(xí)慣這些不同尋常的表達(dá)方式。

 

 

1. They’re chalk and cheese. What does it mean?

A. They’re very different.

B. They’re looking pale.

C. They’re very fickle.

2. Bob’s your uncle! What does it mean?

A. You used nepotism.

B. What a coincidence!

C. You come from a rural area.

D. The task is easily achieved.

3. I’ve known her for donkey’s. What does it mean?

A. I’ve known her for a very long time.

B. She’s a jerk.

C. I don’t trust her.

D. I know a lot of her secrets.

4. Something for the weekend. What does it mean?

A. A condom

B. A time-consuming hobby

C. Marijuana

D. A duvet

5. At Her Majesty’s pleasure. What does it mean?

A. A lazy morning

B. Waiting for somebody slow

C. A beautiful sunset

D. In prison

6. Swings and roundabouts. What does it mean?

A. Ways of avoiding problem

B. Obstacles that prevent you getting somewhere

C. Gains and losses that offset each other

D. Perks of a job that aren’t mentioned in the job advert

7. Horses for courses. What does it mean?

A. Somebody wearing cloths suited to a younger person

B. Food that looks good by tastes terrible

C. A very competitive race

D. Different things suit different people

8. He’s got the hump.

A. He’s in love

B. He’s very hungry

C. He’s annoyed

D. He can drink a lot of alcohol without getting drunk

9. I need to spend a penny

A. I’m addicted to candy

B. I can’t afford to go abroad this year

C. I need to go to the toilet

D. I need to change my shoes

10. He’s on the pull

A. He’s going to get promoted

B. He relies on charity

C. He’s hoping to have sex with someone

D. He’s driving

準(zhǔn)備好看答案了嗎?往下拉!

1. A

“chalk and cheese”等同于美國(guó)人說(shuō)的“apples and oranges”，形容兩個(gè)事物或人是完全不同的或完全無(wú)法兼容的，通常的句式為“like / as different as chalk and cheese”，例如：we'll never get on—we're like chalk and cheese。

2. D

“Bob’s your uncle”據(jù)說(shuō)源于 Arthur Balfour，他曾被自己的首相叔叔 Robert Cecil(昵稱(chēng)為Bob)任命在多個(gè)頗有聲望的職位上，現(xiàn)用于表示很輕松就能完成某項(xiàng)任務(wù)。例如，Put together a couple of kitchen fitments, buy a coffee machine and Bob's your uncle.

3. A

“Donkey’s”通常是”donkey’s years”的簡(jiǎn)寫(xiě)方式，最初可能寫(xiě)作 donkey’s ears，指代某物長(zhǎng)度上很長(zhǎng)，現(xiàn)指很長(zhǎng)一段時(shí)間。例如，we've been close friends for donkey's years.

4. A

令人難以置信，“Something for the weekend”指避孕套，人們通常認(rèn)為這是售賣(mài)避孕套的理發(fā)師向顧客推銷(xiāo)時(shí)的委婉詞語(yǔ)，例如”something for the weekend, sir?”

5. D

“His sharp practice cost him a term at Her Majesty's pleasure”，如果有人 at Her Majesty’s pleasure，那他就是關(guān)押在英國(guó)監(jiān)獄里。形成這一詞組是因?yàn)榫髯畛鯎碛凶杂刹脹Q是否關(guān)押某人的權(quán)利。

6. C

Swings and roundabouts 在英式英語(yǔ)中意為“不同的行動(dòng)或選擇最終都造成毫無(wú)收益或毫無(wú)損失的情況，或所得和所失相抵消”，是不是有點(diǎn)殊途同歸或是失之東隅，收之桑榆的意思呢?更為完整的短語(yǔ)是”to gain on the swings and lose on the roundabouts”。例如，I don't want to have to, but it's swings and roundabouts.

7. D

Horses for courses 是英國(guó)諺語(yǔ)，意為“不同的人適合不同的事物”，其出處是短語(yǔ)” Different race horses would perform better on different racecourses / 不同的賽馬在不同的賽道上各有更好表現(xiàn)”，真是各有所長(zhǎng)或是各有所愛(ài)的含義吧。例如：So I'm not interested in politics, it's horses for courses.

8. C

短語(yǔ) get / have / give someone the hump 的出處并不清楚，可能是與駱駝相關(guān)，其含義為“變得或令人惱怒、無(wú)緣故發(fā)脾氣”，例如”fans get the hump when they lose”或”Debate has been raging about road safety, with people across London getting the hump.”

9. C

在英國(guó)，曾經(jīng)需要花費(fèi)一個(gè) penny 使用一次投幣式公共廁所，這就是短語(yǔ) spend a penny 替代“小便”的委婉說(shuō)法，例如”you can't get to sleep when you want to spend a penny”。

10. C

例句中的 pull 和 attractions 之間看起來(lái)有很明顯的關(guān)聯(lián)。短語(yǔ) on the pull 在英式非正式語(yǔ)境中指企圖吸引某人上床，例如”an eligible bachelor on the pull”或”I remember now why I'm not interested in going on the pull.”