你在这里

成语故事

1.Walls  have ears

隔墙有耳

Once upon a time, there was a curious man.

从前,有一个好奇心很重的人。

He liked to gossip about other peoples' privacy.

他总是喜欢四处打听别人的秘密。

He knew too many secrets and found it hard to keep them all.

他知道的秘密太多了,憋在心里很难受。

One day he drank several cups of wine, and while drunk spilled all the secrets.

一天,他喝了几杯酒,结果把自己打听到的事情全部说了出来。

To his surprise, the man next door heard all he said.

他没想到,隔壁房间里的人听见了他说的话。

Very soon, everyone knew of his bad habit of gossiping.

没过多久,所有人都知道了他多嘴的坏毛病。

The walls may not have ears, but the person next door does. "This idiom is often used to alert people to be careful about their words.

墙壁虽然没有耳朵,但是隔在墙另一头的人有,这个成语现在常常用来告诫人们要谨言慎行,不要说三道四。

 

【文化链接】

 

“隔墙有耳”形容了“墙上长了耳朵”的样子,巧的是,英语中还真的有“walls have ears”(墙壁长耳)。

据载,“walls have ears”首见于希腊。传说古希腊国王Dionysius(狄奥尼西奥斯,统治着西西里最富庶的城市Syracuse)实施独裁,其手中至宝 ——耳状岩洞,可以连通整个皇宫。凭借“耳朵”岩洞,皇宫里便没有秘密,所有言语全在狄奥尼西奥斯的监听范围之内。

也有说法认为,“walls have ears”始于巴黎卢浮宫。卢浮宫原为法国王宫,据说其墙壁中安装有神秘的传声管道,可供偷听使用。王后凯瑟琳摄政时期,就是靠这种“有耳”的墙壁来偷听可疑大臣的言谈的。

大约在17世纪20年代,“walls have ears”正式进入英语词汇,用以比喻秘密也会泄露,或是告诫人们说话留心,免得被偷听。

 

 

2. Try to help the Shoots grow by pulling them upward/spoil things by excessive enthusiasm

拔苗助长

 

There once was an impatient farmer who lived during the Song Dynasty.(sòng cháo,960-1279 AD).

春秋时代,宋国有个急性子的农夫。

Everyday the anxious farmer would measure the growth of the crops.

庄稼长出禾苗以后,他每天都去观看。

To his dismay, his crops were growing much slower than he expected.

令他沮丧的是,禾苗长得太慢。

The farmer racked his brains trying to find better ways of planting in order to get quicker results.

农夫绞尽脑汁想让禾苗长快些。

One day he finally came up with a solution.

一天他终于想出方法。

He started to physically pull the crops out of the ground, thus making them taller.

他跑到田里,把禾苗一颗颗往上拔,使它们长高。

The farmer worked very hard and at day’s end was physically exhausted but mentally happy as his plan had produced the desired results.

农夫虽然很累但他很高兴看到禾苗长高。

When the farmer went home, he told his son of his “brilliant” method.

当农夫回家时,把这个好办法告诉了他儿子。

His son went to the field only to discover that all of his crops were all dead.

他的儿子赶忙跑到田里去看,禾苗全都枯萎了。

 

【文化链接】

 

To educate the young generation in such a way is just like helping the shoots grow by pulling them upward. 

用这种方法教育下一代无异于拔苗助长。

 

3.Adding Feet to a Snake

画蛇添足

 

In the Warring States Period (zhàn guó 战国,475-221BC), a man in the State of Chu (chǔ guǒ楚国) was offering a sacrifice to his ancestors. 

战国时代有个楚国人祭他的祖先。

After the ceremony, the man gave a beaker of wine to his servants.

仪式结束后,他拿出一壶酒赏给手下的几个人。

The servants thought that there was not enough wine for all them, and decided to each draw a picture of a snake;  the one who finished the picture first would get the wine. One of them drew very rapidly.Seeing that the others were still busy drawing, he added feet to the snake.

大家商量说: “我们都来画蛇,谁先画好谁就喝这壶酒。”其中有一个人先画好 了。但他看到同伴还没有画完,就又给蛇添上了脚。

 

At this moment another man finished, snatched the beaker and drank the wine, saying, 'A snake doesn't have feet. How can you add feet to a snake? 

这时,另一个人也画好了,夺过酒壶吧酒喝了,并且说:“蛇本来是没有脚的,你怎么能给它添上脚呢?”

 

【文化链接】

 

This idiom refers to ruining a venture by doing unnecessary and surplus things.

“画蛇添足”这个成语比喻做了多余而不恰当的事,反而把事情弄糟了。

 

 

4.Covering One's Ears While Stealing a Bell

掩耳盗铃

【成语来源】

At the time when Fan, a nobleman of the state of Jin, became a fugitive, a commoner found a bell and wanted to carry it off on his back.

春秋时侯,晋国贵族智伯灭掉了范氏。有人趁机跑到范氏家里想偷点东西,看见院子里吊着一口大钟。钟是用上等青铜铸成的,造型和图案都很精美。小偷心里高兴极了,想把这口精美的大钟背回自已家去。

But the bell was too big for him.

可是钟又大又重,怎么也挪不动。

When he tried to knock it into pieces with a hammer there was a loud clanging sound.

他想来想去,只有一个办法,那就是把钟敲碎,然后再分别搬回家。小偷找来一把大锤,拼命朝钟砸去,咣的一声巨响,把他吓了一大跳。

He was afraid that someone will hear the noise and take the bell from him, so he immediately stopped his own ears.

小偷着慌,心想这下糟了,这种声不就等于是告诉人们我正在这里偷钟吗?他越听越害怕,不同自由地抽回双手,使劲捂住自已的耳朵。

To worry about other people hearing the noise is understandable, but to worry about himself hearing the noise (as if stopping his own ears would prevent other people from hearing) is absurd.

“咦,钟声变小了,听不见了!”小偷高兴起来,“妙极了!把耳朵捂住不住就听不进钟声了吗!”他立刻找来两个布团,把耳朵塞住,心想,这下谁也听不见钟声了。于是就放手砸起钟来,一下一下,钟声响亮地传到很远的地方。人们听到钟声蜂拥而至把小偷捉住了。

 

5. Highly talented

才高八斗

Tsau Pi and Tsau Jr were sons of Tsau Tsau. Both were very gifted writers, and
Tsau Jr was especially quick-witted.

曹丕与曹植都是曹操的儿子,二者均有才华,特别是曹植更具文采。

After Tsau Tsau's death, Tsau Pi took over the throne of the kingdom of wei. Jealous
of Tsau Jr's literary ability, and afraid that he might cause problems, Tsau Pi was always looking for a way to kill his brother.

在曹操死后,曹丕继任大统,但他嫉妒曹植的才华,同时也惧怕曹植回谋反,所以一直在伺机杀害曹植。

One day, Tsau Pi called Tsau Jr into see him.He ordered his brother to make up a poem within the time it took to walk seven steps, adding that if he could not, his life would be in danger.

有一天,曹丕要求接见曹植,他要求曹植在他七步之内作诗一首,如果做不到,就会有生命危险。

Greatly saddened, Tsau Jr began to walk and to think. Before he had taken the seven steps, he had already finished his poem, the meaning of which was: "Brothers are of the same family, so why should the oppress each other?"

悲愤之下,曹植急中生智,作出七步诗,是的意思就是“本来就是亲兄弟,为什么要这样步步紧逼,伤及感情?”

Tsau Jr was very intelligent and loved to study. He wrote many outstanding articles which showed his artistic talent and earned him the admiration of many people. One scholar said of him: "Heaven gave the world ten decalitres of talent, and Tsau Jr alone has eight of them."

曹植文采俱佳,热爱学习,他曾做过不少才华横溢的文赋,均令世人感叹不已。曾有一位学者说道:“如若天下文采共有十斗,曹植一人独占八斗。”

Today, to say that a person "has eight decalitres of talent" is to say that he has a great aptitude for writing.

今天,如果我们说一个人“才高八斗”,就是指他“才华横溢,很有文采”。

 

【文化链接】

英文中“才高八斗”并没有特别固定的说法,“highly talented”就可以表达相应的意思,当然“highly gifted”或者是“extremely talented”都是可以的。

6. chill runs down one's spine

不寒而栗

 

During the Han dynasty (汉朝, 206BC—220AD), there was a man whose name was Yi Zong (义纵). Because of the special kindness of the mother of the emperor, Yi Zong was made a magistrate in one county.

汉武帝时,有一个人名叫义纵,因为受到太后的恩宠,做了上党郡某县令。

After taking up the official post ,he did very well in managing the official business. He was courageous and resolute in handling cases, and punished according to law anybody who violated the law, no matter whether he was a despotic gentleman who was rich and powerful or was one of the common people.

上任以后,公务办得很出色,案子处理上敢作敢为,不论是有钱有势的豪绅,还是平民, 只要犯了法,义纵秉公审办。

When Yi Zong was transferred to be the prefect of the Nanyang Prefecture (南阳郡), Ning Cheng (宁成), a despotic landlord who stopped at nothing in doing evil, was living there,in order to ingratiate himself with Yi Zong, Ning Cheng pretended to be very modest and courteous every time he met Yi Zong and saw him off.

当义纵被调任到南阳郡做河内郡都尉,当地的恶霸宁成为了讨好义纵,所以每次遇见义纵总是假装成非常谦逊恭敬的样子。

But Yi Zong had heard of the evil conducts of Ning Cheng already and, soon after he took office in Nanyang,he made investigations. It did not take much time for him to find out Ning cheng's crimes and had him put in prison.

但是,义纵对他的恶行早有所闻,到南阳后立即展开调查,很快就查清他的罪行,把他关押起来。

Later, Emperor Wu Di (汉武帝) of the Han Dynasty appointed Yi Zong the prefect of the Dingxiang Prefecture (定襄).

后来,汉武帝又任命义纵做定襄太守。

At that time, the public order in Dingxiang was very chaotic. When he took office there, there were 200 convicts in prison who had committed felonies had no implements of punishment on them.There were also more than 200 persons who offered bribes in order to absolve those serious offenders from guilt.Yi Zong treated the matter severely. He arrested all those bribers and punished the bribers and those serious offenders already in prison severely. More than 400 convicts were executed in a day.

当时定襄的社会治安十分混乱。义纵到任以后,把押在狱中的没有加开具的二百多名重犯,以及为重犯开脱罪责进行贿赂的二百多名门客亲属,一律严加追究,拘捕治罪,一天之内处死的就有四百多名。

From that day on, whenever the name of Yi Zong was mentioned,people in Dingxiang would tremble with fear --they would shiver all over though not cold.

从此以后,定襄的人一听到义纵的名字就“不寒而栗”——天气不冷却浑身发抖。

 

 

7.To draw a cake to satisfy hunger

画饼充饥

 

Lu Yu lived in the Kingdom of Wei during the Three Kingdoms periods. He was orphaned at the age of ten.

三国时代,魏国有个叫卢毓(Lú Yù )的人,很小的时候就失去了父母和两个哥哥。

So he undertook the task of supporting his sister-in-law and nephew through a period of extreme hardship.Meanwhile, he also studied hard. He was praised all around for his noble deeds and depth of knowledge.

卢毓从此辛苦工作,除了照顾哥哥们的家人外,自己还努力读书,受到大家的赞许。

Later he became an official and still worked hard and put forth valuable advice to the emperor, so the emperor placed great trust in him.

后来,卢毓做了官,仍然勤恳工作,经常给皇帝提出好建议,得到皇帝的信任。

At that time, the selection process of government officials depended on the recommendation of powerful and influential men.

那时候,朝廷选拔官吏,一般都是由有名望的人推荐,而推荐的人,一般又只在有名望的人里考虑。

These men would always recommend famous persons who were all mouth and no action which displeased the emperor. 

其实,好多有名望的人只是嘴上能说,并不会干实际的事,因此,皇帝很不满。

One time, the emperor asked Lu Yu to recommend an official and said to him: "the selection of government officials should not rely solely on one's fame which is just like a cake drawn on the ground, while it may be good to look at it does not satisfy one's hunger."

有一天,皇帝准备选拔一个有才能的人,并要卢毓推荐,还说选择人才不能光找有名声的人,名声只不过是画出来的一张饼,只能看,不能吃的。

This story gave rise to the idiom "draw a cake to satisfy hunger. " Now it is used to describe someone who uses fantasy to satisfy oneself and means that empty reputation is of no practical value.

后来,人们就用这个成语比喻自己安慰自己,不能解决实际问题的方法。

 

【文化链接】

Your action is just like drawing a cake to satisfy hunger, which has no practical effect.

你这种做法只是画饼充饥,没有任何实际作用。

 

8.be there just to make up the number/pretend to be an expert

滥竽充数

 

 

During the Warring States Period (475-221BC), the King of the State of Qi was very fond of listening to yu ensembles. He often got together 300 yu players to form a grand music.

战国时,齐宣王喜欢听竽,通常是三百人的大合奏。

The king treated his musicians very well.

齐宣王给予乐师们非常优厚的待遇。

A man named Nanguo heard about that and he managed to become a member of the band, even though he was not good at playing the instrument at all.

所以有一个叫南郭的人尽管并不擅长吹竽,也设法混进了乐队。

Whenever the band played for the king, Nanguo just stood in the line and pretended to play. Nobody realized he was making no sound at all. As a result, he enjoyed his treatment just as the other musicians did.

当乐队演奏时,他就站在队伍里假装也在吹。没有人注意到其实他连一点声音也没吹出来,所以南郭也享受到和其他乐师一样的待遇。

When the king died, his son became the new ruler who also liked the music played on the yu. However, he preferred solos so that he ordered the musicians to play the yu one by one. Therefore, Nanguo had to run out of the palace.

齐宣王死后,他的儿子继承了王位。他也喜欢听竽,可是他喜欢听独奏,所以他让乐师一个个吹给他听,于是南郭不得不逃跑了。

The idiom "be there just to make up the number" is used to mock someone who pretend to be a specialist. You can also hear people saying it about themselves to show their modesty.

“滥竽充数”这个成语用来嘲笑那些没有真正才干,却混在行家里的人。人们有时也用“滥竽充数”来表示自谦。

 

【文化链接】

其实“滥竽充数”的意思与“不懂装懂”是相近的,那在英语中就可以表达为“pretend to be an expert”,其中“pretend to be/do”的意思就是“假装是……”或者“假装做……”,而“expert”也就是“专家”的意思,所以“pretend to be an expert”也就是“假装自己是一个专家”的意思,那也就是“滥竽充数”啦~

有一本书的名字就叫做“Don't Pretend to be an Expert - Become One!”,那就可以翻译成“与其滥竽充数,不如学着吹芋”之类的。

 

9. Kong Rong gave away bigger pears

孔融让梨

 

In the Eastern Han Dynasty, there was a person called Kong Rong. He was very smart ever since he was a little boy. He had five older brothers and one younger brother.

东汉时候,有个叫孔融的人。他小时候很聪明,有五个哥哥,一个弟弟。

One day his father bought some pears, picking one of the largest and giving it to Kong Rong deliberately. But Kong Rong shook his head and picked up the smallest one.

一天爸爸买了一些梨子,特意捡了一个最大的给孔融,孔融却摇头不要,拿了一个最小的梨。

His dad was very curious, and asked: “Why?”

爸爸很好奇,就问:“为什么呢?”

Kong Rong said: “I am younger, so I should eat the smaller pear, and brothers should eat the bigger ones.”

孔融说:“我年纪小,我吃小梨,大的给哥哥吃。”

His dad was very glad after hearing his words, but asked further: “What about your younger brother who is younger than you are?”

爸爸听后很高兴,又问:“那弟弟比你还小呀?”

Kong Rong said: “I am older than him, so I should leave the bigger one to my little brother.”

孔融说:“我比弟弟大,我是哥哥,我应该把大的留给小弟弟吃。”

Later, Kong Rong became a great scholar.

后来,孔融成为了一个很有学问的人。

 

【文化链接】

“孔融让梨”这个故事告诉我们,凡事应该懂得谦让的礼仪,英语中表达“谦让谦逊”等意思可以用“modest”,有一句叫做“Modest is Hottest”,也就是“谦虚最迷人”

 

10. To win a war with words

纸上谈兵

 

In the Warring States Period (战国), the State of Zhao (赵国) had a famous general called Zhao She, whose son, Zhao Kuo, was very fond of reading books on military science and discussing strategy

战国时,赵国名将赵奢 (shē) 的儿子赵括,喜欢看兵书,并且喜爱讨论军事战术。

He could learn military texts by heart, and when discussing warfare he spoke so clearly and logically that it seemed that even his father was not his match.

他把兵书背得滚瓜烂熟,谈起打仗来头头是道,好像他的父亲都不是他的对手。

When the State of Qin attacked the State of Zhao, the ruler of Zhao ordered Zhao Kuo to lead 400,000 men to resist the attack.

当秦国攻进军攻击赵国的时候,赵王派赵括率领四十万大军去抵抗。

But since Zhao Kuo had no practical experience of battle, he was defeated and lost his life.

由于他只知道死抠书本而不会在实际中灵活运用,最后指挥失策,以致全军覆灭,他自己也中箭身亡。

Later people used this idiom to describe those who are good only at theorizing, and lack practical experience.

最后人们根据这一历史故事,把死抠书本,没有实际经验,只会夸夸其谈称为“纸上谈兵”。

 

【文化链接】

英语中“纸上谈兵”的表达方式相对比较直白,通常可以说“to win a war with words”,在经典影片《乱世佳人》中,战争爆发前夕,当南方贵族们在夸夸其谈讨论如何作战时,白瑞德就说道:

“I think it’s hard winning a war with words.”(“我认为纸上谈兵没什么作用。”)

 

11. mere copycat

东施效颦

 

In the Spring and Autumn Period (春秋时期,770-476 BC), there was a beauty in the State of Yue called Xishi (西施).

传说春秋时期,越国有一美女,名唤西施。

She often suffered from pains in her chest, and so she would often walk around doubled over and with her brows knitted.

但是西施有心口疼的毛病,所以她经常手捂胸口,皱着眉头走着。

There was an ugly girl in the village called Dongshi who envied Xishi.

村子里还住着一位丑姑娘,叫做东施,她十分嫉妒西施。

Striving to emulate Xishi, she imitated her stoop, knitting her brows at the same time.

于是东施时常效仿西施,手捂胸口,紧皱眉头。

She thought that this made her elegant, but in fact, it only made her more ugly.

东施觉得她效仿西施就会变得很美丽,但是实际上,只会使她变得更难看而已。

Later, this idiom came to be used to indicate improper imitation that produces the reverse effect.

这个典故比喻不恰当的模仿,带来相反的效果。

 

【文化链接】

 

英文中“东施效颦”可以说成“mere copycat”,“mere”有“仅仅”的意思,而“copycat”则可以表示我们常说的“山寨”,也就是“模仿的产品”,所以合在一起就是“仅仅只是山寨而已”,也就是“东施效颦”所表达的含义啦~

比如说,大家都知道美国由好莱坞Hollywood,而印度有一个宝莱坞Bollywood,所以曾有人说“宝莱坞是不是东施效颦好莱坞呢?”,英文表达就是“Bollywood a mere copycat?”,但事实其实不是哈,宝莱坞已经越来越有自己的特色,也有很多广为人知的好电影了。

 

12.Love me, love my dog.

爱屋及乌

 

There was a state called zhou (周) in the chinese history.

中国历史上有一个国家名叫“周”。

One day, the king of zhou asked his officials for advice on deal with prisoners of war.

一天,周王问他的官员,应该怎样处理战俘。

An official said, "i once heard if you love someone, you are intended to love even the crows on the roof of his house; if you hate someone, you are intended to hate even the walls and the parapets of his. The prisoners of war were enemies fighting against us. In my opinion, we'd better kill them all."

一个官员说:“我以前曾听说:如果喜欢某个人,就连停留在那人住的屋顶上的乌鸦都喜欢;如果厌恶某个人,就连那人家里的墙壁和围墙都厌恶。战俘是我们的敌人,和我们是对立的,我觉得最好把他们全部杀了。”

But the king didn't agree with him."I think we should treat the prisoners of war differently by differing them into those who are guilty and those who are not. The guilty ones will be sentenced to death in order to avoid future disasters." Another official put forward his suggestion.

周王认为这样做不行。另外一个官员也提出了自己的意见:“依我看应该把战俘区分对待,把有罪的和无罪的、好的和坏的区分开来。有罪的战俘要处死,不能留下祸患。”

The king didn't think it was a proper way, either.

周王认为这样做也不大妥当。

Then a third one said, "Your majesty, I think all the prisoners should be set free and sent back home to work in the fields and support themselves by their own labor. Moreover, you should keep strictly the rules for reward and punishment and treat your relatives and friends impartially.The people are sure to believe in you if you administer our country by morals and laws."

接着,又有一个官员说:“大王,我认为应该把这些战俘全都放了,让他们回到自己的家里,耕种田地,自食其力。而大王对自己的亲人和朋友,也要赏罚分明,不能偏心。通过道德和法律来治理国家,人民肯定会对大王信服的。”

The king thought the official's proposal was quite reasonable so he accepted and followed it.As a result, the domestic situation soon settled down and gradually the country became more stable and stronger.

 

周王听后觉得很有道理,就按这个办法去做,结果国家真的很快安定下来了,变得越来越稳定和强大。

The idiom is then used to mean that if you love someone,you'll love people and things relative to him as well.

成语“爱屋及乌”后来就被用来比喻:因为喜爱一个人,连带和他有关的人或事物也喜爱、关心。

 

【文化链接】

 

“爱屋及乌”的英语表达大家也一定都有所耳闻了吧~就是“Love me, love my dog.”字面意思就是“爱我,就要爱我的狗”,比喻一个人如果喜欢一样事物或者人,他就会喜爱关于这个事物或是人的一切,也就是“爱屋及乌”的意思啦~

这里向大家介绍一首好听的英文歌曲,就叫做“Love me, love my dog.”是由Peter Shelley演唱的,相信大家听完,一定会牢牢记住这一个有趣的英文表达。

 

13.A drop in the bucket

九牛一毛

 

Li Ling was a great general during the time of emperor Han Wu-di (hàn wǔ dì汉武帝). He was a very good fighter, and he won every battle.

西汉时代有个很有名的大将军名叫李陵,他骁勇善战,百战百赢。

One time, however, Li Ling's troops were so hopelessly outnumbered by the Huns that although they fought bravely, the whole army was soon taken captive.

有一次,虽然李陵的军队奋勇杀敌,因为兵力不足而战败投降。

Li Ling shamefully surrendered for the moment, planning to wait for an opportunity to strike back.

李陵打算暂时先忍辱投降,以便伺机等待机会反击。

But when news of the surrender reached the capital, the emperor's jealous ministers began to degrade Li Ling in front of the emperor.

但当李陵投降的消息传到首都,皇上身边嫉妒的大臣们都开始指责李陵。

What he heard made the emperor so angry that he had Li Ling's wife and mother put to death.

皇上十分气愤,他将李陵的妻子与母亲都赐死了。

Ze-ma Chian, who had always respected Li Ling, believed that he wouldn't surrender without a reason, and urged the emperor not to believe rumors.

司马迁一直很敬重李陵,他不信李陵会无缘无故投降,便谏言皇上不要听信谣言。

This time, the emperor grew angry at Sz-ma Chian, and locking him up, punished him severely.

但就因为这样,皇上便迁怒司马迁,并将他囚禁,进行严惩。

Sz-ma Chian then wrote a long letter to a friend, saying, "I am now in the middle of writing a history book. If I die, it will be as if one ox in a group on nine were to lose a single hair. I am willing to withstand punishment in order to complete this book." Sz-ma Chian finally did finish his book - the very famous Shr-Ji.

司马迁随后写了一封长信给他的朋友,说道:“我现在在写一部历史长篇,如果我死了,就如同九牛一毛般微不足道,但我愿意承受住这般的惩罚,来完成这部书。”最终,司马迁完成了这部名流千古的史学著作——《史记》。

 

【文化链接】

 

英文中对应的“九牛一毛”的表达方式是“a drop in the bucket”,意思就是“一个水桶里的一滴水”,一个大水桶里的一滴水那就是九牛一毛,少之又少啦~同时也可以翻译成“沧海一粟”或者是“微不足道”~

下面我们一起来看几个例句:

(1)"I'm sorry I scratched your car."

“很抱歉,刮花了你的车。”

"Don't worry about it. It's just a drop in the bucket. That car has more scratches on it than I can count."

别担心,小事一桩~这车本来就被刮了很多次了。

(2)When I think how many people there are in the world, I realize that my own problems are just a drop in the bucket.

当我意识到这个世界上的人是何其多,我的个人问题简直是微不足道。

下面我们来看一句特蕾莎修女的名句:

“We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.” 

“我们自己总是会觉得我们的所作所为犹如沧海一粟,但是这一整片大海却少不了这一粟。”

就因为这一句话,曾有一次公益活动的名字就叫做“We need your drop.”(我们需要你的帮助)

 

14. Without loophole

天衣无缝

Long ago, there lived a man named Guo Han.

从前, 有一个叫郭翰的人。

It was a hot summer.  He couldn't fall asleep in his bedroom, so he went into the yard to sleep.

因为夏天天热, 在屋子里无法入睡, 就到院子里去睡觉。

Not long after he lay down he saw a woman dressed in white floating down from the sky.

躺下不久,正看着天空, 忽然看见一个白衣女子从空中慢慢飘流下来。

She said to him: "I am the celestial weaver."

她对郭翰说:“我是天上的织女。”

Looking at her Guo Han noticed  that there were no seams in her garments.

郭翰看着这个女子,发现他的衣服全身无缝。

He thought this was very strange.

他觉得很奇怪。

He asked her: "Why are there no seams in your clothes?"

他就问她:“你的衣服怎么没有缝呢?”

She answered: "The garments of the immortals  are not made with a needle and thread.  How would they have seams?"

女子回答:“天上神仙的衣服,不是用针线缝出来的, 怎么会有缝呢?”

 

 

【文化链接】

“天衣无缝”的意思现在大多引申为“事物周密完善,找不出什么毛病”,也就是“没有漏洞的”意思,在英语中相对应的准确表达可以用“without loophole”,“loophole”就是“漏洞,法律空子”的意思,所以“without loophole”也就是“没有漏洞的”,“天衣无缝”的意思啦。

 

15.Show off before an expert/teach a fish how to swim

班门弄斧

 

 

Lu Ban (鲁班) was supposed to be a consummate carpenter in ancient times. 

古代有一个建筑和雕刻技术非常高超的人,名叫鲁班。

It is said that he once carved a wooden phoenix that was so lifelike that it actually flew in the sky for three days.

传说他曾用木头制作了一只五彩斑斓的凤凰,能够在空中飞翔三天不掉下来。

Thus it was considered the height of folly to show off one's skill with an axe in front of Lu Ban.

谁敢在鲁班门前卖弄使用斧子的技术,也就是说,想在大行家面前显示自的本领,这种太不谦虚的可笑行为,就叫做“班门弄斧”( 这句成语有时也用作自谦之词,表示自己不敢在行家面前卖弄自己的小本领)。

 

【成语活用】

I'm making a fool of myself trying to show off before an expert like you. 

在你面前班门弄斧,太不好意思了。

 

【文化链接】

“班门弄斧”的英文表达,常用“to teach a fish how to swim”,也就是说“去教一条鱼怎么游泳”,鱼本来就会游泳,怎么还用人来教呢?所以英语中要表示一个人“班门弄斧”做无用的行为的时候,就会用“to teach a fish how to swim”。举例来说:

My son, fresh out of college, keeps telling me how to run my business. But I've been making good money for 30 years so he's teaching a fish how to swim.

我的儿子大学刚毕业,可是他却不断地来告诉我应该怎麼做生意.我叁十年来生意做得很好,赚了不少钱.所以,他来告诉我怎麼做生意简直是班门弄斧。

 

 

16. One's own wishful thinking

一厢情愿

 

Many years ago, a farmer happened to see the King's daughter in the capital. He lost his heart to her at once.

从前,有个农夫偶然在国都看见了公主,顿时被她的美貌倾倒。

After returning, he missed the princess day and night. Soon, he was ill.

回家后,天天思念,不久就生病了。

His friends and relatives came to see him.

他的亲人和朋友都来看他。

When they knew the reason why the farmer was ill, they thought it was quite difficult to help the farmer, for the King would never consent to his daughter marrying a poor man.

他们知道农夫想娶公主后,觉得事情很难办。因为国王是不会把女儿嫁给一个农夫的。

But the sick man sighed sadly: "If I can't get the princess, I will be dead." His friends tried to persuade him, but in vain. So they had to play a trick.

可这个农夫叫道:“得不到公主我会死的。”朋友们说服不了他,只好想了一个办法骗他。

Some days later, they came to see the man again and told him they had asked the princess to marry him, but she rejected.

几天后,他们又来看农夫,并告诉他他们去见过公主,但公主拒绝了他们的请求。

In fact, they had never done it. But the foolish man believed. However, he did not give up his mind.

其实,他们根本没见过公主。但农夫相信了朋友们的话,可他并不死心。

He announced: "if I visit the princess in person, she will say yes." If he did so, you can guess the result.

他认为如果他亲自去,公主一定会答应。你可以猜想如果他亲自去会有什么结果。

Later,people use it to describe the man who only considers his own aspiration, ignoring the objective situation and others' opinions.

 

后来,人们就用“一厢情愿”来比喻一个人只顾自己的想法,不管当时的客观情况,也不理会别人的看法。

 

 

【文化链接】

自己凭空想象不一定会发生的事情,也就是“一厢情愿”。英文里要表达这句成语则会用很简单的说法“one's own wishful thinking”。因为较之hope,wish本来在涵义上就比较跟现实脱节,实现可能性比较小。我们下面来看一段对话:

Peter:Why do you keep doing extra work for Joe? He’s taking you for granted now.

Peter:你干嘛老帮John做额外的工作?他现在把你做的事当作是理所当然的。

Tina:I know he’s becoming very demanding now. But I just hope he’ll start appreciating what I’ve done for him.

Tina:我知道他现在要求越来越多了。可是我总希望他会开始感激我帮他做的事。

Peter:You’ve always been a great team player but you really deserve someone better to work with.

Peter:你向来都是最有团队精神的,不过你真应该和好一点的人共事啊。

Tina: Well, we were assigned to complete a project together. I think he will learn that it’s impossible to finish something all by oneself. And perhaps, he’ll become more supportive and thoughtful in the near future.

Tina:我们被分配要一起完成一个计划。我想他会了解,只靠自己一个人是不可能把事情做完的。或许以后他会变得比较愿意去多协助、多体谅别人。

Peter:It’s just your wishful thinking. Honestly, you’re not his mother and it’s not even your responsibility to“bring him up!”

Peter:这只是你一厢情愿的想法。老实说,你又不是他的妈妈,没有责任把他“拉扯大”啊。

 

 

17. Be afraid of one's own shadow

草木皆兵

 

 

In AD 383, the king of Former Qin (秦朝), Fu Jian (fú jiān 苻坚), led a huge army to attack Eastern Jin.

公元383年,秦王苻坚率领步兵、骑兵90万,攻打江南的晋朝。

After losing the first round of fighting, Fu Jian looked down from a city wall, and was terrified when he saw the formidable battle array of the Eastern Jin army.

在一轮战败后,苻坚从城墙俯视周遭,当他看到势不可破的东晋部队,他感到很害怕。

And then looking at the mountains around, he mistook the grass and trees for enemy soldiers.

此时,苻坚在寿春城上望见晋军队伍严整,士气高昂,再北望八公山,只见山上一草一木都像晋军的士兵一样,于是更加恐慌。

As a result, when the nervous Fu Jian led his army into battle, it suffered a crushing defeat.

后来苻坚全军覆没,带着少数残余的队伍逃回去了。

This idiom describes how one can defeat oneself by imaging difficulties.

这个成语后来形容人在极度惊恐时,疑神疑鬼的心理状态。

 

 

 

【文化链接】

 

 

英文中“草木皆兵”的相应说法可以用“afraid of one's own shadow”,也就是一个人连自己的影子都怕,当一个人连自己的影子都怕的时候,是不是就是疑神疑鬼,“草木皆兵”了呢~~

我们来一起看一个例句吧~

She stays at home all the time and never makes any new friends. She seems to be afraid of her own shadow.

她老待在家里, 从不交新朋友,感觉“草木皆兵”。

 

 

18. Honey in the mouth and swords in the stomach/Judas kiss

口蜜腹剑

 

 

Li Lin-fu was a prime minister of China during the T'ang dynasty (唐朝, 618—907AD). 

李林甫,唐玄宗时官居“兵部尚书”兼“中书令”这是宰相的职位。

He was good at both calligraphy and painting, but had a crafty and sinister personality which made him disliked by everyone.

此人若论才艺倒也不错,能书善画。但若论品德,那是坏透了,所以并不受欢迎。

Li Lin-fu would bribe the palace eunuchs and concubines to tell him what the emperor liked, and then would immediately go prepare that thing for the emperor. The emperor was therefore very fond of Li Lin-fu, and trusted him unduly.

李林甫常常贿赂宦官来告诉他皇上的喜好,然后再准备东西讨好皇上。因此皇上很倚重李林甫。

One time, the minister Li Shr-jr offended Li Lin-fu. Li Lin-fu pretended not to care, and was in fact especially nice to the minister.

有一次,大臣李适之冒犯了李林甫,李林甫表面上并不在意,还装作对这个大臣特别好。

Then on a day, he told Li Shr-jr about some gold that was hidden over in Hua Mountain, and encouraged him to suggest mining this gold to the emperor.

然后有一天,李林甫告诉李适之在华山后面藏着金子,并怂恿他让皇上去挖金。

Li Shr-jr being of an honest and upright disposition, believed that it was true, and immediately went and told the emperor.

李适之为人老实,就信以为真,马上就去告诉了皇上。

But when the emperor began to discuss this with Li Lin-fu, Li Lin-fu acted very frightened and said,
"Hua Mountain in the place where all of Your Majesty's auspicious aurora are gathered. If we were to mine that area, it could be very dangerous for you. Who is it that wants to harm you?”

玄宗立刻把李林甫找来商议,李林甫却说:“这件事我早知道了,华山是帝王风水集中的地方,怎么可以随便开采呢?别人劝您开采,恐怕是不怀好意;我几次想把这件事告诉您,只是不敢开口。”

Today we can describe someone who is two-faced and always nice on the outside and yet is mean to people behind their backs as having "Honey in the Mouth and Swords in the Stomach."

如今当我们形容一个人是两面派,表面对人温文尔雅,但暗地伤人的人时,我们就用“口蜜腹剑”这个成语。

 

 

 

【文化链接】

 

“口蜜腹剑”的英文表达是“Judas kiss”,就是“犹大之吻”的意思,该词源出于圣经故事。

Judas 是耶稣的十二门徒之一,但为了三十个银币却出卖了自己的老师耶稣。他假惺惺地向耶稣问好,并且亲吻他,以此向前来捉拿耶稣的人示意谁是耶稣,结果耶稣被他们捉走并钉死在十字架上。所以“Judas kiss”就是“口蜜腹剑”,“笑面虎”的意思啦~同时,单单用““Judas”可以表示“叛徒、背叛者”的意思,所以“play Judas(扮演 Judas 的角色)”就是“当叛徒”的意思。

我们来看一个例句:

When he said he had some extremely important information and must talk to the chief in person, no one suspected it was meant to be a Judas kiss.

当他说有些极为重要的情报,必须和头儿亲自谈时,谁也没怀疑这是个出卖的行为。

 

 

19. Be concentrating on sth

专心致志

 

Yi Qiu was known as the most famous expert at chess throughout the land.

奕秋是全国最有名的棋手。

Once he gave lessons on chess to two men.

有一次,他教两个人下棋。

One of them was completely absorbed in his teaching, listening attentively to Yi Qiu while the other, who seemed to be listening, had his mind on something else.

一个认真的听课,完全沉浸于其中。 另一个尽管看上去也在听课,其实在想其它的事情。

In fact, he was having a fancy that a swan was flying towards him and he had in his hands a bow and an arrow, ready to shoot.

他幻想有只天鹅正朝他飞来,而他拿着弓和箭准备把它射下来。

As a result, though he was having the same lesson together with the first man, yet he turned out a much inferior student.

所以,虽然他和另一个人上的是同样的课,他学得可差多了。

If one is not concentrating on his study, no skills will be learned.

不专心致志的学习,什么技能都学不会。

 

 

【文化链接】

大家是不是一直对“be concentrated on sth”和“be concentrating on sth”感到有些迷惑呢?今天就有我来给大家讲解一下吧~

我们先来看一段话:

The teacher wrote two sentences on the whiteboard and asked us what’s the difference.  “He is very concentrated on…” and “He is very concentrating on..” 

老师在白板上写下两句话,让我们说出区别,这两句句子是“He is very concentrated on…”和“He is very concentrating on..”

A girl sits besides me said it was very similar as the way “surprised” and “surprising” is used. 

做在我身边的女孩说这两句句子的区别就是“surprised”和 “surprising” 的区别类似。

He is surprised means he is surprised by something.  He is surprising means he himself is something surprising.

“He is surprised”意思就是“他感到很惊喜”,而“He is surprising”意思则是“他总是让别人感到很惊喜。”

“Good,” the teacher says,”Concentrated means something with high density, like concentrated jam and orange juice.  If you want to say the person is focusing on something mentally you should use ‘He is concentrating on…’”.  

“非常好,”老师说,“Concentrated就是说某样东西密度很高,浓度很大,就像是果酱、橘子汁”,但如果你想说某人专心致志做某事就是“He is concentrating on…”。

Oh….. my goodness, I must have been saying he is concentrated on … for decades now.

哦,我的天啊,我至少说“he is concentrated on……”有十年时间了。。。

 

20. Without loophole

天衣无缝

 

 

Long ago, there lived a man named Guo Han.

从前, 有一个叫郭翰的人。

It was a hot summer.  He couldn't fall asleep in his bedroom, so he went into the yard to sleep.

因为夏天天热, 在屋子里无法入睡, 就到院子里去睡觉。

Not long after he lay down he saw a woman dressed in white floating down from the sky.

躺下不久,正看着天空, 忽然看见一个白衣女子从空中慢慢飘流下来。

She said to him: "I am the celestial weaver."

她对郭翰说:“我是天上的织女。”

Looking at her Guo Han noticed  that there were no seams in her garments.

郭翰看着这个女子,发现他的衣服全身无缝。

He thought this was very strange.

他觉得很奇怪。

He asked her: "Why are there no seams in your clothes?"

他就问她:“你的衣服怎么没有缝呢?”

She answered: "The garments of the immortals  are not made with a needle and thread.  How would they have seams?"

女子回答:“天上神仙的衣服,不是用针线缝出来的, 怎么会有缝呢?”

【文化链接】

“天衣无缝”的意思现在大多引申为“事物周密完善,找不出什么毛病”,也就是“没有漏洞的”意思,在英语中相对应的准确表达可以用“without loophole”,“loophole”就是“漏洞,法律空子”的意思,所以“without loophole”也就是“没有漏洞的”,“天衣无缝”的意思啦。

我们一起来看一个叫做“The Loophole(漏洞)”小漫画吧,一起来感受一下“loophole”的魅力~

 

21. super good song

余音绕梁

 

 

In the Warring State Period (战国) , there was a girl in the State of Qi called Han E (韩娥) who sang beautifully.

在战国时期,有一位歌声撩人的少女,名曰韩娥。

Once when she was passing through the State of Qi she had to sing to earn money to buy food.

有一次韩娥路过齐国时,以唱歌卖艺来挣钱,以此为生。

When she left Qi the echoes of her songs clung to the beams of the houses there for three days before people realized that she had left.

当她离开齐国时,她的歌声仍在房屋的梁木间萦绕,直到三日之后,人们才意识到韩娥已经离开了。

This idiom is used to describe unforgettably beautifull singing.

这个成语就形容歌声的美丽与令人难忘。

 

 

【文化链接】

英文中“余音绕梁”虽然没有特别传神的表达,但若想表达“歌曲很好听”可以用“super good song”,也就是“超级好听的歌”的意思。其实“super+adj.”是一个十分常用的表达形式,比如“十分聪明的学生”就可以说“super clever student”,又比如“极其才华横溢的导演”就可以说“super brilliant director”。

其实,英语中表达“一首歌极其好听”还有很多不同的表达方式,小编在此为大家介绍一种很赞的表达方式,那就是“eye of the tiger”,直译就是“老虎的眼睛”,那为什么说“一首歌像老虎眼睛”就是“余音绕梁”了呢?

老虎眼本身就体现了老虎的一大优秀特质(The name itself means a significance characteristic of a tiger.),同时有一首经典的个就做“eye of the tiger”(电影《洛奇》的插曲),所以这个词本身已经成了表达“好歌”的代名词了。

 

22. Hem and haw

犹豫不决

 

 

The 'You' is a kind of wild animal which is by nature extremely suspicious.

“犹”是一种野兽,它天生性情非常多疑。

Whenever it hears a sound, it immediately becomes afraid, suspecting that there is a hunternearby who is trying to catch it, or another animal that wants to harm it. It runs up into a tree and hides, peeking out its head and scanning all around.

不论它在甚么地方找食物,或是散步,一听到声音就害怕。它怀疑有猎人要来抓它,或是别的野兽要来害它,就慌张地爬到树上躲起来。再把头探出来,偷偷地看。

After a while it climbs back down, looking here and looking there.

过了一会儿,又从树上跳下来,在地上东张西望地看看那边。

Only when it is sure that there is nothing around does it finally begin to relax.

一直到什么也没看见,才定下心来。

But then pretty soon, it will again grow afraid, and running up into a tree, begin the same routine all over again.

但是过了一会儿,它又懹疑起来,就又爬到树上,在树上停一会儿,定定心,认为没有什么危险了,才从树上跳下来。

Time and time again, the 'You' repeats this, with the result that it spends half of its day running up and down trees, and wastes a lot of energy.

就这样一次又一次地跳上跳下,跳了大半天,总是白费力气。

So, when someone is very hesitant, and cannot make a decision, others often say of this person that 'the 'You' cannot decide."

后来的人,因为“犹”天生好疑心,不果断,所以当一个人处理事情时,没有主意,不知道怎样处理,就叫做“犹豫不决”。

 

【文化链接】

英语中“犹豫不决”对应的表达可以用“hem and haw”,在这儿hem和haw这两个词都是模拟人们在开口说话前清理嗓子和鼻腔的声音。我们时而会这样做,尤其当自己确定不了该说什么才恰当的时候,更会如此。久而久之,人们就用hem and haw来描述犹豫不决或者踌躇不前了。

我们来看两个例子。

第一个例子说到个十六岁的男孩正努力说服爸爸让他去考汽车驾照。我们知道美国不少地区规定至少得满十六足岁才 能开车。

I keep asking dad to let me get my license. But all he does is hem and haw and then end up saying he wants to think it over some more.

我一直要爸爸让我去考到驾照,但是他总是支支吾吾地,末了又说他还得想想再说。这位爸爸显然是下不了决心,害怕刚够开车年龄的儿子开车闯祸,所以这段话里的hem and haw意思是支吾其词、拖延犹豫。

我们再看个也用上了hem and haw这个习惯用语的例子。这回是新闻记者在说一名参议员不敢直截了当地回答记者关于他在下届改选中作何打算的问题。

He keeps hemming and hawing about whether he'll run for another term. But I'd bet money that sooner or later he'll run all right - where else could he get a job as good?

他对自己是否会争取连任的事再三含糊其辞,但是我敢打赌他一定会参选。他能上哪儿再找到象这么好的工作呀?这名参议员跟多数政界人物一样,说话经常会给自己留有余地,不愿意把话说定了。所以这里的hemming and hawing意思也是含糊其辞、不明确表示他的决定。