Boys and gals, in the following week, I'll, as planned, go on with my introduction of slang and idiom. BUT! There's something NEW! Apart from the chinese explanation of the context and the english examples, to do us a favor, I'll bring in the equivalent Geman version. This will be definitely useful for our life here in Germany. Alright. Let's move on:
"Do not count your chickens (before they're hatched)."
examples:
A: I'm sure to win the prize. I'm going to buy a new house with the money.
B: Don't count your chickens (before they're hatched).
ps. 括号中部分平时表达时可以省略,也就是说,单纯说前半部分也是ok的.
A: I'm sure that I'll get an A in the exam.
B: Don't count your chickens.
Explanation: When you eat food, you first bite off a piece, then chew it, and swallow it. If you bite off more than you can chew, you have taken a bite so large that you cannot chew it. So this idiom means to take on a responsibility which is too large to manage.
Similar expressions are: "Do not attempt more than you are capable of."
or "Do not promise more than you can do."
Examples:
1. I thought I could finish my research paper within a month, but I bit more than I could chew. (Notice:动词时态应该随着句子本身做变化,比如这里就是过去时.)
2. A: I will be responsible for the organization of the Spring Festival party.
B: Do not bite off more than you can chew!
German Version: Nimm dir nicht zu viel vor!
bite off = abbeissen
chew = kauen
swallow = schlucken
Example:
A: Hi, Tom, I've heard you won the lottery this time! You lucky boy!
B: Yeah...Every dog has his day.
从这个idiom呢,我又联想到一个类似的用"dog"的表达方法:
就以前几天那位受到表扬的高同学作为例子:
A: I read a piece of news, it said that some Mr. Gao from China won the scholarship to the Ruhr University Bochum.
B: What a lucky dog!
Similar expressions are: Do in Rome as the Roman does.
Do as the Romans do.
Do as they do in Rome.
中文有相对应的成语:入相随俗.
Example:
A: Yesterday I went to shopping with my boyfriend. I thought he would buy me the t-shirt I like most. But he didn't.
B: I know you're unhappy, but you know what. When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Most German guys think that they earn their money all by themselves. They will sometimes invite you to dinner or movies, but they don't think they need to buy you everything.
Example:
1) I really feel sorry for Mike. First his wife left him. Next he lost his job. Then somebody stole his car. Like they say, it never rains but it pours.
2) Oh boy! You can't believe the trouble I had today. My alarm clock didn't go off, so I missed biology class. Then, I lost my home work assignment for math. I invited my girlfriend to lunch and after we ate, I found I'd left my wallet at home. It never rains but it pours.
Examples:
1) You eat that much. You don't go to sport, but wanna keep a good figure. You can't eat your cake and have it too.
2) A: My girlfriend asked me to dinner this weekend, but I have to finish my assignment by the weekend. It's really hard to decide.
B: I know, but you can't eat your cake and have it too.
German Version: Mann kann nicht auf zwei Hochzeiten zugleich tanzen.
[ Last edited by Moses on 2006-1-4 at 14:13 ]作者: Moses 时间: 2005-12-10 23:58
we are both entertainer and english learner..something between..:)作者: Moses 时间: 2005-12-18 14:02
let's call it a week...hope we all have learned sth. from them...
