與動物有關的英語成語

梁小明

英語和漢語雖然是兩種不同的語言，但這兩種語言在某些方面也有一些相通之處。以與動物有關的成語為例，漢語里我們常說的“亡羊補牢”、“一石二鳥”、“吠犬不咬人”等成語在英語中都能找得到。我們一起來讀讀下面這篇文章吧，其中含有不少與動物有關的成語。

How many idioms are there in English that are drawn from animal life？

英語中有多少來自動物生活的成語呢？

For example， when we do two things at once and the same time we “kill two birds with one stone”， or if we are greedy and foolish， we “kill the goose that lays the golden eggs”. A bad-tempered person is “like a bear with a sore head”， an awkward1， heavy-footed person is “like a bull in a china shop”， and a person with a bad character is “the black sheep” in a group.

例如，當我們同時做兩件事時，我們是“一石二鳥”，或者如果我們貪婪和愚蠢，我們就是“殺雞取卵”。一個脾氣不好的人“像一頭忍受頭痛的熊（脾氣暴躁）”，一個笨拙、笨重的人就“像一頭瓷器店的公牛”，一個品行不好的人就是“害群之馬”。

But lets leave the foolish person or the bad person， and consider the wise man. A wise man “never counts his chickens before they are hatched2” or “buys a pig in a poke3”—he always examines carefully what he is buying before he pays his money. He will always， of course， do things in the right order and not try to “put the cart before the horse”. He will leave alone things that might cause trouble， as he would say “let sleeping dogs lie”， nor will he waste good things on people who cant appre-ciate them； he does not believe in “casting pearls before swine4”. There are some people who always take safety measures5. When it is too late and “lock the stable6 door after the horse is stolen”， that， he considers， is as fool-ish as “putting the cart before the horse”. When bold measures are necessary he takes them and “takes the bull by the horns”. And when an ill-tempered， sharp-tongued friend says something unpleasant， he doesnt worry too much； he knows “a barking dog does not bite”. If he knows a secret， he keeps it； he is not the one to “let the cat out of the bag”. He knows， too， that there are things you cant force people to do. As he would say， “You can lead a horse to the water， but you cant make it drink”. And he would， of course， be too generous-hearted to “look a gift horse in the mouth”. Hes a cheerful， hard-working fellow， and “works like a horse”. He isnt proud， “riding the high horse”， and is always willing to help others in difficulty， “putting his shoul-der to the wheel” and never giving “a white elephant” to them. He pities7 the poor fellow who has “never had a dogs chance” and “leads a dogs life”， perhaps because misfortune8 has always “dogged his footsteps”.

我們暫且不管那個笨蛋還是壞人，想想聰明人吧。聰明人“從不在小雞孵蛋前數小雞（從來不打如意算盤）”或“瞎買東西”——在付錢之前，他總是仔細檢查要買的東西。當然，他總是把事情做得井井有條，而不是試圖“把馬車放在馬前（本末倒置）”。他不管可能引起麻煩的事情，因為他會說“不要自找麻煩”，他也不會把美好的東西浪費在那些無法欣賞它們的人身上；他不相信“對牛彈琴”。有些人總是采取安全措施。當太遲了，“馬被偷了才去關廄門”時，他認為這是和“本末倒置”一樣的愚蠢行為。當有必要采取大膽措施時，他“當機立斷”采取行動。當一個脾氣暴躁、說話尖刻的朋友說了一些不愉快的事時，他并不擔心，他知道“吠犬不咬人”。如果他知道一個秘密，就會保守這個秘密，他不是“泄露秘密”的人。他也知道，有些事情是不能強迫別人去做的。正如他所說：“你可以把馬牽到水里，但你不能逼它喝水”。當然，他也會寬宏大量，而不是“對得到的禮物吹毛求疵”。他是一個開朗、勤奮的人，“工作非常努力”。他不傲慢，不“趾高氣昂”，總是愿意幫助有困難的人，“把肩膀靠在輪子上”，從不給他們“無用的累贅”。他憐憫那個“從來沒有機會”和“過著牛馬不如的生活”的可憐人，也許因為不幸總是“纏住了他的腳步”。

Now I had better stop or you will think I am “riding my horse to death”.

就說到這里吧，否則你會認為我會“騎馬而死”。

Comprehension Questions：

Match the following Chinese idioms with the English versions.

1. 本末倒置 A. look a gift horse in the mouth

2. 亡羊補牢 B. birds of a feather flock together

3. 物以類聚 C. let sleeping dogs lie

4. 一舉兩得 D. put the cart before the horse

5. 吹毛求疵 E. kill two birds with one stone

6. 趾高氣揚 F. ride the high horse

7. 莫惹是非 G. lock the stable door after the horse is stolen

8. 害群之馬 H. the black sheep

9. 對牛彈琴 I. kill the goose that lays the golden eggs

10. 殺雞取卵 J. cast pearls before swine

Keys： 1. D 2. G 3. B 4. E 5. A 6. F 7. C 8. H 9. J 10. I

Notes：

1. awkward adj. 尷尬的；笨拙的；棘手的

2. hatch vi. 孵化

3. poke n. 袋子

4. swine n. 豬；卑賤的人

5. measure n. 測量；措施

6. stable n. 馬廄；牛棚

7. pity vt. 對……表示憐憫；對……感到同情

8. misfortune n. 不幸；災禍，災難