授之與“魚”還是授之與“漁”？

古往今來，關(guān)于“魚”的成語何其多，意思又是何其繁雜。其實(shí)英文也是如此，fish一詞也能引發(fā)無窮意思。我們一起來看看。

Americans use many expressions about fish and fishing. For example， if something sounds fishy， it may not be true. Sometimes I feel like a fish out of water when I go to a party and everyone but me is doing the latest dance. When I ask my friend if she likes my new dress， I would like her to say something nice. In other words， I am fishing for a compliment. You might tell someone to fish or cut bait if he repeatedly attempts to do something he is unable to do.

Sometimes a lawyer will ask a witness many questions in an effort to discover the facts of a court case. This is called going on a fishing expedition.

Some expressions involve different kinds of fish. Information that is used to draw attention away from the real facts of a situation is called a red herring. If you want to express a feeling of surprise， you might cry “holy mackerel!” although we do not know why a mackerel is holy.

Once I went to a county fair and tried my luck with a game of chance. It was so easy; it was like shooting fish in a barrel. Then I went on the fastest， highest and most frightening ride: the roller coaster. At the end of the ride， I did not feel so well. A friend said I looked green around the gills.

I grew up in a small town where everybody knew about my life. There were times when I thought I was living in a fishbowl. So I moved to Washington， where things were different.

Now I take the train to work every day during rush hour when many other people travel to their jobs. Sometimes the train is so crowded that we are packed in like sardines. Sardines are tiny fish that lie close to each other in cans.

One man who works in my office is a cold fish. He is unfriendly and does not like to join us at office parties. Another man in my office likes to enjoy alcoholic drinks at parties. In fact， you might say he drinks like a fish. We need to help him stop drinking.

Last week， my sister’s car broke down as we were driving to a friend’s marriage ceremony. “This is a fine kettle of fish，” I said. “Now we will be late.”

My sister attends a small college where she is one of the smartest students. She always wants to be a big fish in a small pond. Recently， my sister broke up with her boyfriend. I told her not to worry， she will find another one because there are plenty of other fish in the sea.

● 不知道大家有沒有過捉魚的體驗(yàn)，魚的身子滑溜溜的，竟像蚯蚓一樣。“fishy”一詞引申這個意思，有“可疑的，狡猾的”之意。另外，由fishy搭配的詞或詞組也多數(shù)沿用這一意思，如fishy-eye即可解為“可疑的眼光，狡猾的眼神”。

● “如魚得水”的意思大家再熟悉不過，反過來想，當(dāng)魚離開了水，那可就渾身不自在了。“a fish out of water”就用來形容一個人跟周圍環(huán)境格格不入、別扭難堪的感覺。就像說話者發(fā)現(xiàn)派對上除了她以外的所有人都大跳流行舞時，那種感覺就相當(dāng)不好受了。

● 除了釣魚，還能釣什么?男孩子希望釣到漂亮女孩，女孩子則總希望有人稱贊。俗語“fish for a compliment/compliments”就通常用來表示女孩子運(yùn)用巧妙的方法來讓別人恭維她、贊揚(yáng)她。下面這個例子就是最好的詮釋:

Guy: Hi， what’s wrong?

Girl: (sigh) I look awful today!

Guy: No， you don’t! You look absolutely wonderful!

Girl: No， I don’t. Stop being so nice.

Guy: I’m serious， you do! You’re the most beautiful girl in the world， you couldn’t look better!

● 當(dāng)你面對磨磨蹭蹭的人該說什么?你可以說“Fish or cut bait!”(要釣魚就好好釣魚，不釣就到一邊兒準(zhǔn)備魚餌去。)“Fish or cut bait!”延伸出來的意思就是:遇事要當(dāng)機(jī)立斷，作出明確表態(tài)，不要磨磨蹭蹭。

● “fishing expedition”這個詞組原本表示出海探尋魚群行蹤的遠(yuǎn)征，不過現(xiàn)在漸漸引申出其他意思，比如為尋找罪證而作的連續(xù)調(diào)查等。在法庭上，如果律師“go on a fishing expedition”就意味著他為了尋找證據(jù)而連續(xù)不斷地問問題。

● fish作為魚的統(tǒng)稱已有無數(shù)搭配，殊不知，單獨(dú)一個魚的品種也有自己的故事，比如這個“a red herring”。“herring”是鯡魚的意思，但“red herring”卻不是紅鯡魚的意思，而表示為分散注意力而提出的不相干事實(shí)或論點(diǎn)。

● 另一種口語中常見的魚類是mackerel(鯖魚)，當(dāng)然，它的延伸意義已經(jīng)遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)超過它的本義。比如說，當(dāng)你感到驚訝、詫異的時候，你可以喊“Holy mackerel!”表示“哎呀!好家伙”的意思。至于“圣鯖魚”怎么變成“哎呀!好家伙!”就不得而知啦。

● “l(fā)ike shooting fish in a barrel”字面解釋是“在桶里射魚”。在小小的圓桶里射魚，還不是易如反掌嗎?因此這個詞組也用來說明某事相當(dāng)容易做到，簡直是“ridiculously easy”!

● “l(fā)ive in a fishbowl”，魚缸之魚，乍一聽，與井底之蛙相當(dāng)類似，都用來形容生活環(huán)境狹小。不過，“l(fā)ive in a fishbowl”除了生活在狹隘空間外，也表示“生活在別人的眼光之中”的意思。

● 大家見識過上下班高峰期時那被擠得沒有絲毫間隙的公車或地鐵嗎?那情景就像一條條細(xì)小的沙丁魚被擠在一個狹小的空間里——“be packed in like sardines”。

● “a cold fish”? 冷魚?別誤會，“a clod fish”不是形容魚，而是形容一個人冷漠、枯燥甚至冷酷無情。例如:Let’s not invite Tina to the party; she’s such a cold fish!(別請蒂娜來參加這次聚會。她這人太冷漠了。)

● 中文有牛飲的說法，對應(yīng)的英文竟是“drink like a fish”!從牛變成魚，意思卻相差無幾。不過，“牛飲”不一定指喝酒，而“drink like a fish”則多數(shù)表示大喝特喝有酒精成分的飲料。

● 如果像說話者一樣，在趕去參加朋友的婚禮時車子壞了，心情肯定糟糕透頂。這時候說“This is a fine kettle of fish.”可比說“Shit!”文雅多了。“a fine kettle of fish”這里指亂七八糟、讓人不愉快的事。

● “a big fish in a small pond”直譯為“小池塘里的大魚”，其實(shí)還有個更加貼切生動的譯句，即“金麟豈是池中物”。如果真有驚世才能，小池塘又怎能容得下大魚呢?

● 當(dāng)安慰失戀的朋友時我們通常說“天涯何處無芳草”，又或者“林子那么大，何必吊死在一棵樹上”，那么用英文怎么說呢?這個時候“魚”們又發(fā)揮作用了!一句“There are plenty of (other) fish in the sea.”就完美解決了這個問題。