出自《伊索寓言》(Aesop's Fables),有一篇狗站馬槽的故事,說(shuō)的是一頭狗躺在堆滿稻草的馬槽里,狗是不吃草的動(dòng)物,而當(dāng)馬或牛一走進(jìn)稻草時(shí),這頭狗卻朝著馬,??裣?,不準(zhǔn)食草動(dòng)物享用。因此,“狗站馬槽”就成了一個(gè)家喻戶曉的成語(yǔ)而進(jìn)入英語(yǔ)中,常用來(lái)比喻 a person who prevents others from enjoying sth that is useless to himself; a churlish fellow who will neither use a thing himself nor let others use it,諷刺那些占據(jù)說(shuō)職位或某些物質(zhì)卻不做事的人。
a dog in the manger 是個(gè)名詞性短語(yǔ),常與系動(dòng)詞連用,充當(dāng)表語(yǔ)(主語(yǔ)補(bǔ)足語(yǔ))
eg:He borrowed a lot of books from the library,but he didn't read a book.He was really a dog in the manger.
There are some officials who are only the dogs in the manger.
Smith was a dog in the manger over that roll of wire;it was no use whatever to him,but he wouldn't let us have it.