有時我們需要拒絕別人但no又很難說出口。事實上，英文中還有很多詞可以用來表達否定的意思，讓你say “no”不再重復(fù)。下面是由整理的花式拒絕的實用英語口語，大家千萬別錯過。
【篇一】花式拒絕的實用英語口語
1. No.
2. Nope.
3. No thanks, I won’t be able to make it.
4. Not this time.
5. No thanks, I have another commitment.
6. Unfortunately, it’s not a good time.
7. Sadly I have something else.
8. Unfortunately not.
9. I have something else.
10. Sorry.
11. Apologies, but I can’t make it.
12. Maybe another time.
13. Sounds great, but I can’t commit.
14. I’m booked into something else.
15. I’m not able to make that time.
16. Thanks, but no thanks.
(這句話可能聽起來會挺有禮貌，但是實際上是當(dāng)一個人有一點不耐煩或者生氣的時候用的。比如在商場，銷售員總向你推銷商品，這時候你就可以用這句話，那么他們就知道你不需要他了。)
17. I’m not able to make it this week/ month/ year.
18. I’ve got too much on my plate right now.
19. I’m not talking on anything else right now.
20. Bandwidth is low, so I won’t be able to make it work.
21. I wish I could make it work.
22. Not possible.
23. I wish I were able to.
24. If only I could!
25. I’d love to – but can’t.
26. I’m slammed.
27. Perhaps next season when things clear up.
28. I’m at the end of my rope right now, so I’ll have to take a rain check.
(take a rain check 表示“延期約會”“改天再約”)
29. If only it worked.
30. I’ll need to bow out.
31. I’m going to have to exert my NO muscle on this one.
32. I’m talking some time.
33. Thanks for thinking of me, but I can’t.
34. Nah.
(Neh/Nah 用于比較熟悉的人之間，一般是家人，或關(guān)系很親近的人，比較口語化的拒絕。)
【篇二】英語口語花式拒絕的方式
1. veto 否決;禁止
Veto joins that group of Latin words that are used as everyday parts of English. Literally translating as ‘I forbid’, this is a fairly commanding way to show your disapproval of a scheme.
Veto來源于日常拉丁詞匯。按字面翻譯為“我禁止……”，這是一個相當(dāng)強硬的方式表明你反對某個計劃。
2. out of the question 不可能
Originally meaning ‘beside the point, not relevant to the matter under discussion. One of the earliest uses of this later sense comes from Eliza Haywood’s The History of Betsy Thoughtless: ‘A marriage with miss Betsy was, therefore, now quite out of the question with him’.
最初的意思是“離題，與正在討論的問題無關(guān)的”。out of the question作為“不可能”最早出自伊麗莎海伍德的作品《貝琪的粗心歷史》中:“因此，他和貝特西小姐結(jié)婚是不可能的。
3. no siree
You would be right in thinking that siree here is derived from sir —ultimately it is, but it developed as a variant of sirrah (much used in Shakespeare), which (in turn) was formed directly from sir with a (perhaps arbitrary) suffix, as a term used when addressing men or boys with contempt.
Siree源于sir，sir是sirrah的變體，sirrah又sir和后綴(可能是arbitrary)組成，用來表示對男性的輕蔑。
4. for foul nor fair 不可能
Putting opposites together to cover a spectrum is a pretty good way to indicate that something isn’t going to happen: this one can be found as far back as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.
將反義詞放在一起表達一些不會發(fā)生的事是非常好的方式:這個用法最早可以追溯到喬叟的《坎特伯雷故事集》。
5. not on your life 一點也不;絕對不行
This emphasizes your reluctance to comply with a request –that, even if the requester’s life was at stake, you’d still be a hard pass.
這個俚語強調(diào)你不愿遵守某一個請求——即使請求者有生命危險，你也不愿意服從。
6. not on your Nelly 絕對不
The British expression not on your Nelly, in its earliest incarnation in a 94 issue of the New Statesman . Not on your Nelly is just another way of saying not on your life.
not on your Nelly是英式表達，這個表達最早出現(xiàn)在 94 年發(fā)行的《新政治家》上。Not on your Nelly是not on your life的另一種表達。
7. not on your tintype
Atintypewas a photograph taken as a positive on a thin tin plate but also found its way into this phrase, which dates to at least 900.
Tintype最初指的錫版照相法，后在大約 900年以前Tintype在短語中也有應(yīng)用。
8. not for all the tea in China絕不可能
This phrase, despite drawing on Britain’s national obsession, is actually originally from colloquial Australian English.
英國人很傾向于用這個短語，但這個短語源于澳大利亞口語。
9. not in a million years 絕不可能
People haven’t been using it for quite a million years, but it certainly dates back over a century.
這個短語的使用可以追溯到一個世紀以前，但已經(jīng)很久沒什么人使用了。
10. under no circumstances 決不
For avoidance of doubt, this one pretty much covers all bases. Circumstance was originally a noun of action or condition, in the singular, but is now usually pluralized.
為避免產(chǎn)生歧義，你可以用這個詞組來表達堅決的否定。起初詞組中的circumstance用的是單數(shù)，但現(xiàn)在都是用復(fù)數(shù)形式了。
11 . not likely 不見得;不會
Although you’re probably in complete control of the likelihood or otherwise of something happening if you say not likely, it’s an option for dismissing someone’s suggestion with a bit of sass.
如果你說not likely，你可能對事情的可能性及發(fā)生的事有一定把握。如果有人提了無禮請求，可以用這個詞拒絕。
12. not for Joe 決不
The phrase not for Joe, meaning ‘not on any account’, dates from the mid- 9th century and appears to use Joe as a non-specific person (although the phrase may have originally arisen from the name of the 8th-century comedian Joe Miller, and a popular jest-book published after his death).
短語not for Joe意思為not on any account “決不”，可以追溯到 9世紀中葉，當(dāng)時joe并不代表具體的個人，(盡管這個詞可能最早出現(xiàn)是由于 8世紀的喜劇演員喬•米勒，一個受歡迎的笑話集在他去世后出版)。
13. thumbs down 拒絕
Turning the thumb down is, of course, a gesture intended to indicate disapproval or rejection –and the term can be used figuratively for the same thing; i.e. a substitute for no –but it’s got a somewhat muddled history. The earliest uses of thumbs down and thumbs up relate to ‘the use of the thumb by the spectators in the ancient amphitheatre’–but in these instances, thumbs up would indicate rejection.
當(dāng)然將大拇指反轉(zhuǎn)向下的手勢表示反對或拒絕，這個短語可以用來代替no——但短語的來源歷史卻比較混亂。最早使用拇指向下指的是“古劇場中觀眾大拇指指向”。但是，在這些情況下，大拇指向上意味著拒絕。
14. pigs might fly 不可能
Pigs (we hate to break it to you) don’t fly, andpigs might fly, pigs have wings, and similar expressions are used to indicate impossibility or incredulity. The first known use, in this way, of pig’s grounded behaviour is not quite synonymous with no –but has the distinction of being found in Alice’s Adventures of Wonderland: ‘‘I’ve a right to think,’said Alice sharply…‘Just about as much right,’said the Duchess, ‘a(chǎn)s pigs have to fly.’’
豬當(dāng)然是不會飛的，類似的pigs might fly, pigs have wings地表達用來表示“不可能;懷疑”。第一次為眾所周知的以豬的行為作比喻的用法是在《愛麗絲夢游仙境》中，愛麗絲說：“I've a right to think(我有權(quán)思考)”。公爵夫人回答了一句“Just about as much right as pigs have to fly”(對，這個權(quán)利就像豬在天空飛翔一樣)。
15. not a cat (in hell)’s chance 沒有機會
If you think the pig did badly, the cat fares even worse: as far back as Grose’s Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue in 796, he cited ‘No more chance than a cat in hell without claws; said of one who enters into a dispute or quarrel with one greatly above his match’. Its application now is, of course, rather wider than disputers and quarrellers.
如果你認為豬的表現(xiàn)力不夠，那貓的表現(xiàn)更糟:早在在 796年，格羅斯的俗語詞典中，他以“No more chance than a cat in hell without claws;來比喻一個人進入一個對手遠比自身強大的爭議或吵架之中。當(dāng)然，現(xiàn)在的應(yīng)用更廣泛，不僅僅運用在爭吵中。
【篇三】英語口語花式拒絕的方法
uh-uh
這個詞以書面形式出現(xiàn)最早可追溯到上世紀20年代。
The imitative uh-uh is first found in its written form in the 1920s.
nix
起源于維多利亞時代的俚語，類似于早期德語中的nix，是德語nichts(nothing)的口語縮略形式。
Originally Victorian slang nix can be compared with the earlier German nix, which is a colloquial shortened form of nichts (‘nothing’).
nixie / nixy / nixey
Nix加后綴，–y/-ie的后綴通常用于寵物名和昵稱。
And it wasn’t long until this slang term was given a –y/-ie suffix, used to form pet names and familiar diminutives.
nope
Nope在17世紀是紅腹灰雀的別名，直到19世紀末開始用作“no”的意思。也是差不多時候“yep”開始用作“yes”的意思。
The earliest sense of nope (albeit an unrelated word spelled the same) was actually another name for the bullfinch, used in the early 17th century – but fast forward to the the late 19thcentury and nope is being used for no, with an apparently arbitrary extension, at around the same time that yep began being used for yes.
nay
這個詞起源于北歐，來自冰島語nei，直到14世紀后才開始頻繁使用。
This form of no is particularly characteristic of Northern English. In origin it is a borrowing from early.Scandinavian (cf. Icelandic nei). People haven’t been using this expression much since the 14th century.
nah
倫敦腔發(fā)音，“no”的非標(biāo)準拼寫。
A non-standard spelling of no, nah is often used when representing southern English pronunciation, particularly cockney speech.
no way
雖然被認為是一種俚語，但其實no way最早可以追溯到18世紀。
Though decried as slang by some, no way (for ‘no’) has a long history, dating back at least as far as the 18th century.
negative
如果你是個軍事迷，你可能會不自覺得在回答“不”的時候蹦出negative這個詞。它比“no”更清晰地表達“不”的意思，相應(yīng)地也用“affirmative”來表達“yes”。在無線電通話中，用“negative”或者“affirmative”比單純的“no”或者“yes”更清楚。
If you’re feeling in a military frame of mind, you can say negative instead of no (as opposed to affirmative for yes). This probably started as a way of saying ‘no’ over the radio with as much clarity as possible.
veto
Veto源自拉丁語，字面意思是“我不許”，是一個比較強硬的說法，用來反對某個計劃。
Veto joins that group of Latin words (including et cetera, ad hoc, and per se) that are used as everyday parts of English. Literally translating as ‘I forbid’, this is a fairly commanding way to show your disapproval of a scheme.
out of the question
原指“與討論的問題無關(guān)”，后來引申為“不考慮、不贊成”。
Originally meaning ‘beside the point, not relevant to the matter under discussion’ – that is, outside the parameters of the matter in question – this took on the meaning ‘not to be considered or countenanced’. One of the earliest uses of this later sense comes from Eliza Haywood’s The History of Betsy Thoughtless: ‘A marriage with miss Betsy was, therefore, now quite out of the question with him’.
no siree
Siree是sirrah的變種，而sirrah則來自于sir，是一種對男性輕蔑的說法。
You would be right in thinking that siree here is derived from sir — ultimately it is, but it developed as a variant of sirrah (much used in Shakespeare), which (in turn) was formed directly from sir with a (perhaps arbitrary) suffix, as a term used when addressing men or boys with contempt.
for foul nor fair
Foul和fair可以說是一對反義詞，把它們放在一起表示某件事不會發(fā)生。這個說法最早可以追溯到喬叟的《坎特伯雷故事集》。
Putting opposites together to cover a spectrum is a pretty good way to indicate that something isn’t going to happen: this one can be found as far back as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.
not on your life
這是not on your life的另外一種說法。
The British expression not on your Nelly, in its earliest incarnation in a 1941 issue of theNew Statesman, appears as not on your Nelly Duff. It is just another way of saying not on your life.
not on your tintype
“Tintype”是指一種錫版照相法，這一詞組最早出現(xiàn)于1900年。A tintype was a photograph taken as a positive on a thin tin plate but also found its way into this phrase, which dates to at least 1900.
not for all the tea in China
英國人似乎對這個詞組用得上癮了，不過它的起源卻是澳洲英語口語。
This phrase, despite drawing on Britain’s national obsession, is actually originally from colloquial Australian English.not in a million years
如果中國所有的茶還不夠夸張的話，你可以夸大時間的長度。這個用法可以追溯到一個世紀以前，不過已經(jīng)很久沒有人用它了。
If the tea in China doesn’t seem like enough of ahyperbolic reward, try exaggerating the length of time you need for debate. People haven’t been using it for quite a million years, but it certainly dates back over a century.
under no circumstances
為了讓你的否定聽上去更加堅決，不會產(chǎn)生一丁點歧義，你可以用這個詞組來表達否定的含義，幾乎可以用于任何場合。最開始詞組中的circumstance用的是單數(shù)，不過現(xiàn)在都是用復(fù)數(shù)形式了。
For avoidance of doubt, this one pretty much covers all bases. Circumstance was originally a noun of action or condition, in the singular, but is now usually pluralized.not likely
如果有人提了無禮要求，可以用這個詞回絕。
Although you’re probably in complete control of the likelihood or otherwise of something happening if you say not likely, it’s an option for dismissing someone’s suggestion with a bit of sass.
not for Joe
這個詞表示“決不，無論如何也不”，Joe不是指特定的某個人，而是泛指?？梢宰匪莸?9世紀中期。
The phrase not for Joe, meaning ‘not on any account’,dates from the mid-19th century and appears to use Joe as a non-specific person (although the phrase may have originally arisen from the name of the 18th-century comedian Joe Miller, and a popular jest-book published after his death.
thumbs down
大拇指朝下的動作表示不贊成或拒絕。這個動作的來源有些復(fù)雜。有種說法是在古羅馬圓形競技場上，觀眾用拇指朝上或者朝下來決定角斗士們的生死。不過那個時候，拇指朝上反而是反對的意思。
Turning the thumb down is, of course, a gesture intended to indicate disapproval or rejection – and the term can be used figuratively for the same thing; i.e. a substitute for no – but it’s got a somewhat muddled history. The earliest uses of thumbs down and thumbs up relate to ‘the use of the thumb by the spectators in the ancient amphitheatre’ – but in these instances, thumbs up would indicate rejection.pigs might fly
首先，豬是不會飛的，類似的說法還有Pigs don’t fly、pigs might fly、pigs have wing，都表示“不可能”。第一次為眾人所知的用法在《愛麗絲夢游仙境》中，愛麗絲說：“I've a right to think(我有權(quán)思考)”。公爵夫人回答了一句“Just about as much right as pigs have to fly”，意思是““對，你當(dāng)然有這個權(quán)利，就像豬有權(quán)利在天空飛翔一樣”
Pigs (we hate to break it to you) don’t fly, and pigs might fly, pigs have wings, and similar expressions are used to indicate impossibility or incredulity. The first known use,in this way, of pig’s grounded behaviour is not quite synonymous with no – but has the distinction of being found in Alice’s Adventures of Wonderland: ‘‘I’ve a right to think,’said Alice sharply… ‘Just about as much right,’said the Duchess, ‘a(chǎn)s pigs have to fly.
【篇一】花式拒絕的實用英語口語
1. No.
2. Nope.
3. No thanks, I won’t be able to make it.
4. Not this time.
5. No thanks, I have another commitment.
6. Unfortunately, it’s not a good time.
7. Sadly I have something else.
8. Unfortunately not.
9. I have something else.
10. Sorry.
11. Apologies, but I can’t make it.
12. Maybe another time.
13. Sounds great, but I can’t commit.
14. I’m booked into something else.
15. I’m not able to make that time.
16. Thanks, but no thanks.
(這句話可能聽起來會挺有禮貌，但是實際上是當(dāng)一個人有一點不耐煩或者生氣的時候用的。比如在商場，銷售員總向你推銷商品，這時候你就可以用這句話，那么他們就知道你不需要他了。)
17. I’m not able to make it this week/ month/ year.
18. I’ve got too much on my plate right now.
19. I’m not talking on anything else right now.
20. Bandwidth is low, so I won’t be able to make it work.
21. I wish I could make it work.
22. Not possible.
23. I wish I were able to.
24. If only I could!
25. I’d love to – but can’t.
26. I’m slammed.
27. Perhaps next season when things clear up.
28. I’m at the end of my rope right now, so I’ll have to take a rain check.
(take a rain check 表示“延期約會”“改天再約”)
29. If only it worked.
30. I’ll need to bow out.
31. I’m going to have to exert my NO muscle on this one.
32. I’m talking some time.
33. Thanks for thinking of me, but I can’t.
34. Nah.
(Neh/Nah 用于比較熟悉的人之間，一般是家人，或關(guān)系很親近的人，比較口語化的拒絕。)
【篇二】英語口語花式拒絕的方式
1. veto 否決;禁止
Veto joins that group of Latin words that are used as everyday parts of English. Literally translating as ‘I forbid’, this is a fairly commanding way to show your disapproval of a scheme.
Veto來源于日常拉丁詞匯。按字面翻譯為“我禁止……”，這是一個相當(dāng)強硬的方式表明你反對某個計劃。
2. out of the question 不可能
Originally meaning ‘beside the point, not relevant to the matter under discussion. One of the earliest uses of this later sense comes from Eliza Haywood’s The History of Betsy Thoughtless: ‘A marriage with miss Betsy was, therefore, now quite out of the question with him’.
最初的意思是“離題，與正在討論的問題無關(guān)的”。out of the question作為“不可能”最早出自伊麗莎海伍德的作品《貝琪的粗心歷史》中:“因此，他和貝特西小姐結(jié)婚是不可能的。
3. no siree
You would be right in thinking that siree here is derived from sir —ultimately it is, but it developed as a variant of sirrah (much used in Shakespeare), which (in turn) was formed directly from sir with a (perhaps arbitrary) suffix, as a term used when addressing men or boys with contempt.
Siree源于sir，sir是sirrah的變體，sirrah又sir和后綴(可能是arbitrary)組成，用來表示對男性的輕蔑。
4. for foul nor fair 不可能
Putting opposites together to cover a spectrum is a pretty good way to indicate that something isn’t going to happen: this one can be found as far back as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.
將反義詞放在一起表達一些不會發(fā)生的事是非常好的方式:這個用法最早可以追溯到喬叟的《坎特伯雷故事集》。
5. not on your life 一點也不;絕對不行
This emphasizes your reluctance to comply with a request –that, even if the requester’s life was at stake, you’d still be a hard pass.
這個俚語強調(diào)你不愿遵守某一個請求——即使請求者有生命危險，你也不愿意服從。
6. not on your Nelly 絕對不
The British expression not on your Nelly, in its earliest incarnation in a 94 issue of the New Statesman . Not on your Nelly is just another way of saying not on your life.
not on your Nelly是英式表達，這個表達最早出現(xiàn)在 94 年發(fā)行的《新政治家》上。Not on your Nelly是not on your life的另一種表達。
7. not on your tintype
Atintypewas a photograph taken as a positive on a thin tin plate but also found its way into this phrase, which dates to at least 900.
Tintype最初指的錫版照相法，后在大約 900年以前Tintype在短語中也有應(yīng)用。
8. not for all the tea in China絕不可能
This phrase, despite drawing on Britain’s national obsession, is actually originally from colloquial Australian English.
英國人很傾向于用這個短語，但這個短語源于澳大利亞口語。
9. not in a million years 絕不可能
People haven’t been using it for quite a million years, but it certainly dates back over a century.
這個短語的使用可以追溯到一個世紀以前，但已經(jīng)很久沒什么人使用了。
10. under no circumstances 決不
For avoidance of doubt, this one pretty much covers all bases. Circumstance was originally a noun of action or condition, in the singular, but is now usually pluralized.
為避免產(chǎn)生歧義，你可以用這個詞組來表達堅決的否定。起初詞組中的circumstance用的是單數(shù)，但現(xiàn)在都是用復(fù)數(shù)形式了。
11 . not likely 不見得;不會
Although you’re probably in complete control of the likelihood or otherwise of something happening if you say not likely, it’s an option for dismissing someone’s suggestion with a bit of sass.
如果你說not likely，你可能對事情的可能性及發(fā)生的事有一定把握。如果有人提了無禮請求，可以用這個詞拒絕。
12. not for Joe 決不
The phrase not for Joe, meaning ‘not on any account’, dates from the mid- 9th century and appears to use Joe as a non-specific person (although the phrase may have originally arisen from the name of the 8th-century comedian Joe Miller, and a popular jest-book published after his death).
短語not for Joe意思為not on any account “決不”，可以追溯到 9世紀中葉，當(dāng)時joe并不代表具體的個人，(盡管這個詞可能最早出現(xiàn)是由于 8世紀的喜劇演員喬•米勒，一個受歡迎的笑話集在他去世后出版)。
13. thumbs down 拒絕
Turning the thumb down is, of course, a gesture intended to indicate disapproval or rejection –and the term can be used figuratively for the same thing; i.e. a substitute for no –but it’s got a somewhat muddled history. The earliest uses of thumbs down and thumbs up relate to ‘the use of the thumb by the spectators in the ancient amphitheatre’–but in these instances, thumbs up would indicate rejection.
當(dāng)然將大拇指反轉(zhuǎn)向下的手勢表示反對或拒絕，這個短語可以用來代替no——但短語的來源歷史卻比較混亂。最早使用拇指向下指的是“古劇場中觀眾大拇指指向”。但是，在這些情況下，大拇指向上意味著拒絕。
14. pigs might fly 不可能
Pigs (we hate to break it to you) don’t fly, andpigs might fly, pigs have wings, and similar expressions are used to indicate impossibility or incredulity. The first known use, in this way, of pig’s grounded behaviour is not quite synonymous with no –but has the distinction of being found in Alice’s Adventures of Wonderland: ‘‘I’ve a right to think,’said Alice sharply…‘Just about as much right,’said the Duchess, ‘a(chǎn)s pigs have to fly.’’
豬當(dāng)然是不會飛的，類似的pigs might fly, pigs have wings地表達用來表示“不可能;懷疑”。第一次為眾所周知的以豬的行為作比喻的用法是在《愛麗絲夢游仙境》中，愛麗絲說：“I've a right to think(我有權(quán)思考)”。公爵夫人回答了一句“Just about as much right as pigs have to fly”(對，這個權(quán)利就像豬在天空飛翔一樣)。
15. not a cat (in hell)’s chance 沒有機會
If you think the pig did badly, the cat fares even worse: as far back as Grose’s Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue in 796, he cited ‘No more chance than a cat in hell without claws; said of one who enters into a dispute or quarrel with one greatly above his match’. Its application now is, of course, rather wider than disputers and quarrellers.
如果你認為豬的表現(xiàn)力不夠，那貓的表現(xiàn)更糟:早在在 796年，格羅斯的俗語詞典中，他以“No more chance than a cat in hell without claws;來比喻一個人進入一個對手遠比自身強大的爭議或吵架之中。當(dāng)然，現(xiàn)在的應(yīng)用更廣泛，不僅僅運用在爭吵中。
【篇三】英語口語花式拒絕的方法
uh-uh
這個詞以書面形式出現(xiàn)最早可追溯到上世紀20年代。
The imitative uh-uh is first found in its written form in the 1920s.
nix
起源于維多利亞時代的俚語，類似于早期德語中的nix，是德語nichts(nothing)的口語縮略形式。
Originally Victorian slang nix can be compared with the earlier German nix, which is a colloquial shortened form of nichts (‘nothing’).
nixie / nixy / nixey
Nix加后綴，–y/-ie的后綴通常用于寵物名和昵稱。
And it wasn’t long until this slang term was given a –y/-ie suffix, used to form pet names and familiar diminutives.
nope
Nope在17世紀是紅腹灰雀的別名，直到19世紀末開始用作“no”的意思。也是差不多時候“yep”開始用作“yes”的意思。
The earliest sense of nope (albeit an unrelated word spelled the same) was actually another name for the bullfinch, used in the early 17th century – but fast forward to the the late 19thcentury and nope is being used for no, with an apparently arbitrary extension, at around the same time that yep began being used for yes.
nay
這個詞起源于北歐，來自冰島語nei，直到14世紀后才開始頻繁使用。
This form of no is particularly characteristic of Northern English. In origin it is a borrowing from early.Scandinavian (cf. Icelandic nei). People haven’t been using this expression much since the 14th century.
nah
倫敦腔發(fā)音，“no”的非標(biāo)準拼寫。
A non-standard spelling of no, nah is often used when representing southern English pronunciation, particularly cockney speech.
no way
雖然被認為是一種俚語，但其實no way最早可以追溯到18世紀。
Though decried as slang by some, no way (for ‘no’) has a long history, dating back at least as far as the 18th century.
negative
如果你是個軍事迷，你可能會不自覺得在回答“不”的時候蹦出negative這個詞。它比“no”更清晰地表達“不”的意思，相應(yīng)地也用“affirmative”來表達“yes”。在無線電通話中，用“negative”或者“affirmative”比單純的“no”或者“yes”更清楚。
If you’re feeling in a military frame of mind, you can say negative instead of no (as opposed to affirmative for yes). This probably started as a way of saying ‘no’ over the radio with as much clarity as possible.
veto
Veto源自拉丁語，字面意思是“我不許”，是一個比較強硬的說法，用來反對某個計劃。
Veto joins that group of Latin words (including et cetera, ad hoc, and per se) that are used as everyday parts of English. Literally translating as ‘I forbid’, this is a fairly commanding way to show your disapproval of a scheme.
out of the question
原指“與討論的問題無關(guān)”，后來引申為“不考慮、不贊成”。
Originally meaning ‘beside the point, not relevant to the matter under discussion’ – that is, outside the parameters of the matter in question – this took on the meaning ‘not to be considered or countenanced’. One of the earliest uses of this later sense comes from Eliza Haywood’s The History of Betsy Thoughtless: ‘A marriage with miss Betsy was, therefore, now quite out of the question with him’.
no siree
Siree是sirrah的變種，而sirrah則來自于sir，是一種對男性輕蔑的說法。
You would be right in thinking that siree here is derived from sir — ultimately it is, but it developed as a variant of sirrah (much used in Shakespeare), which (in turn) was formed directly from sir with a (perhaps arbitrary) suffix, as a term used when addressing men or boys with contempt.
for foul nor fair
Foul和fair可以說是一對反義詞，把它們放在一起表示某件事不會發(fā)生。這個說法最早可以追溯到喬叟的《坎特伯雷故事集》。
Putting opposites together to cover a spectrum is a pretty good way to indicate that something isn’t going to happen: this one can be found as far back as Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.
not on your life
這是not on your life的另外一種說法。
The British expression not on your Nelly, in its earliest incarnation in a 1941 issue of theNew Statesman, appears as not on your Nelly Duff. It is just another way of saying not on your life.
not on your tintype
“Tintype”是指一種錫版照相法，這一詞組最早出現(xiàn)于1900年。A tintype was a photograph taken as a positive on a thin tin plate but also found its way into this phrase, which dates to at least 1900.
not for all the tea in China
英國人似乎對這個詞組用得上癮了，不過它的起源卻是澳洲英語口語。
This phrase, despite drawing on Britain’s national obsession, is actually originally from colloquial Australian English.not in a million years
如果中國所有的茶還不夠夸張的話，你可以夸大時間的長度。這個用法可以追溯到一個世紀以前，不過已經(jīng)很久沒有人用它了。
If the tea in China doesn’t seem like enough of ahyperbolic reward, try exaggerating the length of time you need for debate. People haven’t been using it for quite a million years, but it certainly dates back over a century.
under no circumstances
為了讓你的否定聽上去更加堅決，不會產(chǎn)生一丁點歧義，你可以用這個詞組來表達否定的含義，幾乎可以用于任何場合。最開始詞組中的circumstance用的是單數(shù)，不過現(xiàn)在都是用復(fù)數(shù)形式了。
For avoidance of doubt, this one pretty much covers all bases. Circumstance was originally a noun of action or condition, in the singular, but is now usually pluralized.not likely
如果有人提了無禮要求，可以用這個詞回絕。
Although you’re probably in complete control of the likelihood or otherwise of something happening if you say not likely, it’s an option for dismissing someone’s suggestion with a bit of sass.
not for Joe
這個詞表示“決不，無論如何也不”，Joe不是指特定的某個人，而是泛指?？梢宰匪莸?9世紀中期。
The phrase not for Joe, meaning ‘not on any account’,dates from the mid-19th century and appears to use Joe as a non-specific person (although the phrase may have originally arisen from the name of the 18th-century comedian Joe Miller, and a popular jest-book published after his death.
thumbs down
大拇指朝下的動作表示不贊成或拒絕。這個動作的來源有些復(fù)雜。有種說法是在古羅馬圓形競技場上，觀眾用拇指朝上或者朝下來決定角斗士們的生死。不過那個時候，拇指朝上反而是反對的意思。
Turning the thumb down is, of course, a gesture intended to indicate disapproval or rejection – and the term can be used figuratively for the same thing; i.e. a substitute for no – but it’s got a somewhat muddled history. The earliest uses of thumbs down and thumbs up relate to ‘the use of the thumb by the spectators in the ancient amphitheatre’ – but in these instances, thumbs up would indicate rejection.pigs might fly
首先，豬是不會飛的，類似的說法還有Pigs don’t fly、pigs might fly、pigs have wing，都表示“不可能”。第一次為眾人所知的用法在《愛麗絲夢游仙境》中，愛麗絲說：“I've a right to think(我有權(quán)思考)”。公爵夫人回答了一句“Just about as much right as pigs have to fly”，意思是““對，你當(dāng)然有這個權(quán)利，就像豬有權(quán)利在天空飛翔一樣”
Pigs (we hate to break it to you) don’t fly, and pigs might fly, pigs have wings, and similar expressions are used to indicate impossibility or incredulity. The first known use,in this way, of pig’s grounded behaviour is not quite synonymous with no – but has the distinction of being found in Alice’s Adventures of Wonderland: ‘‘I’ve a right to think,’said Alice sharply… ‘Just about as much right,’said the Duchess, ‘a(chǎn)s pigs have to fly.