正文翻譯

The Origins Of 10 Everyday Expressions From World Languages

10個(gè)世界日常用語的由來
作者：Matt Lindley, HotelClub （作者應(yīng)該是英國人）
寫作日期：2015年1月16日

We use idioms to pepper our speech and writing, often without even realising we’re doing it. These odd little phrases are used to express a sentiment other than their literal meaning. It doesn’t really rain cats and dogs, as the world and his wife knows.

我們經(jīng)常在演講和寫作中使用一些“成語”，很多時(shí)候我們自己都意識(shí)不到這一點(diǎn)。這些奇特的小詞組除了表達(dá)其字面意義外，還用于表達(dá)一些言外之意。全世界的男人和他們的女人都知道“rain cats and dogs ”的意思不是“天上掉貓和狗”，而是“下著傾盆大雨”。

We wanted to explore the world in all its linguistic glory, so we asked artist and illustrator Marcus Oakley to draw some of his favourite idioms from across the globe. We hope they inspire you to learn the local idioms next time you travel.

我們想探索世界上所有的語言榮耀，所以我們請(qǐng)藝術(shù)家和插畫家 馬庫斯·奧克利 從世界各地選一些他最喜歡的成語畫成畫。我們希望他們能激勵(lì)你下次旅行時(shí)學(xué)習(xí)當(dāng)?shù)氐某烧Z。

1. “Into the mouth of a wolf”
Language: Italian
Translation: In bocca al lupo
Meaning: Good luck!

1、掉進(jìn)狼嘴里
語言： 意大利語
翻譯： In bocca al lupo
含義： 祝你好運(yùn)！

“Into the mouth of a wolf” is a very popular Italian phrase that’s similar to our “break a leg,” and perhaps much more understandable. You’d say it to someone facing a tough trial or nerve-wracking performance, such as an exam or a concert. But don’t say “thank you” in response: it’s bad luck. The correct answer is “may the wolf die.”

“掉進(jìn)狼嘴里”是一個(gè)非常流行的意大利語短語，類似于我們的“break a leg”（打斷一條腿），也許更容易理解。你可以對(duì)一個(gè)正要參加一場(chǎng)艱難考驗(yàn)或緊張表演的人說這句話，比如他正面對(duì)一場(chǎng)考試或演出一場(chǎng)音樂會(huì)。別人對(duì)你這么說時(shí)，你不能說“謝謝”作為回應(yīng)：這是壞運(yùn)氣。正確回答方式是“哦，狼可能死了”。

2. "Not my circus, not my monkey"
Language: Polish
Translation: Nie mój cyrk, nie moje malpy
Meaning: Not my problem

2、不是我的馬戲團(tuán)，不是我的猴子
語言：波蘭語
翻譯：Nie mój cyrk, nie moje malpy
含義： 不關(guān)我事，和我無關(guān)

While more cryptic than just saying “not my problem”, the Polish expression “not my circus, not my monkeys” makes perfect sense, and is a lot more fun to say. Poland can offer a traveller some difficulties in terms of cultural customs — holding your thumbs means good luck, not crossing your fingers, for example. You’ll probably need a bit of luck, what with all those monkeys running around.

說波蘭語中的“不是我的馬戲團(tuán)，不是我的猴子”比說“不關(guān)我事，和我無關(guān)”更神秘，也非常有意義，而且說起來更有趣。在文化習(xí)俗方面，波蘭可以給旅行者提供一些困難——比如，在他們的文化中，不是交叉手指，而是握住拇指意味著好運(yùn)。你可能需要點(diǎn)運(yùn)氣，因?yàn)槟切┖镒拥教巵y跑（意思是你不注意別人的文化和習(xí)俗，可能會(huì)惹上事）。

We all know that Asian countries have the best proverbs. Well, they also have some fantastic idioms, too. “Having a wide face” means you have lots of friends and are well liked. It could be based on reality, as men with wide faces supposedly earn more money and are more attractive to women. Or it could come from the Chinese concept of “face”, which is where we get our own term, “l(fā)osing face,” from.

我們都知道亞洲國家有最好的諺語。嗯，他們也有一些奇妙的成語?！澳樏娲蟆币馕吨阌泻芏嗯笥?，而且很受歡迎。它可能是基于現(xiàn)實(shí)的，因?yàn)閾?jù)稱寬臉的男人會(huì) 賺更多的錢， 并且 對(duì)女人更吸引力?；蛘咚赡軄碜灾袊摹懊孀印备拍?，這是我們自稱“失面子”的地方。
-----（譯注：總感覺這個(gè)是我們的“面子大”）

4. “To have the midday demon”
Language: French
Translation: Le démon de midi
Meaning: To have a midlife crisis

4、 擁有正午惡魔
語言： 法語
翻譯：Le démon de midi
含義：陷入中年危機(jī)

For the funniest idioms, look no further than our cross-channel neighbors in France. “To have the midday demon” means “to have a midlife crisis.” And what better way to explain reaching 50 and suddenly swapping the suit and tie for a ponytail and a Harley than demonic possession?

最搞笑的成語，莫過于我們?cè)诤{對(duì)岸的鄰居法國?！皳碛姓鐞耗А币馕吨跋萑胫心晡C(jī)”。還有什么比擁有惡魔更好的方式來解釋年滿50歲突然要把西裝和領(lǐng)帶換成馬尾辮和哈雷的呢？

5. “To feed the donkey sponge cake”
Language: Portuguese
Translation: Alimentar um burro a p?o-de-ló
Meaning: To give good treatment to someone who doesn’t need it

5、喂驢海綿蛋糕
語言： 葡萄牙語
翻譯： Alimentar um burro a p?o-de-ló
含義： 對(duì)不需要的人給予良好的治療

Portugal’s variation on the Bible’s advice about pearls and swine, “don’t feed the donkey sponge cake,” means don’t give fine treatment to those who don’t deserve it. After all, why should we have to sit around chewing raw oats because some idiot’s given all the cake to the donkey?

葡萄牙對(duì)圣經(jīng)中關(guān)于珍珠和豬的建議的不同意見是“不要喂驢海綿蛋糕”，意思是不要給那些不配的人以優(yōu)待。畢竟，我們?yōu)槭裁匆谀抢锝郎帑?，就因?yàn)橛袀€(gè)白癡把蛋糕都給了驢子？

“A cat’s jump” is in the minority of German idioms in that it doesn’t refer to either beer or sausages. Katzensprung simply means a short distance away, or “a stone’s throw” as we’d say in English. Use whichever one you’d prefer, it’s all sausages to us.

“貓?zhí)痹诘抡Z成語中并不通用，它不像啤酒和香腸那樣隨處可見。Katzensprung 簡單地說就是一段很短的距離，或者我們?cè)谟⒄Z中所說的“a stone’s throw”（丟一塊石頭的距離）。你想用哪一種都行，對(duì)我們來說都像香腸一樣，隨處可見。

7. “To give someone pumpkins”
Language: Spanish
Translation: Dar calabazas a alguien
Meaning: To reject somebody

7、給某人南瓜
語言： 西班牙語
翻譯： Dar calabazas a alguien
含義： 拒絕某人

As we’re sure you’ve guessed, “to give someone pumpkins” means to turn somebody down. It’s just one example of the colourful idioms you’ll find in Spain, and it originates from Ancient Greece, where pumpkins were considered an anti- aphrodisiac. Try eating one seductively, and you’ll probably see why.

我們確信你已經(jīng)猜到了，“給某人南瓜”意味著拒絕某人。這只是你在西班牙能找到的豐富多彩的習(xí)語的一個(gè)例子，它起源于古希臘，在古希臘南瓜被認(rèn)為是一種反傳統(tǒng)的食物- 春藥。試著誘人地吃一個(gè)，你可能會(huì)明白為什么。

As home to the Trans-Siberian Railway, Russia probably has quite a few train-related idioms. “To ride as a hare” means to ride the train without a ticket, as we all know hares are prone to do. Apparently it comes from the fact that fare-dodgers would shake like a hare whenever the ticket inspectors would come round.

作為橫貫西伯利亞鐵路的故鄉(xiāng)，俄羅斯可能有不少與火車有關(guān)的成語。“像野兔一樣騎馬”是指不用車票就可以坐火車，我們都知道野兔很容易這樣做。很顯然，這是因?yàn)槊慨?dāng)檢票員來檢票時(shí)，逃票者都會(huì)像兔子一樣發(fā)抖。

Finnish idioms have a lovely tone to them, often referencing Mother Nature and their homeland. Having “rye in your wrists” means to be physically strong, for instance, while “own land strawberry, other land blueberry” reflects Finns’ love for the motherland. “Letting a frog out of your mouth” means to say the wrong thing, which makes sense, as spitting a frog at someone is almost always the wrong thing to do.

芬蘭成語對(duì)他們來說有一個(gè)可愛的基調(diào)，經(jīng)常提到大自然母親和他們的家園。舉個(gè)例子，“手腕上有黑麥”意味著身體強(qiáng)壯，而“own land strawberry, other land blueberry”（我們的土地長草莓，別人的土地長藍(lán)莓?）則反映了芬蘭人對(duì)祖國的熱愛。“讓青蛙從嘴里出來”的意思是說錯(cuò)話，這是有道理的，因?yàn)橄蚰橙送虑嗤軒缀蹩偸清e(cuò)的。

10. “To have a stick in your ear”
Language: Danish
Translation: At have en pind i ?ret
Meaning: To not listen to someone?

10、把棍子插在耳朵里
語言： 丹麥語
翻譯：At have en pind i ?ret
含義： 不聽別人的話

A lot of Danish idioms will sound familiar to us — “not the sharpest knife in the drawer,” for instance. But Danes would “go absolutely cucumber” at you if you were to “have a stick in your ear.” This means to not listen to someone, which can be a very bad thing to do to somebody with a strong Viking ancestry.

很多丹麥成語對(duì)我們來說都很熟悉，比如“不是抽屜里最鋒利的刀”。但是如果你“耳朵里有根棍子”，丹麥人會(huì)對(duì)你說“絕對(duì)是黃瓜（絕對(duì)對(duì)你不利）”。這意味著不聽別人的話，這對(duì)一個(gè)有著強(qiáng)大北歐血統(tǒng)的人來說是一件非常不好的事情。