出场人物:过家鼎,毕业于上海圣芳济中学和复旦大学外文系。曾担任板门店朝鲜停战谈判代表团英文翻译,华沙中美大使级谈判翻译。曾任中国常驻联合国代表团一秘,外交部翻译室主任等职,被誉为中国翻译“三剑客”之一。
学习英语与学习任何其他语言一样,都有一个深入浅出的过程。“深入”(to be profound)是提高,“浅出”(use plain language)是进一步提高。初学者必须扩大词汇,学会使用一定数量的常见或常用词汇,努力记忆一些高深和专门的用语。如老年痴呆症Alaheimer's disease(德语字源);观世音菩萨Avalokitesvara(梵文字源),即 Goddess of Mercy,等等。初出茅庐时,喜欢用一些深奥的词,以显示自己的学问渊博,如“毫无根据的”用gratuitous(拉丁字源),而不用groundless。然而,随着学问的深入,就会注意避免华丽花哨和学究气(being pompous and pedantic),转而使用简单平易的语言(The more you learn, the simpler English you use.)。
一、随着语言水平的提高,人们会发现,愈是简单的常用词,愈难充分掌握其用法。仅举look,put,turn这三个最基本的单词为例,它们的词义很难全面掌握。
(一)look即是名词,也是动词(包括及物动词和不及物动词),用途广泛,意思复杂多变。
look当作及物动词时,可以说She doesn't look her age. 她看来与她的年龄不相称(指显得年轻)。但下一句的意思却完全不同:Bill looks his life; he is only forty, but appears to be sixty.(比尔的模样显示了他坎坷的经历,他只有40岁,但看上去像是60岁的人。)
再看look out。当一名乘客坐在列车窗边向外张望时,正值旁边一辆列车从相反的方向驶来。好心人在后面叫嚷Look out!(当心!),意思是提醒那位乘客不要把脑袋伸出去,但他却理解为“朝外看,向外探头”,便将头探出窗外,酿成惨剧。
Look up 有多种不同的用法和意思。
(1)抬头看。I looked up and saw her.我抬起头来,看见了她。
(2)好转,改善。The national economy is beginning to look up.国民经济开始好转。
(3)(尤其指多时不见之后)看望,拜访。I want to look up an old friend.我想去拜访一个老朋友。
(4)查检,查阅。Look up new words in the divtionary.翻字典,查新词。
(二)同样,put也是一个词义丰富、用法多变的词,从下面的三个例子中不难看出这一点。
put away
(1)储存,存放。The fruits should be carefully put away in the fridge.水果应妥善地贮藏在冰箱里。Put away a good sum of money in the bank for one's old age.在银行里储存一笔可观的钱为防老之用。
(2)吃喝掉。They put away vast quantities of cake. 他们吃掉了大量糕点。
put through
(1)接通(电话)。I am trying to put you through.我正设法为你接通电话。
(2)完成,做成。Put through an agreement (a series of reforms).达成协议/实施改革措施。
put off
(1)关掉,熄灭。Put the light off.把灯熄了。
(2)推迟(或取消)。Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.今天能做的事切不要推到明天。
(三)turn 也有不少特殊的意思和用法,以turn up、turn down、turn out 为例:
turn up
(1)开大,调高。turn up (the volume on) the radio把收音机开响些
(2)翻起,折起。turn up the sleeves (or soil)卷起衣袖/翻土
(3)出现,重现。He turned up an hour later.他迟了一小时才露面。
(4)查找,查阅。Turn up the dictionary if you cannot spell the word.拼不出就查字典。
turn down
(1)调低,关小。turn down the radio (or the light)把收音机音量调低一些/把灯光调暗一点
(2)拒绝。turn down a job拒做一件工作;turn down an offer of help拒绝接受帮助。
turn out
(1)关掉。Turn out the light.关灯。
(2)赶出,辞退。He was turned out of his job.他被辞退了。
(3)集合,出席。Voters turned out in good numbers.选民出席率很高。
(4)结局,原来是。The story turned out happily.故事结局圆满。She turned ou to be his daughter.原来她就是他的女儿。
二、在英语的名人言论中常使用一些简练而精辟的词语,意义深邃,读起来铿锵有力,简单明了。
美国前总统里根:
I have not come to China to hold forth on what divides us, but to build on what binds us.我来中国,不是要大谈我们的分歧,而是要发扬我们的友情。
美国前总统林肯:
The world will little note nor long remember what we said here, but it can never forget what they did here.
We here highly resolve that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
英国前首相撒切尔夫人:
The agreement(指中英关于香港问题的声明)is not a way out.(双关语,指英国人撤出)It is a way forward--a practical blueprint for success. It can work. It is working.
Yes, you get help if you are unemplyed. But you must be actively seeking work. You get no help if you choose to be unemployed. The government's task is to give people opportunity, not handouts.
法国前总统乔治·蓬皮杜:
A statesman is a politician who places himself at the service of the nation.
A politician is a statesman who places the nation at his service.
三、美英的书报杂志文章正日益广泛地使用一些浅显而简洁的用词。这些词看来似曾相识,仅在拼写形式上稍加变化,含义却丰富得多。试举一些例子:
1 动词或名词加上后缀y成为形容词,诸如:
choosy挑挑拣拣的
nosy爱打听消息的
bossy爱发号施令的,专横霸道的
jumpy神经质的,心惊肉跳的
flashy华而不实的
shabby破旧的
2 有hyphen(连字符)或没有hyphen结合的复合词。
nitty-gritty具体细节
The book gets to the nitty-gritty of economic problems.(i.e. specific practical details).
shilly-shally(动词)扭扭捏捏,犹豫不决
If you keep shilly-shallying like this, we'll be late.
nuts and bolts 基本要点
Dealing with the nuts and bolts of the project.
huff and putt(动词)气喘吁吁
When I got to the top, I was huffing and puffing.
3 名词加后置词,如:
hands-down winner毫不费力的获胜者
target-rich environment目标丰富的环境
must-see film必看的电影
plus-size (for woman)加码的衣服
cutting-edge technology 尖端技术
四、矛盾修辞法(Oxymoron)
Oxymoron是一个希腊字,由oxys与moros两字拼成。oxys意为sharp, keen尖刻、敏锐的;moros意为愚蠢的,foolish。
英语中的这种用法越来越普遍,即将两个意思相互矛盾或尖锐对立的字合用,以产生更深刻的印象和鲜明的效果。举例如下:
cruel kindness残忍的仁慈(施恩惠而成为虐待)。
a wise fool聪明的蠢人。sophomore 由sophos(意为wise)和moros(意为foolish)组成,即wise fool。美国称二年级大学生为sophomoric,即自以为知识渊博而过于自信,实际上才疏学浅,半生不熟。
a transparent cover-up明显的掩饰,指水门事件。
future history 未来的历史。这是以色列总理在演讲中使用的一个词组。My job is to worry about the future history of Israel.
haughty humility傲慢的谦恭,意指某人表面上谦虚,骨子里傲慢。
intimate stranger亲密的陌生人。