(转)疯狂的英语

choupiwen

from 译言 by viveo

    承认吧：英语是种疯狂的语言。茄子被称为“鸡蛋植物(eggplant)”，实际上和鸡蛋(egg)完全没有关系；汉堡被称为“火腿夹饼(hamburger)”，和火腿(ham)也没有半毛钱关系；菠萝叫做“松树苹果(pineapple)”，更是不可能有松树(pine)或者苹果(apple)。英国松饼(English muffins)并不是英国人发明的，炸土豆条(French fries)也不是法国人的专利。“甜肉(Sweetmeats)”是一种糖果，而“甜面包(sweetbreads)”一点也不甜，它指的是牛杂碎。

    我们将英语信手拈来使用，不以为意，但是如果深入研究下去，就会发现许多说不通的现象：流沙叫做“快沙(quicksand)”实际上可以很慢；拳击赛场叫做“拳击圆形场地(boxing rings)”[ring有一意为“圆型场地”]，而实际上却是方的；豚鼠被称为“几内亚猪(Guinea pig)”，而它并不是源自几内亚(Guinea)，更不是猪(pig)。

    还有，为什么作家(writers)“写作(write)”，而手指(fingers)却不“fing”；杂货店(grocers)却不“groce”，锤子(hammers)却不“ham”？

[另一译法：既然名词作家(writers)去掉rs就可以成为动词“写作(write)”，那为什么名词手指(fingers)、杂货店(grocerss)、锤子(hammers)去掉rs就不能成为各自相对应的动词呢？]

    牙齿(tooth)的复数形式是teeth，那为什么货摊(booth)的复数形式不是beeth？一只鹅是goose，两只鹅是geese，那么一只麋鹿是moose，两只麋鹿就应该是meese了？为什么一条索引是index，两条索引却成了indices？

    你只能补偿很多过失(make amends)，不能只改正一项，是不是听起来很疯狂？[没有make amend，amends在此用法下必须为复数。]

    编年历史只能是很多年(annals)，而不能只有一年(annal)。

    […you comb through annals of history but not a single annal… 此处翻译不到位。]

    你有一些零碎的杂物(odds and ends)，扔掉所有只剩一个，那剩余的这个(odd and end，单数)应该叫什么？[个人理解，odds and ends这个复数形式指零星的小东西，那么按理说其单数形式(odd and end)应该指“一件小东西”，但实际上后者并不是有意义的词组，所以说英语很不合理很疯狂。]

    如果教师(teachers)对应的动词是“教书(taught)”，那传教士(preacher)对应的动词为什么不是“praught”？素食主义者(vegetarian)吃素(vegetables)，那么人道主义者(humanitarian)吃什么？[应该吃人(human)]

    如果写信的动词write的过去时是wrote，那么“保持沉默(bite the tougue)”的动词bite的过去时就应该是bote。

    有的时候我不禁想，说英语的人应该都送到疯人院里，因为他们全都在胡言乱语。这世上哪种语言里有“recite at a play and play at a recital”？[“在戏剧演出里朗诵，在独奏会上演奏”——翻译成中文就失去了原来的意思。]

用卡车装船(Ship by truck)却用船运货(send cargo by ship)？

鼻子能跑，脚能闻？[running nose -- 一直流鼻涕；smelly feet -- 脚臭。]

停车在行车道上，却行车在停车道上？[driveway看似是“行车道”，实际上是指“车库门前的小路、停车小道”，一般用来停车；而parkway看似是“停车道”，实际上却是指“城市里的大马路、交通干道”,一般不准停车。]

    英语里怎么“苗条的机会(slim chance)”和“肥胖的机会(fat chance)”指的是同一个意思？[都指机会渺茫。]

    而“聪明的人(a wise man)”和“聪明的家伙(a wise guy)”所指却恰好相反？[前者指“聪明人”，后者指“骄傲自大的人”。]

    Look和see都是“看”，而overlook和oversee的意思却完全不同。[overlook指“忽视、忽略”，而oversee指“监督、监视”。]

    天气不论严寒还是酷暑怎么都是“像地狱一样”？[hot as hell/cold as hell]

    你有没有发现只有在它“不存在”(absent)时，我们才会对“确定地”(certain)谈论某些事物？

[Have you noticed that we talk about certain things only when they are absent? 这句翻译很难……——这里应该是要突出certain和absent的对比，certain的意思应该偏向“特定的”，absent应该偏向“不在场的”。]

    你见过“满满一匹马(horseful)的马车”或者“长长一带(strapful)的长袍”吗？

[Met a
sung hero…? 未译，不解。]

    你是否谈过“有回应的(requited)”恋爱？[unrequited love“不回应的爱情”，指“单相思”。不存在requited love这样的词组。]

    [Have you ever run into someone who was combobulated, gruntled, ruly or peccable? And where are all those people who ARE spring chickens or who would ACTUALLY hurt a fly? 不解，未译。]

    不得不佩服这种独特的神经病语言，在英语里，你的房子“烧下去(burn down)”之前会先“烧起来(burn up)”；[burn down指“烧毁”，burn up“烧起来”。]

    你“填出去(fill out)”是为了“填进来(fill in)”；[fill out和fill in都是指“填表”。]

    闹钟通过“一直走(go on)”来“走掉(go off)”。[go on指“运行、工作”，go off指“响铃，发出警报”。这里是说闹钟只有正常走动工作着才会在设定好的时间响铃。]

    英语是人发明的，不是电脑生成的，它反映的是人类的一个种族(race，这里绝不是“比赛”)的创造力。因此，当星星“在外面(out)”时，我们可以看见它们(visible)，而当灯光“在外面(out)”时，我们就看不见(invisible)了。[星星out指“出来，出现”，灯光out指“熄灭，关掉”。]

    也是因此，当我“wind up”手表时，我让它能够走动，这是让其开始，当我“wind up”这篇文章时，我不再写，这却是让其结束。[wind up手表，是“给手表上弦”；wind up文章，是“结束、停止”。]

surfman

要原文！要原文！要原文！要原文！

choupiwen

要原文！要原文！要原文！要原文！
surfman 发表于 23/9/2009 13:08

等着....

choupiwen

http://www.jokes2go.com/jokes/3066.html?14

         English is a Crazy Language
     
   
From:    Charlie Indelicato

Let's face it -- English is a crazy language. There is no egg in eggplant
nor ham in hamburger; neither apple nor pine in pineapple. English muffins
weren't invented in England or French fries in France. Sweetmeats are
candies while sweetbreads, which aren't sweet, are meat.

We take English for granted. But if we explore its paradoxes, we find that
quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square and a guinea pig is
neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

And why is it that writers write but fingers don't fing, grocers don't
groce and hammers don't ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, why isn't the
plural of booth beeth? One goose, 2 geese. So one moose, 2 meese? One index,
2 indices?

Doesn't it seem crazy that you can make amends but not one amend, that you
comb through annals of history but not a single annal? If you have a bunch
of odds and ends and get rid of all but one of them, what do you call it?

If teachers taught, why didn't preacher praught? If a vegetarian eats
vegetables, what does a humanitarian eat? If you wrote a letter, perhaps
you bote your tongue?

Sometimes I think all the English speakers should be committed to an asylum
for the verbally insane. In what language do people recite at a play and
play at a recital? Ship by truck and send cargo by ship? Have noses that
run and feet that smell? Park on driveways and drive on parkways?

How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and
wise guy are opposites? How can overlook and oversee be opposites, while
quite a lot and quite a few are alike? How can the weather be hot as hell
one day and cold as hell another.

Have you noticed that we talk about certain things only when they are
absent? Have you ever seen a horseful carriage or a strapful gown? Met a
sung hero or experienced requited love? Have you ever run into someone who
was combobulated, gruntled, ruly or peccable? And where are all those
people who ARE spring chickens or who would ACTUALLY hurt a fly?

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language in which your house
can burn up as it burns down, in which you fill in a form by filling it out
and in which an alarm clock goes off by going on.

English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the
creativity of the human race (which, of course, isn't a race at all). That
is why, when the stars are out, they are visible, but when the lights are
out, they are invisible. And why, when I wind up my watch, I start it, but
when I wind up this essay, I end it.