英语俚语天天说 第56期:沉默寡言的人man of few words

 　　释义：

　　A phrase used to describe someone who tends to be on the quiet side, or a person who does not have much to say when they speak；这次词组用来用来形容一个比较安静的人或者当他们说话时话不多的人；

　　来源：

　　This phrase is self-explanatory; 这次词组不需要加以说明就可以理解；it literally¹ means what it says, which is rare for most phrases.通过字面就可以理解它的意思，这对于很多词组来讲都比较少见； Indeed, people, such as myself, don't have a whole lot to say much of the time. 的确，有的人，比如像我很多时候就没有很多话需要说Why? 为什么呢？Well, there are a few reasons.当然有一些原因 It could be due to feeling uncomfortable around others, being shy, or it could just be the style for how a person talks; short and to the point.可能是因为在人群中不舒服，比如说害羞；或者仅仅是因为一个人的说话风格，比如他就是说话简短扼要；

　　This phrase has been around for at least 400 years, 这个词组至少已经有400年的历史了and unsurprisingly, its meaning has remained unchanged throughout the centuries. 并且意料中的是，它的意思这么久以来并没有改变For example, a popular playwright² known as William Shakespeare uses the phrase in the play King Henry V, from 1599:

　　比如，在著名剧作家莎士比亚1599年创作的亨利五世中就用到了这个词组

　　"He hath heard that men of few words are the best men."

　　这句话的意思是说：他听说沉默寡言的人是最好的人；

　　Sometimes, men of few words were described in combination³ with another old expression that says they were 'men of action.' 有时候，这个词组会与另外一个词组结合起来用，即men of action翻译为中文就是“实干家”Indeed, while a man may not have anything to say, they can make up for it by what they do. 的确，当一个人话很少的时候，往往他们就会用行动去弥补；

　　举例：

　　I've been friends with him for over a decade, and I know him to be a man of few words, but at least he is funny when he does decide to talk. 我与他做朋友已经有十年多，我知道他是一个沉默寡言的人，但是当他说话时，他至少很幽默；

1 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

2 playwright   

n.剧作家，编写剧本的人

参考例句：

• Gwyn Thomas was a famous playwright.格温·托马斯是著名的剧作家。
• The playwright was slaughtered by the press.这位剧作家受到新闻界的无情批判。

3 combination   

n.组合，合并，联合；

参考例句：

• He carried on the business in combination with his friends.他与朋友们合伙做生意。
• The materials can be used singly or in combination.这些材料可以单独使用也可以混合用。