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9. son of a gun 与 son of a bitch :
son of a gun 是对好友表示一种惊讶的口语( an interjection or an exclamation of surprise between very good friends ),有点像「坏蛋」、「家伙」的味道。
例如 : I have not seen you for a long time ; you ( are ) son of a gun !(你这坏蛋啊,我好久不见你了!)
但 son of a bitch (或 SOB )是美国人极为严重的骂人话( curse word ),千万不可乱用,以免闹事。因为这不但意味这位 son 没有确定的父亲,同时母亲也是缺乏道德和贞操( less virtuous )。 例如:
After the two men called each other “ son of a bitch ”( SOB ) ,they started a fight. (这两位男子互骂 SOB 後,就动起武来。)
至於 son of a gun 的来由,据说从前女人可以住在海军船上服务。结果一位女人生下孩子时,不知父亲是谁,於是船上的人,就以「 gun 」做为孩子的 paternity ,孩子也就被称为「 son of a gun 」。虽然只用在好友中,但有时也真有坏蛋的意思( evil person or a rogue )所以不是恭维语( complimentary word ),除非真正好友,少用为妙。
10. at large 与 by and large :
at large 当形容词,最常用的意思是指嫌犯脱逃,逍遥法外( escape,referring to criminal before arrest )
例如: The murder suspect is still at large. (凶手仍然逍遥法外)
而 by and large 当副词用,意思是一般而言( generally speaking on the whole )。
例如: By and large, I feel ( that ) the new proposal is sensible. (大体来说,我认为新的建议是很切合实际的。)
然而,有时 at large 也有「一般」( in general )的意思。 例如:
* The Chinese people at large are peace - loving. (一般中国人是爱好和平的)
11. Here you go 与 Here you go again :
Here you go 是指给别人东西时说:「这就是你要的」( =Here is what you want );有时也表示同意对方的意见( = you are right );有时又与 there you go 互用。
例如: The cashier said, “ Here you go !” when she gave me the change. (当收款员找我零钱时,她说:「这就是!」)
但是 Here you (或 we ) go again 意思是「你又旧事重提了」,表示对一件事情多次重复的厌烦。( feel annoyed when something is repeated over and over again )
例如: When he brought up the same issue to me, I said, “ Here you go again !”(当他向我提出同样的问题时,我说:「又是老话题了!」)
至於“ Here goes ”又是指说话者开始做某事时说:「开始了」。
例如:“ Here goes !” , shouted the racer as he started running. (当赛跑者开始跑步时,喊著「我就开始了!」)
12. near 与 near by :
near 是介系词( preposition )通常後面跟受词( object ) .
例如: The school is near the railway station. (学校在火车站附近。)
但是 near by (或 nearby )当形容词( adjective )意思是指「附近」( =close) ,只指某一地方( somewhere ),没有特定地点( no specific location )。
例如: The post office and library are near by. (邮局和图书馆都在附近。)
可见 near by (或 nearby )通常後面不加受词,不然就显得 awkward 了。所以很少人说:
I ate at a near restaurant. 不过可以说:
I ate at a nearby restaurant.; 或
The restaurant where I ate is nearby. (不过也有老外用 near )
小测验:你区分 school is open 与 the school is open 的不同吗? |
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