英语小故事大哲理

 推荐几个经典的英语小故事，边看故事边学英语。

A man was¹ going³ to the house of some rich person⁴. As² he went along⁵ the road, he saw⁶ a box of good apples at the side⁷ of the road. He said⁸, "I do not want to eat those apples; for the rich man will give me much food; he will give me very nice food to eat." Then he took⁹ the apples and threw them away into the dust¹⁰. 

He went on and came¹¹ to a river. The river had¹² become very big; so he could¹³ not go over it. He waited for some time; then he said, "I cannot go to the rich man's house today, for I cannot get over the river." 

He began to go home. He had eaten no food that day. He began to want food. He came to the apples, and he was glad to take them out of the dust and eat them. 

Do not throw good things away; you may be glad to have them at some other time. 

【译文】 

一个人正朝着一个富人的房子走去，当他沿着路走时，在路的一边他发现一箱好苹果，他说：“我不打算吃那些苹果，因为富人会给我更多的食物，他会给我很好吃的东西。”然后他拿起苹果，一把扔到土里去。 

他继续走，来到河边，河涨水了，因此，他到不了河对岸，他等了一会儿，然后他说：“今天我去不了富人家了，因为我不能渡过河。” 

他开始回家，那天他没有吃东西。他就开始去找吃的，他找到苹果，很高兴地把它们从尘土中翻出来吃了。 

不要把好东西扔掉，换个时候你会觉得它们大有用处。 

The Old Cat 
An old woman had a cat. The cat was very old; she could not run quickly, and she could not bite¹⁴, because she was so old. One day the old cat saw a mouse; she jumped and caught the mouse. But she could not bite it; so the mouse got¹⁵ out of her mouth and ran¹⁶ away, because the cat could not bite it. 

Then the old woman became¹⁷ very angry because the cat had not killed¹⁸ the mouse. She began to hit the cat. The cat said, "Do not hit your old servant¹⁹. I have worked for you for many years, and I would²⁰ work for you still, but I am too old. Do not be unkind²¹ to the old, but remember what good work the old did²² when they were young." 

【译文】 

老猫 

一位老妇有只猫，这只猫很老，它跑不快了，也咬不了东西，因为它年纪太大了。一天，老猫发现一只老鼠，它跳过去抓这只老鼠，然而，它咬不住这只老鼠。因此，老鼠从它的嘴边溜掉了，因为老猫咬不了它。 

于是，老妇很生气，因为老猫没有把老鼠咬死。她开始打这只猫，猫说：“不要打你的老仆人，我已经为你服务了很多年，而且还愿意为你效劳，但是，我实在太老了，对年纪大的不要这么无情，要记住老年人在年青时所做过的有益的事情。”

Teacher:Why are you late for school every morning? 

Tom:Every time I come to the corner,a sign says,"School-Go slow". 

老师:为什么你每天早晨都迟到? 
汤姆:每当我经过学校的拐角处,就看见一个牌子上写着"学校----慢行". 
A Good Boy 

Little Robert asked his mother for two cents²³. "What did you do with the money I gave²⁴ you yesterday?" 
"I gave it to a poor old woman," he answered. 
"You're a good boy," said the mother proudly²⁵. "Here are two cents more. But why are you so interested²⁶ in the old woman?" 
"She is the one who sells the candy²⁷." 

好孩子 

小罗伯特向妈妈要两分钱。 
“昨天给你的钱干什么了？” 
“我给了一个可怜的老太婆，”他回答说。 “你真是个好孩子，”妈妈骄傲地说。“再给你两分钱。可你为什么对那位老太太那么感兴趣呢？” 
“她是个卖糖果的。” 

Drunk²⁸ 

One day, a father and his little son were going home. At this age, the boy was interested in all kinds of things and was always asking questions. Now, he asked, "What's the meaning²⁹ of the word 'Drunk', dad?" "Well, my son," his father replied³⁰, "look, there are standing³¹ two policemen. If I regard³² the two policemen as four then I am drunk." 
"But, dad," the boy said, " there's only ONE policeman!" 

醉酒 

一天，父亲与小儿子一道回家。这个孩子正处于那种对什么事都很感兴趣的年龄，老是有提不完的问题。他向父亲发问道：“爸爸，‘醉’字是什么意思？” “唔，孩子，”父亲回答说，“你瞧那儿站着两个警察。如果我把他们看成了四个，那么我就算醉了。” “可是，爸爸， ”孩子说，“那儿只有一个警察呀！”

 

The City Mouse and the Country Mouse 

Once there were two mice³³. They were friends. One mouse lived in the country; the other mouse lived in the city. After many years the Country mouse saw the City mouse; he said, "Do come and see me at my house in the country." So the City mouse went. The City mouse said, "This food is not good, and your house is not good. Why do you live in a hole in the field³⁴? You should come and live in the city. You would live in a nice house made³⁵ of stone. You would have nice food to eat. You must come and see me at my house in the city." 

The Country mouse went to the house of the City mouse. It was a very good house. Nice food was set³⁶ ready for them to eat. But just as they began to eat they heard a great noise. The City mouse cried, " Run! Run! The cat is coming!" They ran away quickly and hid³⁷. 

After some time they came out. When they came out, the Country mouse said, "I do not like living³⁸ in the city. I like living in my hole in the field. For it is nicer to be poor and happy, than to be rich and afraid." 

【译文】 

城里老鼠和乡下老鼠 

从前，有两只老鼠，它们是好朋友。一只老鼠居住在乡村，另一只住在城里。很多年以后，乡下老鼠碰到城里老鼠，它说：“你一定要来我乡下的家看看。”于是，城里老鼠就去了。乡下老鼠领着它到了一块田地上它自己的家里。它把所有最精美食物都找出来给城里老鼠。城里老鼠说：“这东西不好吃，你的家也不好，你为什么住在田野的地洞里呢？你应该搬到城里去住，你能住上用石头造的漂亮房子，还会吃上美味佳肴，你应该到我城里的家看看。” 

乡下老鼠就到城里老鼠的家去。房子十分漂亮，好吃的东西也为他们摆好了。可是正当他们要开始吃的时候，听见很大的一阵响声，城里的老鼠叫喊起来：“快跑！快跑！猫来了！”他们飞快地跑开躲藏起来。 

过了一会儿，他们出来了。当他们出来时，乡下老鼠说：“我不喜欢住在城里，我喜欢住在田野我的洞里。因为这样虽然贫穷但是快乐自在，比起虽然富有却要过着提心吊胆的生活来说，要好些。” 

个个经典，学英语的同时还能学到许多哲理。

1 was   

v.(is,am的过去式)是，在

参考例句：

• He said he was right.他说他是正确的。
• He was cold and hungry.他又冷又饿。

2 as   

conj.按照；如同

参考例句：

• He got work in a hotel as a waiter.他在一家旅馆找到了当服务生的工作。
• In the hotel,the old men were drinking away as usual.在旅馆里，这些老人和往常一样喝个不停。

3 going   

n.去，离去，地面(或道路)的状况，工作情况；(复数形式）goings: 行为；adj.进行中的，流行的，现存的

参考例句：

• We're going to listen to a report this afternoon. 今天下午我们要去听报告。
• He hates leaving the office and going on holiday.他不愿离开办公室去度假。

4 person   

n.人

参考例句：

• I would never trust in that kind of person.我绝不会相信那种人。
• She is the very person I wanted to see.她正是我要见的人。

5 along   

adv.一道，一起；prep.沿着，顺着

参考例句：

• Would you like to come along?你想一起去吗？
• They walked slowly along the road.他们沿着公路慢慢走。

6 saw   

vbl.看见(see的过去式)；n.锯；v.用锯子锯

参考例句：

• Would you like to saw a tree for me?你能为我锯棵树吗？
• The moment I saw you,I knew you were angry with me.我一看到你，就知道你在生我的气。

7 side   

n.边，旁边；面，侧面

参考例句：

• The shop is on the west side of the street.商店在街道的西边。
• There was a lot of people on every side. 到处都是人。

8 said   

v.动词say的过去式、过去分词

参考例句：

• He said to me that he could not come.他对我说他不能来。
• He said to his mother that he would do it by himself.他对他的母亲说他将自己独立做那件事。

9 took   

vt.带，载(take的过去式)

参考例句：

• I took my dog for a walk along the river.我带着狗沿那条河散步。
• It took me about two hours to cook the meat.我花了大约两个小时来煮这些肉。

10 dust   

n.灰尘，尘埃，粉末，花粉，土，骚乱&vt.拂去灰尘，撒，弄成粉末&vi. 拂去灰尘

参考例句：

• She swept the dust out.她把灰尘扫出去。
• A lot of dust had blown in. 吹进来许多灰尘。

11 came   

v.动词come的过去式

参考例句：

• I was surprised why he came here so early.他为什么那么早到这里，我很惊奇。
• The doctor came in time to save his life.医生及时来抢救他的生命。

12 had   

vbl.have的过去式和过去分词；conj.有

参考例句：

• I just had a good idea!我有个好主意！
• The boy had a small branch of a tree in his hand.这个男孩手上拿一条小树枝。

13 could   

v.能，可能(can的过去式)；aux.v.(can的过去式)能；可以

参考例句：

• Could I open the window?我可以打开窗子吗？
• I could wait ten minutes.我可以等十分钟。

14 bite   

n.咬，咬伤，一口，刺痛；（= byte）字节，位组，二进位组，信息组；v.咬，刺痛

参考例句：

• The dog may bite at you.狗会咬你的。
• Let me have a bite.让我咬一口。

15 got   

v.(get的过去式)得到，猜到，明白

参考例句：

• I just got some bad news.我刚得到一些坏消息。
• I have got far too much work to do.我要做的事太多了。

16 ran   

vbl.run的过去式

参考例句：

• He ran,and then slowed down to a walk.他跑着，然后放慢速度步行。
• As soon as Marie opened the door,the dog ran in.当玛丽一打开门，狗就跑了进来。

17 became   

v.(become的过去式)成为

参考例句：

• He became a doctor at the age of 27.他27岁时成了一名医生。
• He became a millionaire when he was still young.他还年轻时就成了百万富翁。

18 killed   

adj.被杀死的，断开的v.杀死( kill的过去式和过去分词 )；使停止[结束，失败]；破坏，减弱，抵消；使痛苦，使受折磨

参考例句：

• The family was killed in an air raid. 这家人在一次空袭中遇难。
• Two soldiers were killed in a terrorist ambush. 两名士兵遭到恐怖分子伏击而死亡。

19 servant   

n.仆人，有用物，公务员，雇员

参考例句：

• Why doesn't the servant come when I call?当我叫的时候，为何仆人没来？
• Tell the servant to knock me up at five o'clock.告诉仆人五点敲门叫醒我。

20 would   

aux.will的过去式；愿，要；常常；大概；将要，会

参考例句：

• Why would you say that?为什么你会这么说？
• Would you please help me?你能帮帮我吗？

21 unkind   

adj.不仁慈的，不和善的

参考例句：

• He was never unkind to her.他从未亏待过她。
• Unkindness often reacts on the unkind person.恶人有恶报。

22 did   

v.动词do的过去式

参考例句：

• How many goals did you score in the last game?上一场比赛你们进了几个球？
• Why did you choose basketball in the first place?你为何首先选择篮球呢？

23 cents   

n.分，一分钱的硬币( cent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• dividend payments of 50 cents a share 每股50分的股息支付
• A huge plateful like that costs only 50 cents. 这样大一盘才50美分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 gave   

vbl.（give的过去式）给予，产生，发表

参考例句：

• He asked for money and I gave him some.他要钱，我给了他一些。
• I gave you a map so you wouldn't get lost. 我给你一张地图，这样你就不会迷路了。

25 proudly   

adv.自豪地，得意地；傲慢地

参考例句：

• She proudly displayed her prize.她得意地展示所获的奖品。
• She gazed proudly at the shiny buckles on her shoes.她骄傲地注视着鞋上闪亮的扣环。

26 interested   

adj.感兴趣的；拥有权益的；有成见的v.使…感兴趣(interest的过去分词)

参考例句：

• to be interested in wildlife conservation 对野生动物保护感兴趣
• I told him I wasn't interested, but he wasn't deterred. 我已告诉他我不感兴趣，可他却不罢休。

27 candy   

n.糖果；vt.用糖煮，使结晶为砂糖；vi.结晶为砂糖

参考例句：

• I'd like a box of candy.我要一盒糖果。
• What shall I buy at the candy shop?我该买什么在水果糖店里？

28 drunk   

adj.醉酒的；(喻)陶醉的；n.酗酒者，醉汉

参考例句：

• People who drives when they are drunk should be heavily penalised.醉酒驾车的人应受重罚。
• She found him drunk when she came home at night.她晚上回家时，经常发现他醉醺醺的。

29 meaning   

n.意义，含意，目的，意图；adj.意味深长的

参考例句：

• At last he knew the meaning of life.终于，他知道了生命的意义。
• Could you catch her meaning?你明白她的意思吗？

30 replied   

v.[法律]（原告对被告）答辩( reply的过去式和过去分词 )；反响；作答；（以行动）做出反应

参考例句：

• She replied in a measured tone to his threat. 她以很有分寸的语气回答了他的威胁。
• I gathered from the way she replied that she wasn't very enthusiastic. 从她回答的语气判断，我觉得她不很热心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

31 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

32 regard   

n.关心，注意，尊敬；v.视为，注意，和...有关

参考例句：

• You have no regard for my feelings!你没有考虑到我的感情！
• More regard must be paid to safety on the roads.必须更加注意公路上的交通安全。

33 mice   

n.（mouse的复数形式）老鼠

参考例句：

• I like fish and mice.我喜欢鱼和老鼠。
• Mice are small grey animals.老鼠是灰色的小动物。

34 field   

adj.野外；n.地，田地

参考例句：

• Go into the field and clear those boys off.到田里去把那些男孩赶走。
• He is going across the field.他正穿越田野。

35 made   

v.make的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• They were not made in china.它们不是中国制造的。
• The monkey made a long arm for the peach.猴子伸臂去摘桃子。

36 set   

n.组合，集合，设定；一套，一副，一局比赛；v.放置，设定；(太阳)落下去

参考例句：

• He set to with a will and soon finished it.他下定决心做这件事，很快就完成了。
• The bus set the children down just outside the school gate.公共汽车让孩子们正好在学校门口下车。

37 hid   

hide 的过去式(分词)

参考例句：

• He hid the letter in a drawer. 他把信藏在抽屉里。
• She hid her worries behind an air of insouciance. 她掩饰着自己的烦恼，表现得无忧无虑。

38 living   

adj.活的，活着的，现存的；逼真的，一模一样的；生活的，维持生活的；n.生活，生计

参考例句：

• Nowadays it is very easy to earn a living.现今谋生很容易。
• I'll never forget that as long as I am living.这事我至死也不会忘记。