中式英语之鉴.pdf

中式英语之鉴 100 句
01. 有他这颗扫帚星,什么事情都办不成。
[误] With et like him, nothing can be plished.
[正] With a jinx like him, nothing can be :“扫帚星”是中国人
对“慧星”(comet)的俗称,因其后面象拖着的一条像扫帚一样的长尾巴而得名。在中国古
代,“扫帚星”被认为是灾难的预兆,并被用来比喻不吉利的人或事;祸根:(person or thing
that is thought to bring)bad luck(to sb/sth); curse。et 虽然没有这层
含义,但却有一个对应的说法,即 jinx。例:There's a jinx on/Someone's put a jinx on
this car: it's always giving me trouble. “这辆汽车上有什么妨人的东西,总给我找麻
烦”。


,各有所爱。
[误] Some prefer radish but others prefer cabbage.
[正] Tastes differ.

注:Tastes differ/vary 是句英语谚语,除此以外,原句还可翻译成 No dish suits all
tastes 或 You can never make everyone happy 等。《新概念英语》第三册第 23 课的标题
是:One man's meat is another man's poison,表达的很生动。总之,应采取意译。


,从不认错。
[误] He has always got a hard mouth and never admit a fault.
[正] He never says uncle.

注:say (cry) uncle: to give up or in; to surrender; to admit defeat. Mainly used
by boys, as when fighting。主要是男孩们打架时的用语,当一方想制服另一方时,就用命
令的口气说:“Say uncle!”这时,有的孩子为了表示不服输,就是不说。后来,say uncle 就
成了“服输”的代名词,而 not say uncle 就相当于“嘴硬”了。


。
[误] The teacher likes this sweet-mouthed little girl very much.
[正] The teacher likes this honey-lipped little girl very much.

注:中国人喜欢说“嘴甜”,但 honey-lipped 更符合英美人的语言习惯。


,因为他经常拍老师的马屁。
[误] The student all dislike him because he often pats the teacher's ass.
[正] The students all dislike him because he often licks the teacher's boots.

注:以前在欧洲,臣民见到国王与王后往往要葡匐到在,亲吻他们的靴子。后来,人们将 lick
the boots 引申为“为了某种目的而讨好某人”,它与汉语的“拍马屁”含义一样。在美国英
语中,“拍马屁”还有另一种说法,即 polish the apple,它典出以前的学生用擦亮的苹果
来讨好老师。


?迈克把他的女朋友给甩了。
[误] Have you ever heard that Mike broke up with his girlfriend.
[正] Have you ever heard that Mike dumped his girlfriend.

注:break up with sb. 虽然表示“与某人分手了”,但并没说明是谁先提出来的。而 dump 的
原意指“倾倒垃圾”,用在这里则表示像倒垃圾一样地甩掉。


。
[误] We will build our motherland into a socialist modern powerful country.
[正] We will build our