美国人怎么说:看热闹

2017-10-18

Donny: Wuqiong, I heard you got your driver's license !

WQ: 是啊,昨天我已经开车上路啦!

 

Donny: So how did it go?

 

WQ: 唉,别提了! 我开的那条路上出车祸,结果,开车的、骑车的、走路的,都想看热闹,最后,整条街都堵住了! 对了Donny,这些看热闹的人,用英文怎么说呢?

 

Donny: 英文叫 rubberneck.

 

WQ: rubberneck? 我知道 rubber 是橡胶,neck是脖子。那rubberneck不就是橡胶脖子么?

 

Donny: 你想啊,那些看热闹,围观的人,they stretch their necks to watch what's happening, right?

 

WQ: ……我明白了,伸长脖子看热闹的人好像长了橡胶脖子,所以叫他们rubberneck! 哈哈,真形象!

 

Donny: Right! rubberneck也可以当动词。你刚才说,大家看热闹,整条街大堵车,在英文里就是 The traffic was bumper-to-bumper because of rubbernecking.

 

WQ: bumper-to-bumper? b-u-m-p-e-rbumper, 不是汽车保险杠么?

 

Donny: Exactly! So bumper-to-bumper means cars are moving so slowly that their bumpers are almost touching.

 

WQ: 我明白了,bumper-to-bumper, 汽车一辆紧挨着一辆,慢慢往前拱。这么说,I was stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic,郁闷死了!

 

Donny: Wuqiong, 那车祸到底严不严重?

 

WQ: 特严重! 六辆车撞在一起了!

 

Donny: Ouch... a six-car pileup!

 

WQ: pileup? p-i-l-e, pile, 再加上 up, pileup 就是连环车祸么?

 

Donny: That's Right!

 

WQ: 我跟你说,这个pileup里,有两辆奥迪,一辆奔驰,一辆宝马,好像还有...

 

Donny: (interrupt wuqiong) Wuqiong, 你看得这么清楚,真不愧是 a good rubberneck! Okay, new driver, tell me what you've learned today!

 

WQ: 第一,看热闹的人叫rubberneck

 

第二,堵车可以说bumper-to-bumper

 

第三,连环车祸是pileup, p-i-l-e-u-p!

[ Web editor:Robin Wang, Wu Jianhan    Source:www.51voa.com ]