英語成語分享8 - 埋斧地下

(英語成語談) 13: 和睦相處, bury the hatchet, 休戰, 和平。北美土人印第安人 (Red Indians) 將短柄斧 (hatchet or tomhawk) 埋於地下, 互相對吸長煙斗 (calumet or peace pipe)。埋斧時將它的刃和斧柄分開後, 交互作成十字架, 上面灑以酋長的血, 尊之為長久和平的標誌。在埋斧時如果斧柄和斧刃分離, 被視為不吉之兆。此一成語中的hatchet要加定冠詞。

1. At one time we were enemies, but we've buried the hatchet and we are now on friendly terms with each other.
我們一度為敵, 但已和解, 現在互相友好。

2. At long last, the two chiefs of the Indian tribes have decided to bury the hatchet and smoke the peace pipe.
最後那兩位酋長決定和睦相處。

3. After countless burials of the hatchet, we always dig it up again. There doesn't seem to be any sign of an lasting peace.
經過不計其數的埋斧講和後, 我們總是又把斧頭挖了起來。看來似乎沒有任何不久和平之兆。

countless, numberless, 無數的;
burial 埋葬, 動詞: to bury;
to dig up, 挖出。

英語成語分享9 - 殺身成仁

(英語成語談) 12: 濫費精力, burn the candle at both ends, 亦作: 浪費錢財, 過荒唐放蕩的生活解。這是十八世紀法國作家Lesage所創文句, 法文作bruler la chandelle par les deux bouts. 它原來是指兩個僕人同時在偷主人的東西。

1. To live a fast life is like burning the candle at both ends.
過荒唐的生活有如玩命。
2. In time of grave emergency it is unavoidable for some people to burn the candle at both ends.
有些人在遇到重大緊急情況時, 難免慌張。

In time of ~, 在~時期。
Grave emergency, 嚴重緊急情況。

3. Burning the candle at both ends reduces the candle to wax in a hurry - just like a playboy having a pretty girl on each arm.
蠟蠋兩端燒很快就將燭熔化成蠟 - 正如一個花花公子, 兩臂各抱一個美女。

Reduce to wax, 熔化成蠟, to reduce, 將固體物質熔化為液體。
Reduce to ashes，燃化為灰。In a hurry亦即 very easily。

諺有: A candle lights others and consumes itself, 燭照他人而燃耗自己, 亦即"殺身成仁"之意。

英語成語分享8 - 空中樓閣

(英語成語談) 11: 吹牛, 說大話, 英語成語有: Build a castle in Spain. (在西班牙造一座城堡。)
相當於我們說的"空中樓閣"也。據說有個愛吹牛的法國人常對人說他在西班牙造了一座城堡, 故人們稱之為Chateau en Espagne (西班牙的城堡), 轉入英國成為 a castle in Spain, 亦作 a castle in the air (空中樓閣)。

1. It is foolish of you to build a castle in Spain while forgetting to drive in pilings for its foundation.
忘記打好基礎去造空中樓閣是愚蠢之舉。

2. To believe that an unexpected big fortune will come your way is to build a castle in Spain.
你相信有一筆意外的大財會到手是毫無根據的。

3.Bob went about building his castle in Spain when he spoke of inheriting his father's wealth.
包甫到處去吹牛說他繼承他父親的財產。

Come one's way, 到手的;
James devoured all the books that came his way, 阿尊貪讀了所有到手的書;
He is devouring novel after novel, 他一味貪看小說;
He is devouring every word his wife is saying, 他在傾聽他妻子說的話。

英語成語分享7 - 害群之羊

(英語成語談) 9: 我們說的"害群之馬",英語可譯作the black sheep。白羊有時會生出一隻黑羊，是變種，用以指scapegrace (無賴, 惡棍)。
　　
1.The member of the family who is always in trouble is the black sheep.
時常有麻煩的那個成員是那一家的敗家子。

2.Infrequently the black sheep of a family becomes a model citizen.
一個家庭中的敗家子極少成為模範公民的。

形容詞 Infrequent: 少見的, 偶然的。
Not infrequent, 常常發生的。
Infrequently = rarely.

3.Tracing a renegade's family background, you'll find him the black sheep.
追溯一個叛徒的家庭背景, 你會發現他是那個家庭的害群之馬。

諺有: There are black sheep in every flock (或fold), 任何羊群中都有黑羊, 亦即任何家庭 (或團體) 中免不了有害群之馬。Black sheep is a biting beast, 亦作: Black sheep is a perilous beast. (黑羊有咬人之癖, 黑羊是危險的畜牲。) 這句諺言告訴我們無賴, 惡棍有害人的習性, 避之則吉也。

英語成語分享6 - 進退維谷

(英語成語談) 8: Between the devil and the deep blue sea. 進退維谷; 處於極其危險的境地。

這是來自《聖經》馬太福音第8章第32節的諺語:耶穌說, 去罷。鬼就出來, 進入豬群。全群忽然闖下山崖, 投入海中淹死了。
(And he said to them, "Go". So they came out and went into the swine; and behold, the whole herd rushed into the waters.) 此處說的海不是死海，而是在巴勒斯坦東北部，流入約旦河的格里勒耶湖。

1. If we pay the rent to the landlady, we won't have any money for food; we are between the devil and the deep blue sea.
如果我們付女房東房租, 就沒錢付食物, 真是處於進退兩難的地步。
女房東: landlady;
男房東: landlord。

2. If she continues to live with a man she doesn't love but for his money, the day will come when she will be utterly frustrated and between the devil and the deep see.
如果她為了金錢而繼續和一個她不愛的人在一起, 她將會感到完全失望而進退兩難的。

The day will come when ... , 感到... 的一天會來臨的。
Frustrate, 沮喪、失望。
Be frustrated in ... , 在... 方面歸於失敗, 終成畫餅。

英語成語分享5 - 不利地位

(英語成語談) 7: Behind the eight ball. (處於危險的, 或者不利地位中。)
美式落袋台球中標有8字的黑球必須最後撞入袋中。如果黑球在其他的球之前被撞落袋，就要罰錢。
Eight ball = ball marked with 8(eight), 不可與 eighth ball(第個8球)混同; 同時別忘了要加定冠詞 the. 由於8字就是黑色的，美國俚語中稱大個子的黑人為 oversize eight ball.

It seems that this time I am the man behind the eight ball.
(這次看來我處於不利地位。)

By opening my mouth at the wrong time, I am always putting myself and my pals behind the eight ball.
(我總是在不適當的時候開口說話, 使自己和朋友們處於不利地位。)

At the wrong time, 不適當的時候。
At the right time, 適當的時候。
The right man in the right place. 適材適所。
Her heart is in the right place. 她的心在正常之處, 亦即她很親切, 為他人着想。

諺有: He has the ball at his foot. (或before him) 以足球在其人腳下, 喻他在此事中正獲得大好機會, 是從足球比賽中來的諺語, 意思正與behind the eight ball相反。

打波學英文~

英語成語分享4 - 找錯地方

(英語成語談) 5: Bark up the wrong tree. 有二解:
1. 獵犬向沒有獵物的樹亂吠
2. 由此轉喻 : 弄錯; 看錯; 找錯地方; 認錯了人; 怪錯了人

狗追貓, 貓逃上樹, 狗向別的樹亂吠, bark up the wrong tree 也。

1. He is barking up the wrong tree by asking John to quit his job and join his company.
(他要阿尊辭職去加入他的公司, 是認錯了人了。)

2. His vain efforts to seduce her showed he was barking up the wrong tree; she was a mother of two tots.
(他誘惑她的失敗顯示他找錯了人; 她是兩個小娃娃的媽媽了。)

3. If we let our reasoning power be overshadowed by our emotions, we would be barking up the wrong tree all the time.
(如果我們任理性被感性所遮掩, 我們會一直出錯的。)
If...would... , 虛擬式, subjunctive mood, 表示與事實不符的假設。

成語 up a tree, 亦作 up a gum tree, 是陷於困境, 進退兩難, 走投無路的意思
We are really up a gum tree to find a way out.
(我們確是處境艱困, 找不到出路。)

英語成語分享3 - 糾纏不清

(英語成語談) 4: Badger someone, 此語中之badger是及物動詞, 指(半開玩笑地) 欺負, 惹, 糾纏, 使困惱, 還價。

1. A child who has first learned to talk will badger his parents with "whys" and "whats".
(初學說話的孩子會不停地問"為甚麼" 和 "是甚麼", 令雙親困惱。)
Badger A with B = tease A with B.

2. A man of weak will is the target of criticism; even his friends would badger him into correcting his defects.
(意志薄弱的人是受批評的目標, 連他的朋友都會半開玩笑地去糾正他的弱點。)

A man of weak will, 意志薄弱的人
A woman of kindness, 親切的女人
Badger A into doing something, 唆使A去做某事

3. Even a rabbit, if badgered into a corner, will fight back.
(即使一隻兔子, 誰惹到走投無路, 也會反擊的。)

Badger 原是名詞, 獾也。 英國伊利沙伯時代, 人們將獾裝在桶中, 嗾使狗去追逐, 稱作badger baiting。由此而來的 a badger game, 以獾誘犬轉指美人計。 美國威斯康辛州別名 the Badger State, 大概是說該州多獾出沒。

英語成語分享2 - 全副武裝

（英語成語談）2：Armed to the teeth，全副武裝。從前在海上打劫西班牙商船的海盜，手舞刀槍，口中還咬一把短刀，故有此成語形容「全副武裝」，而在 teeth 前加定冠詞 the，有強調武裝齊全之意。

　　Mexican desperados during the early twenties were usually armed to the teeth with stolen fire arms and ammunition.（二十年代初墨西哥的亡命之徒往往用偷來的小武器和彈藥全副武裝起來。——Fire arms指的是rifle、pistol等小武器。）

　　The art of modern warfare does not necessarily require soldiers to be armed to teeth to be effective as combatants.（現代戰爭的戰術中作為戰鬥員的士兵並不需要全副武裝而可以發揮戰鬥功效。）

　　His utter failure at the last peace conference has taught him to arm himself to the teeth with new tricks and tactics.（上次在講和會議完全失敗，教他要以新的權謀策略將自己全副武裝起來。）Arm himself to the teeth 即 be armed to the teeth.
If your team wants to win the game, every one should be armed to the teeth with tactics.（要勝球賽，每人都得講究戰術。）

英語成語分享1 - 掌上明珠

〔英語成語談〕1： Apple of the（one's）eye ，非常重要的東西，相當於我們說的「掌上明珠」，出於《聖經》舊約．申命記，原是希伯來語中用以指眼珠，最要小心保護的東西也。注意語中apple和eye均用單數。

　　Jean, who is the youngest in a family of seven, is the apple of her parent's eye.（琴是7人家中年紀最小者，因此她父母最愛惜她。）7人之家，a family of seven；10人之群，a group of ten；50人一班，a class of fifty。　　This gold watch is the apple of my eye, Mother gave it to me as a keepsake in her late years.（這隻金手表是我最重要的東西。母親晚年時把它給我作紀念品。）

　　The precious results of democracy are the apple of the people's eye and the people will fight to maintain this ideal. （民主主義的貴重成果對國民而言是非常重要的，人民會為維持這一理想而作戰的。）　　Result = product，成果；maintain peace and order，維持和平與秩序。

害群之馬，稱為 rotten apple
聰明而判斷力強的人是 a sharp apple
低能的人是 apple-head

大家有冇諗過 apple 有咁多用途呢?