PETS-2語法講解(150)

字號:

Kittens are always playful.
    對話
    Sam: Look at your brother playing with the kitten.
    Lara: Yes, he really enjoys teasing her with that piece of string.
    Sam: He's holding it up so she has to jump for it.
    Lara: Kittens are always playful, aren't they?
    Sam: Yes they are, that's why they're such fun.
    Lara: It's a pity they seem to lose much of their playfulness when they get older.
    山姆:看你弟正在和小貓玩耍。
    拉臘:不錯,他很喜歡拿那根細繩逗弄小貓。
    山姆:他高高拿起繩子,誘小貓?zhí)S。
    拉臘:小貓一般都很頑皮,你說是嗎?
    山姆:不錯。所以它們才會那么有趣。
    拉臘:可惜它們長大后,似乎就不這樣愛玩了。
    拉臘說:Kittens are always playful。Kitten是‘小貓’,兒語略作kitty,兼用來說成年的貓,例如:"Here, kitty." cried the child(那孩子大叫:‘貓貓,來這里!’)雌貓總是非常關(guān)心小貓的安全,有時甚至不許主人走近。所以,to have kittens(有小貓)即‘十分緊張或煩惱’,例如:She was having kittens until her husband was reported safe(她聽到丈夫安全,才放下心頭大石)。拉臘的弟弟喜歡逗弄小貓。‘逗弄’英文叫tease,例如:(1) Stop teasing the cat by pulling its tail(不要再拉貓兒尾巴逗弄它了)。(2) Tom teased the dog with a bone held just out of its reach(湯姆拿著一根骨頭,在狗兒剛剛構(gòu)不著的地方逗它)。以‘所欲可望而不可即’手法逗弄人家,英文叫tantalize。這個字有一個典故:古時里底亞(Lydia)國王坦塔羅斯(Tantalus)獲罪于天,解送冥府受刑,站在深及脖子的水中,懸在面前的是一碩果累累的樹技。但他每次伸手取果子充饑,樹枝就會自動升到他剛剛構(gòu)不著的地方;每次低頭要喝水,水就會自動退下去,使他一滴不能沾唇。這就是tantalize一字的來源,例如:(1) He held the bone tantalizingly before the dog/He tantalized the dog with the bone(他拿著骨頭,可望而不可即的逗那只狗)。(2) She was so much tantalized by the sight of chocolate that she almost abandoned her diet plan(她看見巧克力,食指大動,幾乎放棄節(jié)食大計)。