2017考研英語(yǔ)拓展閱讀：13個(gè)讓你看不懂的英文習(xí)語(yǔ)的起源

　　Have you ever had to "separate the wheat from thechaff"? Or "fly by the seat of your pants"?

　　你曾經(jīng)“把糠從小麥里篩出來(lái)”(separate the wheatfrom the chaff)過(guò)嗎?或者“讓屁股蛋來(lái)引領(lǐng)飛行方向”(fly by the seat of your pants)過(guò)嗎?

　　Linguistic researchers found the origins of these andother everyday phrases that don't make sense tonon-English speakers in a study commissioned byPrivilege Insurance.

　　在一項(xiàng)由Privilege保險(xiǎn)公司委托開(kāi)展的研究中，語(yǔ)言學(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)，這些以及其它日常習(xí)語(yǔ)的起源在非英語(yǔ)使用者看來(lái)并說(shuō)不通。

　　Keep scrolling to see the 12 origins of everyday phrases, as well as one bonus phrase no onecan agree on.

　　來(lái)看看以下這12個(gè)眾說(shuō)紛紜的日常習(xí)語(yǔ)的起源，最后還有一個(gè)附贈(zèng)的習(xí)語(yǔ)哦。

　　If you are very drunk, you may be "three sheets to the wind." The phrase comes from having aship's sails properly fastened.

　　如果你喝得酩酊大醉，也許你就成了“三條風(fēng)中凌亂的帆繩”(three sheets to the wind)。這一習(xí)語(yǔ)來(lái)自于適度拉緊的船帆。

　　According to researchers, "sheets" refer to the ropes that fasten a sail. If one of your sheetsisn't properly tied down, the ship would become difficult to control and would be "to the wind,"or moving erratically.

　　研究者稱，sheets指的是固定船帆的繩索。一旦一條繩索沒(méi)有綁緊，船便會(huì)變得難以控制，隨風(fēng)行駛，或者飄搖不定。

　　To "fly by the seats of your pants," or improvise without a clear plan, was popularized afterDouglas Corrigan's 29-hour flight from Brooklyn to Dublin in 1938.

　　“讓屁股蛋來(lái)引領(lǐng)飛行方向”(fly by the seats of your pants)，即沒(méi)有清晰計(jì)劃只憑感覺(jué)做事。1938年道格拉斯•科里根從布魯克林飛行了29個(gè)小時(shí)到都柏林，隨后這一短語(yǔ)便流行起來(lái)。

　　The phrase was used in a 1938 headline in The Edwardsville Intelligencer to describeCorrigan’s off-book flight. He was meant to fly to California, but diverted his plane to Dublininstead.

　　1938年，《愛(ài)德華茲維爾訊報(bào)》的頭條標(biāo)題使用的就是這個(gè)短語(yǔ)，來(lái)形容科里根這次計(jì)劃外的飛行。他本來(lái)要飛到加利福尼亞，可卻掉頭去了都柏林。

　　"Corrigan had filed for a transatlantic flight two days earlier but it was rejected because hisplane was not considered fit for the job," the researchers wrote. "Upon landing in Dublin heclaimed his compass had packed up."

　　“兩天前科里根提交了飛越大西洋的申請(qǐng)，但是被拒絕了，因?yàn)樗�的飛機(jī)被認(rèn)為不適宜進(jìn)行這樣的任務(wù)，”研究員寫道，“到了都柏林一著陸，他就說(shuō)他的指南針壞了”。

　　One mechanic said Corrigan "flies by the seat of his pants," which was said to be an old flyingexpression for going aloft without instruments or radio.

　　一位機(jī)械師說(shuō)科里根“讓屁股蛋來(lái)引領(lǐng)飛行方向”，這是一個(gè)古老的飛行用語(yǔ)，用來(lái)指代不憑借任何儀器或無(wú)線電的飛行。

　　"Bite the bullet," or doing something unpleasant, comes from when soldiers would bite a bulletwhen they were being operated on without anesthetic.

　　“咬子彈”(bite the bullet)，即做令人不愉快的事。這一習(xí)語(yǔ)來(lái)源于過(guò)去士兵們做手術(shù)不打麻藥，只能咬子彈忍痛。

　　There is some debate over whether or not this is true. The phrase has been in use since 1796and has always meant to have a "stiff upper lip" before doing something you don't want to do.

　　關(guān)于這一來(lái)源是不是真的還存在爭(zhēng)議。這一短語(yǔ)從1796年就開(kāi)始使用了，總是用來(lái)指在做不愿做的事情時(shí)咬緊牙關(guān)(have a stiff upper lip)。

　　It may have come from a belief that people can derive courage from biting a bullet, according toresearchers.

　　研究者稱，這也許來(lái)自于一種信仰，認(rèn)為人們能從咬子彈中獲得勇氣。

　　A very close-up or right-on target is "point blank." It comes from the French "point blanc," andrefers to the center of the target for shooting or archery practice.

　　一個(gè)閉合的或正中央的靶心就是“白點(diǎn)”(point blank)，來(lái)自于法語(yǔ)point blanc，指代用來(lái)射擊或射箭練習(xí)的靶子的中心。

　　"Point blanc" literally translates as a white point, and refers to the dead center of the target.

　　Point blanc字面上譯作白點(diǎn)，指靶子的正中心。

　　The original meaning of "right on target" then evolved to mean something close up, making iteasier to hit the middle of the target.

　　這個(gè)短語(yǔ)最初的意思“正中靶心”(right on target)，就演變成某種閉合的圓圈的意思，這樣的圓圈可使打中靶心變得更容易。

　　If you're "separating the wheat from the chaff," you're distinguishing between quality andworthlessness. The phrase actually comes from the Bible.

　　如果你在“把糠從小麥里篩出來(lái)”(separating the wheat from the chaff)，那么你就在甄別精華和糟粕。這個(gè)習(xí)語(yǔ)其實(shí)來(lái)源于《圣經(jīng)》。

　　Chaff is the protective casings of the seeds of cereal grain. Humans can't eat it, but livestockcan. It's not as important as, say, wheat.

　　糠是保護(hù)谷物種子的外殼，人不能吃，但牲畜可以。它只是沒(méi)有小麥等谷物那么重要而已。

　　In Matthew 3:12, John the Baptist says, "His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear histhreshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchablefire."

　　在《馬太福音》第三章第12節(jié)中，施洗約翰說(shuō)道：“他手里拿著簸箕，要揚(yáng)凈麥場(chǎng)，把麥子收進(jìn)倉(cāng)里，卻用不滅的火將糠秕燒盡�！�

　　In the Old Testament the image of winnowing is also used in Psalm 1:4 :"…the wicked! Theyare like chaff that the wind blows away."

　　揚(yáng)谷的畫面也出現(xiàn)在《舊約》里《詩(shī)篇》的第一章第四節(jié)：“…惡人!他們就像糠秕被風(fēng)吹散�！�

　　We can thank Shakespeare for committing the phrase "Carry your heart on your sleeve" — orbeing transparent — to paper. Iago famously says it in "Othello."

　　我們應(yīng)該感謝莎士比亞，因?yàn)槭撬麑ⅰ鞍研拇髟谛渥由稀?carry your heart on your sleeve)寫在紙上，意思是輕易表露感情，是《奧賽羅》中伊阿古的名言。

　　In Othello Act 1 Scene 1, Iago says “But I will wear my heart upon my sleeve…” meaning hewould be exposed.

　　《奧賽羅》第一幕第一場(chǎng)，伊阿古說(shuō)：“但是我會(huì)把心戴在袖子上”，意味著他會(huì)敞開(kāi)心扉。

　　Aside from Shakespeare's genius brain, other possible origins include the tokens knights wouldwear from ladies during jousting matches and a marriage festival from the Middle Ages.

　　除了天才的莎士比亞，這句話還有可能來(lái)源于中世紀(jì)馬上長(zhǎng)矛比武中貴婦贈(zèng)與騎士令牌，或婚禮場(chǎng)合，等等。

　　If you do something by the "skin of your teeth," you're barely managing to do it. One of thefirst recordings of this phrase is from the Bible.

　　如果你通過(guò)“牙齒的皮膚”(skin of your teeth)來(lái)做某件事，這說(shuō)明你勉勉強(qiáng)強(qiáng)有能力做這件事。這個(gè)短語(yǔ)最早出現(xiàn)在《圣經(jīng)》中。

　　In Job 19:20, Job says, "My bone clings to my skin and to my flesh, / And I have escaped bythe skin of my teeth."

　　在《約伯記》第19章第20節(jié)中，約伯說(shuō)：“我的皮肉緊貼骨頭，我只剩牙皮逃脫了。”

　　Teeth don't have skin, so it was likely an allusion to something small or so thin that it wasinsubstantial.

　　然而牙齒并沒(méi)有皮膚，所以這一說(shuō)法可能代指小、纖薄而不重要的東西。

　　"Bob's your uncle" is a British exclamation that means you've achieved something simply.Although its origin is debated, many researchers believe it derives from the nepotism of LordSalisbury.

　　“鮑勃是你叔叔”是一句英國(guó)習(xí)語(yǔ)，意為輕而易舉地做成某事。盡管關(guān)于此習(xí)語(yǔ)的起源眾說(shuō)紛紜，但很多研究者認(rèn)為它來(lái)源于索爾茲伯里勛爵的裙帶關(guān)系。

　　In 1886, Prime Minister Robert Gascoyne-Cecil (Lord Salisbury) surprisingly made Arthur BalfourChief Secretary of Ireland; Balfour was ‘Bob’s’ favorite nephew.

　　在1886年，英國(guó)首相•加斯科•塞西爾(索爾茲伯里勛爵)任命亞瑟•貝爾福為愛(ài)爾蘭布政司;而貝爾福是鮑勃最喜愛(ài)的侄子。

　　There are a few other phrase origin possibilities, but this is the likeliest of the bunch.

　　也許這句話還有其它來(lái)源，但這種解釋的可能性最大。

　　A "kangaroo court" means that there has been a fast and unfair legal procedure. It likelycomes from during the Gold Rush when American courts would skip procedures for quicksentencing.

　　“袋鼠法庭”(kangaroo court)指的是美國(guó)潦草而不公正的審判程序。這句話有可能來(lái)源于淘金熱時(shí)期，因?yàn)槟莻�(gè)時(shí)期的法庭為了快速判決會(huì)省略掉一些程序。

　　Even though Kangaroos are native to Australia, this phrase dates back to the 19th centuryGold Rush in America.

　　盡管袋鼠是澳大利亞獨(dú)有的動(dòng)物，但這句話始見(jiàn)于19世紀(jì)美國(guó)淘金熱時(shí)期。

　　The most likely origin of the phrase, according to researchers, is that people who saw the quicksentencing in American courts during this time likened it to kangaroos hopping or skipping.

　　研究者稱，在淘金熱時(shí)期，人們?cè)诜ㄍド蠒?huì)經(jīng)常見(jiàn)到快速潦草的審判，而袋鼠是蹦跳著走路的，因此人們把袋鼠的蹦跳比作法庭省略程序的做法。

　　If you "win hands down," you're winning without a great effort.

　　如果你“垂著雙手取勝”(win hands down)，說(shuō)明你輕而易舉地贏得了勝利。

　　In horse racing, a jockey who's winning by a wide margin doesn't need to whip his horse to gofaster, and can win with his "hands down. "The phrase soon caught on outside the sportingworld.

　　在賽馬中，如果一名騎手覺(jué)得自己勝券在握，就不需快馬加鞭，而是可以“垂著雙手”就贏得勝利。這句習(xí)語(yǔ)迅速在體育圈之外流行了起來(lái)。