小中大二、颜色词汇的新用法
1.be red-handed ≠ “红手的”, 而是“当场的”。例如:
The pickpocket was caught red-handed.那个扒手被当场抓住了。
2.be in the green ≠“穿着绿衣服”,而是“正值豆蔻年华”。例如:
That girl student is in the green.那个女学生正值豆蔻年华。
3.be green with jealousy / envy ≠ “妒忌得发绿”,而是“很妒忌,红眼”。例如:
If you buy that car, you’ll make your friends green with envy. 你要是买了那辆车,你的朋友们肯定会妒忌死了。
4. look / feel blue ≠ “看起来是蓝色”,而是“觉得很郁闷”。例如:
Now my girlfriend has left me, things are looking blue. 最近我女朋友离开我了,我觉得很郁闷。
三、人体部位词汇的新用法
1.pull someone’s leg ≠ “拖某人的后腿”,而是“嘲弄、戏弄某人”。例如:
You’re pulling my leg! Do you really expect me to believe such nonsense? 你在戏弄我!你真以为我会相信这样的胡说八道?
2.put one’s foot in ≠ “插足”,而是“说错话,闹笑话”。例如:
You put your foot in it when you told her how much you admired her husband. They were divorced last year! 你在她面前对她的丈夫大加赞赏的时候闹笑话了,他俩去年就离婚了。
3.to make one’s blood boil ≠ “让某人热血沸腾”,而是“让某人大发雷霆”。例如:
It makes my blood boil to see how people are ruining the countryside. 看到人们正在破坏田园乡村令我大为恼火。
4.to keep body and soul together ≠ “让身体和灵魂在一起”,而是“维持生存”。例如:
When I left home, work was difficult to find, and I earned hardly enough to keep body and soul together. 当初我离开家时,工作很难找,我挣的钱仅能勉强维持生存。
四、专有名词的新用法
1.be Greek to somebody ≠ “对某人来说是希腊语”, 而是“一点儿也不懂”。例如:
I read an article about American football in the magazine, but it’s all Greek to me. 我在杂志上读了一篇介绍美式橄榄球的文章,但对此还是一窍不通。
2.Indian ink ≠ “印度墨水”,而是“墨汁”。例如:
The boy tried to paint a picture in Indian ink. 那个男孩尝试着用墨汁作一幅画。
3.take French leave ≠ “法国式告别”, 而是“不辞而别”。例如:
I took French leave yesterday so as not to disturb the meeting. 昨天开会时我不辞而别是为了不影响大家。
4.French fries ≠ “法国式油炸品”, 而是“炸土豆条”。例如:
He asked for a bag of French fries and an ice cream. 他要了一包炸薯条和一个冰激凌。
5.English disease ≠ “英国病”,而是“佝偻病”。例如:
The child has got the English disease. 那孩子得了佝偻病。
五、日常交流中的习语
1.I wish you break a leg. ≠ “我祝你摔断一条腿”, 而是“祝你好运”。例如:
I wish you break a leg in the coming English speech contest. 祝你在即将到来的英语演讲比赛中拥有好运气。
2. call somebody names ≠ “叫某人的名字”, 而是“辱骂某人”。例如:
It’s impolite of you to call him names even if he is wrong. 即便是他错了,你骂他也是不礼貌的。
3.eat one’s words ≠ “食言”, 而是“认错”。例如:
As soon as I’ve proved I’m not what he thinks, he’ll have to eat his words. 只要我能证明我并不像他想象的那样,他就得向我认错。
4.not worth one’s salt ≠“不值某人的盐”, 而是“不称职”。例如:
As a secretary, she is not worth her salt; as a mother of three children, she is great. 她不是一个称职的秘书,但却是三个孩子的伟大的母亲。
5.dead to the world ≠ “对全世界来说死了”, 而是“熟睡”。例如:
When they got home, the children were already dead to the world. 他们到家时,孩子们早已睡熟了。