漢譯英最易翻錯(cuò)的句子(1)

字號(hào):

01. 有他這顆掃帚星,什么事情都辦不成。
    [誤] With a comet like him, nothing can be accomplished.
    [正] With a jinx like him, nothing can be accomplished.
    注:“掃帚星”是中國(guó)人對(duì)“慧星”(comet)的俗稱(chēng),因其后面象拖著的一條像掃帚一樣的長(zhǎng)尾巴而得名。在中國(guó)古代,“掃帚星”被認(rèn)為是災(zāi)難的預(yù)兆,并被用來(lái)比喻不吉利的人或事;禍根:(person or thing that is thought to bring)bad luck(to sb/sth);curse。英語(yǔ)的 comet 雖然沒(méi)有這層含義,但卻有一個(gè)對(duì)應(yīng)的說(shuō)法,即 jinx。 例:There’s a jinx on/Someone’s put a jinx on this car: it’s always giving me trouble. “這輛汽車(chē)上有什么妨人的東西,總給我找麻煩”。
    02.蘿卜青菜,各有所愛(ài)。
    [誤] Some prefer radish but others prefer cabbage.
    [正] Tastes differ.
    注:Tastes differ/vary 是句英語(yǔ)諺語(yǔ),除此以外,原句還可翻譯成 No dish suits all tastes 或 You can never make everyone happy 等?!缎赂拍钣⒄Z(yǔ)》第三冊(cè)第23課的標(biāo)題是:One man’s meat is another man’s poison,表達(dá)的很生動(dòng)。 總之,應(yīng)采取意譯。
    03.他一向嘴硬,從不認(rèn)錯(cuò)。
    [誤] He has always got a hard mouth and never admit a fault.
    [正] He never says uncle.
    注:say (cry) uncle: to give up or in; to surrender; to admit defeat. Mainly used by boys, as when fighting。主要是男孩們打架時(shí)的用語(yǔ),當(dāng)一方想制服另一方時(shí),就用命令的口氣說(shuō):“Say uncle!”這時(shí),有的孩子為了表示不服輸,就是不說(shuō)。后來(lái),say uncle 就成了“服輸”的代名詞,而 not say uncle 就相當(dāng)于“嘴硬”了。
    04.老師很喜歡這個(gè)嘴甜的小姑娘。
    [誤] The teacher likes this sweet-mouthed little girl very much.
    [正] The teacher likes this honey-lipped little girl very much.
    注:中國(guó)人喜歡說(shuō)“嘴甜”,但 honey-lipped 更符合英美人的語(yǔ)言習(xí)慣。
    05.同學(xué)們都很討厭他,因?yàn)樗?jīng)常拍老師的馬*。
    [誤] The student all dislike him because he often pats the teacher’s ass.
    [正] The students all dislike him because he often licks the teacher’s boots.
    注:以前在歐洲,臣民見(jiàn)到國(guó)王與王后往往要葡匐到在,親吻他們的靴子。后來(lái),人們將 lick the boots 引申為“為了某種目的而討好某人”,它與漢語(yǔ)的“拍馬*”含義一樣。在美國(guó)英語(yǔ)中,“拍馬*”還有另一種說(shuō)法,即 polish the apple,它典出以前的學(xué)生用擦亮的蘋(píng)果來(lái)討好老師。