词汇典故—做个好人

词汇典故—做个好人

Now, the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES. We present more expressions about food. They are from Elenir Scardueli, a listener¹ in Brazil.

这里是美国之音慢速英语词汇典故，我们将讲解更多有关食物的表达，是来自巴西的听众Elenir Scardueli提供的。

My mother always told us there is no use crying over spilled milk. That means² you should not get angry when something bad happens and cannot be changed. People said my mother was a good egg. She would always help anyone in need. We never had to walk on eggshells around her. We did not have to be careful about what we said or did because she never got angry at us. She also told us you have to break some eggs to make an omelet. This means you have to do what is necessary to move forward.

我妈妈总是会说不要为打翻的牛奶哭泣(there is no use crying over spilled milk)，意思是不好的事情发生了，且不能改变，那就不应该生气。人们说我妈妈是好人(a good egg)，她总是愿意帮助需要帮助的人，我们从来不需要在她面前小心翼翼(walk on eggshells)，不需要在意自己的所说所做，因为她从来不会生我们的气。她总是告诉我们有所得必有所失(you have to break some eggs to make an omelet)，意思是必须要往前看。

My mother believed you are what you eat. A good diet is important for good health. She would always give us nutritious³ food. She liked serving us meat and potatoes for dinner. Meat and potatoes can also mean the most important part of something. It describes someone who likes simple things. Here is another expression about meat: one man’s meat is another man’s poison⁴. In other words, one person might like something very much while another person might hate the same thing.

我妈妈认为食如其人(you are what you eat)，良好的饮食对健康有好处。她总是给我们有营养的食物，她喜欢让我们晚餐吃肉土豆，Meat and potatoes还可表示事物最重要的部分，或形容喜欢简单东西的人。还有一个表达是关于肉的，甲之蜜糖，乙之砒霜(one man’s meat is another man’s poison)。也就是说，一个人喜欢一样东西，而另一个人可能讨厌这样东西。

My father was also a good and honest person. People said he was the salt of the earth. He would never pour salt on a wound⁵, or make someone feel worse about something that was already a painful experience. However, sometimes he told us a story that seemed bigger than life. So we had to take it with a grain of salt. That is, we could not believe everything he told us.

我的父亲是个善良诚实的人，人们说他是好人(the salt of the earth)，他从来不在别人伤口上撒盐(pour salt on a wound)。不过他有时会讲一些脱离生活的事(a story that seemed bigger than life)，所以我们必须加以分析(take it with a grain of salt)，不能将他说的全都信以为真。

My husband has a good job. He makes enough money to support our family. So we say he brings home the bacon⁶. He can cut the mustard⁷, or do what is expected of him at work. It is easy to find my husband in a crowd. He stands almost two meters tall. He is a tall drink of water.

我的丈夫有份好工作，他挣足够多的钱来养家，所以我说他挣钱养家(brings home the bacon)。他能cut the mustard，意思是能在工作上达到要求，在人群中很容易找到我丈夫，他身高近两米，是个大块头(a tall drink of water)。

I take the train to work. It is not a pleasant ride because the train can be full of people. It is so crowded that we are packed like sardines⁸ – just like small fish in a can.

我乘火车去上班，这可不是个愉快的旅程，因为火车上满是人。火车上的人挤得像沙丁鱼(packed like sardines)，就像罐子里的小鱼。

My supervisor⁹ at work is sometimes out to lunch. She is out of touch and does not always know what is going on in our office. Yet she is right about one thing: there is no such thing as a free lunch. Something may appear to be free of charge, but there may be a hidden cost.

我的上司有时候神志不清(out to lunch)，会犯迷糊，不知道办公室发生了什么。不过她在一件事上是对的，天下没有免费的午餐(there is no such thing as a free lunch)。有的东西看起来似乎是免费的，其实包含着隐藏费用。

When we fail to see problems at work, my supervisor tells us to wake up and smell the coffee. We need to pay more attention and fix the problem.

当我们看不到工作中的问题时，上司就告诉我们清醒点(wake up and smell the coffee)，我们需要注意力更集中些，来解决问题。

I once made a big mistake at the office and felt foolish. I had egg on my face.

我曾在办公室犯下大错，感到很难堪(had egg on my face)。

Over the weekend, my friend invited me to watch a football game on television. But I do not like football. It is not my cup of tea.

周末我朋友请我看电视上的足球赛，但我不喜欢足球，足球不是我的所爱(It is not my cup of tea)。

 

We hope this program has given you food for thought, that is, something to think about.

我们希望这个节目能给你一些精神食粮(food for thought)，让你有所思考。

1 listener   

n.听众；收听者

参考例句：

• I'm a regular listener to her show.我经常收听她的节目。
• She became an attentive listener.她变成了一个专心致志的聆听者。

2 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。

3 nutritious   

adj.有营养的，营养价值高的

参考例句：

• Fresh vegetables are very nutritious.新鲜蔬菜富于营养。
• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。

4 poison   

n.毒药；毒害；vt./vi.毒害；投毒

参考例句：

• The bottle is labelled "Poison".瓶上标明“有毒”。
• Don't allow evil thoughts to poison young people's minds.不允许邪念毒害青年。

5 wound   

n.创伤，伤口，伤疤，伤害，痛苦；vt.伤害，损害，使受伤；vi.打伤，伤害；wind的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• There was a gush of blood from the wound.血从伤口流出。
• The nurse gently mopped the blood from the wound.护士轻轻地抹去伤口上的血。

6 bacon   

n.咸肉，熏肉

参考例句：

• He is frying the bacon.他在煎咸肉。
• This bacon is too salty for me.这块熏咸猪肉我觉得太咸了。

7 mustard   

n.芥子，芥末，深黄色，强烈的兴趣，热情的人

参考例句：

• This meat should be seasoned with salt and mustard.这肉里应该加点盐和芥末调味。
• This mustard is hot enough to bite your tongue.这种芥末很辣，你的舌头会吃不消的。

8 sardines   

n. 沙丁鱼

参考例句：

• The young of some kinds of herring are canned as sardines. 有些种类的鲱鱼幼鱼可制成罐头。
• Sardines can be eaten fresh but are often preserved in tins. 沙丁鱼可以吃新鲜的，但常常是装听的。

9 supervisor   

n.监督人，管理人，检查员，督学，主管，导师

参考例句：

• Between you and me I think that new supervisor is a twit.我们私下说，我认为新来的主管人是一个傻瓜。
• He said I was too flighty to be a good supervisor.他说我太轻浮不能成为一名好的管理员。