外国人听不懂的“中式英语”

小爱不爱

1. 有他这颗扫帚星，什么事情都办不成。
[误] With a comet like him, nothing can be accomplished.
[正] With a jinx like him, nothing can be accomplished.
' Z8 B- c& B  }$ H, q1 W注：“扫帚星”是中国人对“慧星”（comet）的俗称，因其后面拖着一条像扫帚一样的长尾巴而得名。在中国古代，“扫帚星”被认为是灾难的预兆，并被用来比喻不吉利的人或事；祸根：（person or thing that is thought to bring）bad luck（to sb/sth）；curse。英语的comet 虽然没有这层含义，但却有一个对应的说法，即jinx。
例：There's a jinx on/Someone's put a jinx on this car: it's always giving me trouble. （这辆汽车上有什么妨人的东西，总给我找麻烦。）
6 Y  t& p  M5 Q, O2 Z8 n+ m! V8 p2.萝卜青菜，各有所爱。
[误] Some prefer radish but others prefer cabbage.
$ P9 w  `5 t3 [; u4 W" {[正] Tastes differ.
# g* H( I! z# ?9 G, d6 U注：Tastes differ/vary .是句英语谚语，除此以外，原句还可翻译成 No dish suits all tastes.或 You can never make everyone happy. 等。此外，我们还可以这样说：One man's meat is another man's poison. 总之，应采取意译。
$ u- D" s/ z5 D& N6 J, s+ z3.他一向嘴硬，从不认错。
7 ~4 ^2 D; i1 r- n# G[误] 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. 这句话主要是男孩们打架时的用语，当一方想制服另一方时，就用命令的口气说：“Say uncle!”这时，有的孩子为了表示不服输，就是不说。后来，say uncle 就成了“服输”的代名词，而 not say uncle 就相当于“嘴硬”了。
# M' \5 s3 S) o/ N4.老师很喜欢这个嘴甜的小姑娘。
[误] The teacher likes this sweet-mouthed little girl very much.
' N( z& S, c9 ~( @[正] The teacher likes this honey-lipped little girl very much.
注：中国人喜欢说“嘴甜”，但 honey-lipped 更符合英美人的语言习惯。
$ ]+ G- S7 x( x% e# M2 U5.同学们都很讨厌他，因为他经常拍老师的马屁。
8 z. G$ [. @$ C' F. ]+ V[误] The students 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.
" V9 ^. r/ D$ Z3 D0 A! c注：以前在欧洲，臣民见到国王与王后往往要亲吻他们的靴子。后来，人们将 lick the boots 引申为“为了某种目的而讨好某人”，它与汉语的“拍马屁”含义一样。在美国英语中，“拍马屁”还有另一种说法，即 polish the apple，源于以前的学生用擦亮的苹果来讨好老师。
  ?% D- C) w8 u& O0 s; H4 j6.你听说了吗？迈克把他的女朋友给甩了。
[误] Have you ever heard that Mike broke up with his girlfriend?
' F) ?3 p8 P& ~- V4 [! I" X; Y[正] Have you ever heard that Mike dumped his girlfriend?
0 {, j, h- N8 n3 u  q' l" B* I4 ^注：break up with sb. 虽然表示“与某人分手了”，但并没说明是谁先提出来的。而 dump 的原意指“倾倒垃圾”，用在这里则表示像倒垃圾一样地甩掉。
8 |) @4 X* r( |7.我们要把祖国建设成为社会主义的现代化强国。
[误] We will build our motherland into a socialist modern powerful country.
[正] We will build our motherland into a modern powerful socialist country.
. q& N' A- l8 W6 h. q$ |4 R注：形容词作为修饰语在汉语和英语中都很常用，但使用的先后次序却有所不同。在英语中我们一般遵循“靠近原则”，即越能说明本质属性的修饰词越靠近它所修饰的名词，当从这一点看不出区别时，就靠词的长短来决定，短的在前，长的在后。原文中最能说明“国家”本质的定语是“社会主义的”，所以 socialist 要最靠近它所修饰的中心词。
/ ]5 ?' W, `+ h4 ?* @8.人都是这山望着那山高，对自己的现状没有满意的时候。
! Y5 E8 n2 d. O# V/ U1 _[误] Almost all people think that the other mountain is higher than the one he's standing on. They never feel satisfied with what they've already got.
[正] Almost all people think that the grass is greener on the other hill. They never feel satisfied with what they've already got.
* s# N; ^, j6 W5 V8 J) n/ `. R注：“这山望着那山高”是指人不满足于现状的心理，它在英语中已经有了现成的说法，即 the grass is greener on the other hill（他山的草更绿），因此我们借用即可，这样既方便又更有利于与西方人沟通。
" D2 ]5 m0 b+ X. c9.转战南北
[误] fight south and north
[正] fight north and south
% `: j9 W  z4 P2 ^注：在地理方位的表达习惯上，中英文有一定的区别。中国人习惯于先“东西”后“南北”，而且在涉及“南北”时，习惯于先说“南”，再说“北”，如：“南征北战”、“南来北往”等。而英美人与此正好相反，如“江苏在中国的东南部”英文是 Jiangsu is in the south-east of China, 而“新疆在中国的西北部”应译为 Xinjiang is in the north-west of China。
: R' s9 [$ S- \1 S7 T- f& ~! E0 c10.这个教授教得很烂。
[误] The professor teaches badly.
: H. H" Y5 |4 a, `: r: i[正] The professor is so terrible.
0 q: ~" r( t1 {注：有人认为第二句的意思是“这个教授很可怕”，其实不然。英语中 terrible 意思很灵活，例如：feel terrible 指身体“不舒服”； The food is terrible 则是说食物“难吃极了”。而第一句纯属中文式的表达。

lindahero

They never feel satisfied with what they've already got.
7 j4 n! Q. X$ }3 z+ n- k$ v
& o# C# @" [- I# d: E/ s+ jvery good poster

gws110

(victory)Nice