VOA慢速英语2011--Words and Their Stories: When the Cat’

Words and Their Stories: When the Cat’s Away

Now, the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.
Cats are the most popular pets among Americans. So it is not surprising that there are many expressions about cats. Some cats like to catch small birds, like canaries. If someone looks very proud or satisfied¹ with himself, we say he looks like the cat that ate the canary.
Sometimes, a cat likes to play with a small animal it catches.
So if you play cat and mouse with someone, you change between different kinds of behavior when dealing² with another person. For example, a child might offer something sweet to her little brother and then take it away when he reaches for it.
A cat will often catch a small animal and present it to its owner. The saying that looks like something the cat dragged in describes something in bad condition.
Two old and funny expressions describe something that is the best or finest. Americans might say that something is the cat's meow and the cat's pajamas³.
Children might call a child who is easily frightened a fraidy cat or a scaredy cat. A copycat is someone who acts just like someone else or copies another person's work. A fat cat is a person with a lot of money.
You may have known⁴ that cats spend most of their time sleeping. Sometimes people sleep for a short time during the day. This is called a cat nap⁵.
If you tell about something that was supposed to be a secret, we say you let the cat out of the bag. If you are not able to speak or answer a question someone might ask if the cat has got your tongue.
Have you ever watched children in a classroom when their teacher leaves for a few minutes? When the cat's away, the mice will play means⁶ people sometimes misbehave when there is no supervision⁷.
You may have heard this expression: curiosity⁸ killed the cat. This means being too concerned about things that are not your business might cause problems.
If your home is very small, you might say there is not enough room to swing a cat. But you probably should not try this at home!
If you ever had cats as pets, you know it is difficult to train them or to get them to do something. Cats are not like sheep or cows that can be moved in a group. So we say a difficult or impossible job is like herding⁹ cats.
We leave you with a song from the musical play, "Cats."
(MUSIC)
This VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES was written by Shelley Gollust. I'm Faith Lapidus.

1 satisfied   

adj.满意的，满足的；清偿过的；确信的，毫无疑问的v.使满意( satisfy的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• She's never satisfied with what she's got. 她对自己的所得从不感到满足。
• He had a self-satisfied smirk on his face. 他脸上挂着得意扬扬的笑容。

2 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

3 pajamas   

n.睡衣裤

参考例句：

• At bedtime,I take off my clothes and put on my pajamas.睡觉时，我脱去衣服，换上睡衣。
• He was wearing striped pajamas.他穿着带条纹的睡衣裤。

4 known   

adj.大家知道的；知名的，已知的

参考例句：

• He is a known artist.他是一个知名的艺术家。
• He is known both as a painter and as a statesman.他是知名的画家及政治家。

5 nap   

n.(白天)打瞌睡，打盹

参考例句：

• The nap of the coat has been worn off.外衣上的绒毛已经磨掉了。
• Don't bother me while I am taking my nap.我小睡的时候不要打扰我。

6 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

7 supervision   

n.监督，管理

参考例句：

• The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
• The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。

8 curiosity   

n.好奇心，新奇的事物，珍品

参考例句：

• He gave in to curiosity and opened my letter.他抑制不住好奇心，拆开了我的信。
• The children are dying of curiosity to see what's in the parcel.孩子们出于好奇，迫不及待地想看看包裹中是什么东西。

9 herding   

中畜群

参考例句：

• The little boy is herding the cattle. 这个小男孩在放牛。
• They have been herding cattle on the tableland for generations. 他们世世代代在这高原上放牧。