1〉关于fool
Fool: one who counterfeits folly; a professional jester or buffoon in dramas (我们常见的fool即“傻瓜”,但如果读莎士比亚的戏剧如King Lear《李尔王》,你会发现国王身旁常常有一个"Fool"。这时可要记住,Fool在这里可不是傻子而是绝顶聪明的“宫廷小丑”,他拿自身的滑稽或外显的愚蠢和疯癫作为护身符,说出一般人不敢或不愿说出来的真话。)
play the fool/act the foll : to act like the idiot or foolishly(胡闹,办傻事)
fool around : to spend time doing nothing useful (虚度光阴,游手好闲)
Fool's haste is no spead : 欲速则不达
make an April fool of sb : 把某人当作愚人节恶作剧的对象
fool's erand : a fruitless mission or undertaking (徒劳无用的工作)
fool's paradise : happiness founded on a illusion (虚幻的美梦,不可实现的希望)
2〉关于“玩笑,骗局”的表达
hoax: an attempt to trick an audience into believing that something false is real;an outrageous claim that is publicly exposed as a lie or deception (根据英文释义,汉语中的“骗局”与hoax很贴切,常常指公众群体受到愚弄。在西方,媒体往往在愚人节这天制造一些出格的hoax给公众开玩笑)。
例句:I hoaxed you into believing that the mouse has eaten the cat (我骗你相信老鼠吃了猫)。
prank: a mischievous trick (恶作剧,与hoax相比,prank更侧重于朋友之间或熟人之间的玩笑或恶作剧。搞恶作剧的人常常被称作prankster)
例句:He likes playing pranks on the fellows around (他喜欢搞些恶作剧给周围的人)。
practical joke : 与“verbal joke”(耍嘴皮开玩笑)相对应,practical joke更侧重于行动。当然,既然已有古训“Action speaks louder than words”,那么practical joke一定不是小儿科式的低级玩笑,它需要搞恶作剧的人多费些心思,使玩笑更高明一点。
例句:The first day of April is devoted to practical jokes (人们喜欢在愚人节开玩笑)。
3〉关于“鱼”
feel like a fish out of water : 犹如鱼而离水,感到生疏,不能适应环境
drink like a fish : 酗酒, 牛饮
All is fish that comes to his net : 来者不拒
Never offer to teach fish to swim : 不要班门弄斧
The best fish swim near the bottom : 珍贵的东西不能轻易得到
Never fry a fish till it's caught : 不要操之过急
April fish : 愚人节被愚弄的人,法国人愚弄他们朋友的方式就是在朋友的背后贴上一条纸做的鱼,当有人发现这个恶作剧时,他们就会大笑着喊:“Poisson d'Avril”这一说法缘于四月份的鱼刚刚孵化出来,很容易上钩被捉。

最新回复
zyshbzh (2008-4-01 10:20:31)