標籤: 成語

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three sheets in/to the wind

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酩酊大醉；醉得東倒西歪。

註：在此成語中，sheet 並非「被單」或「薄片」，而是航海用語，意為「(繫牢船帆用的) 帆腳索」。一般而言，需要三條帆腳索才能繫牢船帆。如果帆腳索沒有繫牢，船帆就會任意隨風飄揚 (flop in the wind)，船隻就會偏離航線；這也是本成語最初叫做 three sheets in the wind 的原因 － 至少可追溯到 1821 年 － 但現在大都使用 three sheets to the wind 的型態。

A sheet in the wind 是船員一句常用的口語，表示「微醉」(tipsy)，因此 three sheets in the wind 就是「酩酊大醉；醉得東倒西歪」。據說，船員還有所謂 four sheets in the wind，那就是「醉得不省人事」(unconscious)。

例句：

  • Man, he was three sheets to the wind last night, how much did he drink?! (老兄，昨晚他喝得酩酊大醉，他喝了多少?!)
  • Don’t take notice of Sam; he’s three sheets to the wind. (不用管山姆了；他喝掛了)

本文亦刊載在下列網址：
http://htmfiles.englishhome.org/idioms/idioms_numbers.htm

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run (a)round like a scalded cat; run (a)round like a blue-arsed fly

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忙得團團轉。

例句：

  • Mary’s been running around like a scalded cat making preparations for her visitors. (瑪麗為準備迎接客人一直忙得團團轉)
  • Fiona is always running round like a blue-arsed fly yet she seems to get very little work done! (菲歐娜老是忙得團團轉，但她似乎做得很少!)

本文亦刊載在下列網址：
http://htmfiles.englishhome.org/idioms/idioms_animals.htm

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比上不足，比下有餘

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英譯：
in the country of the blind, the one-eyed man is king

例句：
John: How on earth did Michael get promoted to be head of his department? He’s such a blunderer! (約翰：麥可到底是怎樣升到該部門主管的呢? 他真的是個粗心大意、常犯錯的人啊!)
Mary: In the country of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. (瑪麗：比上不足，比下有餘) － 亦即該部門其他人比他更粗心大意、更常犯錯。

本文亦刊載在下列網址：
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Before you can say Jack Robinson

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字義：在你還沒來得及說傑克‧羅賓森來訪 (他就已離去了)

轉喻：立即，馬上，一剎那，轉瞬間，一瞬間，轉眼之間

說明：根據英國詞典編纂者法蘭西斯‧葛羅斯 (Francis Grose) 1785 年出版的俚語辭典《A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue》，從前有個名叫 Jack Robinson 的人，他總是匆匆走訪親朋好友，當僕人還沒來得及通報主人說他到訪，他就已不辭而別，轉眼之間消失不見了。這就是一些人所認為的本成語的典故。然而，除此之外，該書對於本成語就未再有任何著墨了。事實上，由於傑克‧羅賓森的身份不可考，絕大多數的文獻都認為他只是個虛構人物。

不過，可以確定的是，before you can say Jack Robinson 起源於 1700 年代。這成語亦可寫成或說成 quicker than you can say Jack Robinson，而比較新的版本則是使用 before you know it 來表達相同的意思。當然了，在這三個同義成語中，can 和 know 會有時態的變化。

例句：

  • Before you could say Jack Robinson, the bird flew away. (那隻鳥轉瞬間就飛走了)
  • Before you could say Jack Robinson, he had run away. (轉眼間他就一溜煙跑走了)
  • I’ll catch a plane and be there quicker than you can say Jack Robinson. (我會馬上搭機到那裡)
  • He’ll go there to meet you before you know it. (他會立刻到那裡跟你會面)
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見錢眼開；財迷心竅；貪財

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英譯：
have an itching palm; have itching palms

註：這成語原指從前人們相信手癢是進財之兆，它亦經常以當副詞用的介系詞片語 with an itching palm 型態出現，如 My uncle was born with an itching palm. (我伯父天生貪財)。

例句：

  • He has an itching palm and will certainly accept the money. (他見錢眼開，肯定會把錢收下的)
  • Don’t trust them. They have itching palms and will certainly try to cheat you out of your prize money. (別相信他們。他們都財迷心竅，一定會想辦法騙走你的獎金)

本文亦刊載在下列網址：
http://htmfiles.englishhome.org/idioms/idioms_chinese-1.htm

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cross one’s palm with silver

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付錢給某人 (尤指算命者或有好消息奉告者)。

例句：

  • I crossed his palm with silver, but he still stood there. (我已付錢給他，但他還站那裡)
  • You will find that things happen much faster in hotels if you cross the staff’s palms with silver fairly often. (如果你常常給旅館員工一些小費，你會發現事情處理起來快了很多)

本文亦刊載在下列網址：
http://htmfiles.englishhome.org/idioms/idioms_money.htm

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死人不會告密

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英譯：
dead men tell no tales

註：這成語是小說、電影中罪犯殺人滅口時的常用語。

例句：

  • The club members liked to hold their secret meetings in a graveyard, since dead men tell no tales. (會社成員喜歡在墓地舉行秘密會議，因為死人不會告密)
  • Boss: Allen is going to tell the police that we robbed the bank. How can we stop him? (角頭老大：艾倫將要告訴賊頭我們搶銀行。我們要怎樣才能制止他?)
    Gangster: Dead men tell no tales. (黑幫份子：死人不會告密)

本文亦刊載在下列網址：
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Q：I am on the right side of age twenty. 有這種說法嗎?

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A：有! On the right/wrong side of 後接某一數目，尤其是年齡，意為「不到/超過」，如 I’m on the right side of 20. = I’m younger than 20 years of age. (我不到 20 歲)；She’s on the wrong side of 30. = She’s older than 30 years of age. (她已過 30 歲了)。

事實上，on the right/wrong side of 這片語在英文中頗為常見，除上述的年齡表示法外，常見的應用至少還有下列三項：

  1. On the right/wrong side of the law (= obeying/not obeying the law; abiding by/not abiding by the law) 意為「守法/違法；做守法/違法的事情」，如 After coming out of prison, he tried to stay on the right side of the law. (出獄後，他盡量不去做違法的事情)。
  2. On the right/wrong side of someone 意為「得到/失去某人的歡心」，如 Whatever you do, don’t get on the wrong side of your boss! (不管你做什麼，就是不要讓你的老闆不高興!)。
  3. Get up on the right/wrong side of the bed 意為「(早晨一起床就) 心情好/心情不佳」，如 I think John must have got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. (我想約翰今天早上一定心情不佳)。這成語亦可寫成 get out of the right/wrong side of the bed 或 get out of bed on the right/wrong side。就 get up on the wrong side of the bed 而言，這不就類似中文的「起床氣」了嗎!? 例如：He’s shouted at everybody in the office. I think he must have got out of bed on the wrong side. (他對辦公室裡的每個人都大吼大叫。我想他的起床氣還沒消)。

若比較 on the right side of 和 on the wrong side of 的應用範圍，後者似乎比前者來得廣泛，實例包括 born on the wrong side of the blanket 和 on the wrong side of the tracks。Born on the wrong side of the blanket 意為「私生」，如 All his life, Peter felt that people looked down on him because he was born on the wrong side of the blanket. (彼得一生都覺得別人看不起他，因為他是私生子)；Just between you and me, I suspect Mrs. Potter’s oldest child was born on the wrong side of the blanket. (你不要告訴別人，我懷疑波特太太的長子是私生子)。On/from the wrong/other side of the tracks 意為「在貧民區；出身寒貧家庭」，如 She was brought up on the wrong side of the tracks in a small southern town. (她是在南部小鎮的貧寒家庭長大的)。

關於年齡大小的說法，這裡有一篇文章可供參考。

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talk nineteen to the dozen

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聊個沒完；喋喋不休。

註：這成語原義為短話長說，亦經常寫成 to chat/gossip away nineteen to the dozen。

例句：

  • The two friends had not seen each other for ages. When they met they talked nineteen to the dozen about all they had done in that time. (這兩個朋友多年不見了，一見面就沒完沒了地談論這些年來他們所有的經歷)
  • Whenever I get together with my cousins, we always gossip away nineteen to the dozen. (每當我們表兄弟姊妹聚在一起，我們總是聊個沒完沒了)
  • Jack was chatting away nineteen to the dozen behind me and I couldn’t concentrate. (傑克在我後面嘰哩呱啦說個不停，讓我無法專心)

本文亦刊載在下列網址：
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