英式英語的潛規(guī)則:太禮貌的英國(guó)人
作者:滬江英語
來源:每日郵報(bào)
2013-09-02 21:25
Ever been told by a new neighbour ‘You must come for dinner’ then spent weeks waiting for a follow-up invitation that never arrives?
曾經(jīng)遇到過新鄰居對(duì)你說“你得過來吃個(gè)晚飯”,可幾個(gè)禮拜后邀請(qǐng)遲遲不來?
Or been thrilled when the boss said he’d bear your ‘very interesting’ idea in mind and been surprised when it was never mentioned again.
或者是激動(dòng)地聽到上司說他會(huì)記住你“非常有趣”的想法,卻驚訝他再也沒提過這件事?
Then you’ve been victim of the uniquely British trait of being too prim and polite to say what we really mean. And if it can be baffling for us, imagine what it must be like for foreigners who take our every word at face value.
那你就是擁有獨(dú)特特征的英式英語的受害者了,英式英語對(duì)于表達(dá)真實(shí)所想來說太過拘謹(jǐn)、禮貌了。其實(shí)對(duì)于英國(guó)人來說,想想外國(guó)人可能會(huì)把他們的每句話信以為真,也挺令人困擾的。
Now there’s help in the form of a translation table which has become a huge hit on the internet.
現(xiàn)在這里有一張?jiān)诰W(wǎng)上引起熱議的翻譯表,能對(duì)你有所幫助。
WHAT THE BRITISH SAY 英國(guó)人說的 |
WHAT THE BRITISH MEAN 英國(guó)人實(shí)際表達(dá)的 |
WHAT OTHERS UNDERSTAND 別人所理解的
|
I hear what you say 我聽到你說什么了 |
I disagree and do not want to discuss it further 我不同意也不想繼續(xù)討論下去了 |
He accepts my point of view 他接受了我的觀點(diǎn) |
With the greatest respect 懷著最高的敬意 |
You are an idiot 你是一個(gè)白癡 |
He is listening to me 他在聽我說 |
That's not bad 那不算壞 |
That's good 不錯(cuò) |
That's poor 那很差勁 |
That is a very brave proposal 這是一個(gè)非常勇敢的提議 |
You are insane 你瘋了 |
He thinks I have courage 他認(rèn)為我很有勇氣 |
Quite good 真不錯(cuò) |
A bit disappointing 有一點(diǎn)令人失望 |
Quite good 真不錯(cuò) |
I would suggest 我認(rèn)為 |
Do it or be prepared to justify yourself 按我認(rèn)為的去做或者證明你的想法 |
Think about the idea, but do what you like 考慮他的說法,但按自己想的做 |
Oh, incidentally/by the way 哦,順便提一下 |
The primary purpose of our discussion is 這次討論的主要目的是 |
That is not very important 那并不是很重要 |
I was a bit disappointed that 我對(duì)此有點(diǎn)失望 |
I am annoyed that 我被惹惱了 |
It doesn't really matter 沒關(guān)系 |
Very interesting 非常有趣 |
That is clearly nonsense 那簡(jiǎn)直是胡說八道 |
They are impressed 那令人印象深刻 |
I'll bear it in mind 我會(huì)記住的 |
I've forgotten it already 我已經(jīng)忘了 |
They will probably do it 他們大概會(huì)這么做 |
I'm sure it's my fault 我確信這是我的錯(cuò) |
It's your fault 這是你的錯(cuò) |
Why do they think it was their fault? 為什么他們覺得是他們的錯(cuò)? |
You must come for dinner 你得過來吃晚飯 |
It's not an invitation, I'm just being polite 這并不是一個(gè)邀請(qǐng),我只是表示禮貌 |
I will get an invitation soon 我很快就會(huì)受到邀請(qǐng) |
I almost agree 我差不多同意了 |
I don't agree at all 我根本不同意 |
He's not far from agreement 他差不多同意了 |
I only have a few minor comments 我只有一些次要意見 |
Please rewrite completely 請(qǐng)全部重寫 |
He has found a few typos 他只找到了一些印刷錯(cuò)誤 |
Could we consider some other options 我們能考慮下別的選擇嗎 |
I don't like your idea 我不喜歡你的主意 |
They have not yet decided 他們還沒決定 |
It reveals that when a British person begins a sentence ‘With the greatest respect...’, they’re really saying ‘I think you are an idiot.’
表格揭露了當(dāng)一個(gè)英國(guó)人用“懷著最高的敬意”為一句句子開頭,他們實(shí)際想說的是“我認(rèn)為你是一個(gè)白癡”。
‘I hear what you say’ means ‘I disagree and do not want to discuss it further’ while ‘That is a very brave proposal’ translates as ‘You are insane’.
“我聽到你說什么了” 代表“我不同意也不想繼續(xù)討論下去了”,“這是一個(gè)勇敢的提議”代表“你瘋了”。
The table, which has been posted on numerous internet blogs, has received thousands of comments acknowledging that it’s spot on–from foreigners and Britons alike.
這張表格被放到許多博客中后,收到許多外國(guó)人和英國(guó)人本身的贊同,承認(rèn)這極其正確。