英语俚语天天说 第39期:不得其所,离水之鱼fish out of water

 　　3月4日在北美地区上映的喜剧新片《超级奶爸》在短短一个周末内创造了超过三千万美元的票房奇迹，一跃成为全美最走红的影片，主演范·迪塞尔的搞笑表演也带给观众不少惊喜。外电报道如下：

　　Vin Diesel's family-friendly comedy "The Pacifier" pulled in $30.2 million on its opening weekend to rank as the nation's top-grossing movie, turning his action-star image and box-office expectations upside down.

　　Proving he's more than biceps and tattoos¹, Diesel's performance as a Navy SEAL turned baby sitter easily outdistanced the weekend's other major opening, "Be Cool" with John Travolta.

　　"Be Cool," the sequel to the 1995 comedy "Get Shorty," took in $23.5 million for Travolta's largest weekend opening, according to studio estimates.

　　"'Pacifier' did better than anyone expected, but you can't underestimate² the family audience," said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations Co., which tracks box-office figures. "I think people like to see a fish-out-of-water story, an action star in a very unexpected role."

　　Fish out of water是一个俚语，意为“如鱼离水、感到生疏”，喻指某人和他所处的环境不融恰，使他感到别扭或难堪。

　　例如：At the conference I was a fish out of water. All the speeches were in French, a language I never studied.

　　参加那个会议真叫我感到别扭。所有人发表讲话的时候都用法语，可是我从来也没有学过法文。

　　号称“肌肉美男”的范·迪塞尔是一个个性十足的动作明星，可在此片中他居然一改往日风格，“屈尊”出任超级奶爸，难免让观众们大跌眼镜，从“如鱼离水”的角度来欣赏他的另类表演。

1 tattoos   

n.文身( tattoo的名词复数 )；归营鼓；军队夜间表演操；连续有节奏的敲击声v.刺青，文身( tattoo的第三人称单数 )；连续有节奏地敲击；作连续有节奏的敲击

参考例句：

• His arms were covered in tattoos. 他的胳膊上刺满了花纹。
• His arms were covered in tattoos. 他的双臂刺满了纹身。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 underestimate   

vt.对...估价过低，低估

参考例句：

• Don't underestimate the role of theory.不要轻视理论的作用。
• I think a lot of people still underestimate him.我觉得很多人仍然低估了他。