Don't Believe Those 'Crocodile Tears'

 

Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories.

Today we talk about an amazing animal and an expression it has given us. The crocodile!

First, why are they amazing?

Well, crocodiles are experts at survival. Scientists say they first appeared 200 million years ago and have outlived the dinosaurs¹ by some 65 million years. One reason they are such good survivors² is that they can go for a very long time without eating.

And they are expert hunters! They use their strong jaws³ to bite their prey⁴ and then they swallow their food whole.

Here’s another fun fact about crocodiles: When they lose a tooth they grow one right back. A crocodile can go through 8,000 teeth in one lifetime!

Okay, while these facts are fascinating, they really do not help to explain today’s expression: crocodile tears.

Simply put, “crocodile tears” are fake sadness. You pretend to cry and feel badly for something when in fact … you could not care less. A great word to describe crocodile tears is insincere.

But don’t take my word for it. Let’s hear country-western singer Dale Watson sing his song “Crocodile Tears.”

Crocodile tears, they’re tearing me apart.

I know they’re not sincere, still they break my heart.

But why do tears from an ancient, unfeeling reptile⁵ mean false sadness?

Well, the expression “crocodile tears” comes from an old myth that crocodiles would shed tears while eating their prey.

Writers on the website Crocodilian.com claim that this myth was in use by the 1200s. A religious worker from that time wrote that if a crocodile found a man by the water, it would kill him if it could. Then the crocodile would cry tears on the man, but then finally – swallow him.

Another myth about crocodile tears suggests the animals are very crafty⁶ indeed. Crocodiles, the story goes, would cry tears as a false show of guilt⁷ or grief to trick their prey. The prey would come closer and then become dinner.

Of course, we know now that these stories are not true. Scientists explain that crocodiles DO create tears. The fluid helps to clean its eyes. But crocodiles do not cry. Crying is purely⁸ emotional and is reserved for us humans.

So, that is the origin of the phrase “crocodile tears.” Now, let’s talk about how and when to use it.

This is a common expression and we use it in any situation. So, I could say it to my best friend as easily as I could to colleagues at work.

But, please note. You do not have to have actual tears flowing down your face to have “crocodile tears.” If you fake sadness or regret by using only words, others can still accuse you of having “crocodile tears.”

One last note about this expression: Sometimes, crocodile tears are worse than insincere. Sometimes they are also hypocritical. Those are the times you are showing sadness but actually in your heart, you are quite happy about the situation.

And that’s all the time we have for Words and Their Stories.

Until next time … I’m Anna Matteo!

Those crocodile tears ain't gonna work this time on me

I know that a girl's supposed to cry but not over me…

Words in This Story

fake – adj. not true or real

pretend – v. to give a false appearance of being, possessing, or performing

insincere – adj. not expressing or showing true feelings : not sincere

myth – n. a story that was told in an ancient culture to explain a practice, belief, or natural occurrence

shed – v. to pour forth⁹ in drops

crafty – adj. clever in usually a deceptive¹⁰ or dishonest way

prey – n. an animal taken by a predator¹¹ as food

faucet¹² – n. a device that is used to control the flow of water from a pipe

regret – n. a feeling of sadness or disappointment about something that you did or did not do

hypocritical – adj. characterized by behavior that contradicts what one claims to believe or feel

1 dinosaurs   

n.恐龙( dinosaur的名词复数 )；守旧落伍的人，过时落后的东西

参考例句：

• The brontosaurus was one of the largest of all dinosaurs. 雷龙是所有恐龙中最大的一种。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years. 恐龙绝种已有几百万年了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

3 jaws   

n.口部；嘴

参考例句：

• The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。
• The scored jaws of a vise help it bite the work. 台钳上有刻痕的虎钳牙帮助它紧咬住工件。

4 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

5 reptile   

n.爬行动物；两栖动物

参考例句：

• The frog is not a true reptile.青蛙并非真正的爬行动物。
• So you should not be surprised to see someone keep a reptile as a pet.所以，你不必惊奇有人养了一只爬行动物作为宠物。

6 crafty   

adj.狡猾的，诡诈的

参考例句：

• He admired the old man for his crafty plan.他敬佩老者的神机妙算。
• He was an accomplished politician and a crafty autocrat.他是个有造诣的政治家，也是个狡黠的独裁者。

7 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

8 purely   

adv.纯粹地，完全地

参考例句：

• I helped him purely and simply out of friendship.我帮他纯粹是出于友情。
• This disproves the theory that children are purely imitative.这证明认为儿童只会单纯地模仿的理论是站不住脚的。

9 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

10 deceptive   

adj.骗人的，造成假象的，靠不住的

参考例句：

• His appearance was deceptive.他的外表带有欺骗性。
• The storyline is deceptively simple.故事情节看似简单，其实不然。

11 predator   

n.捕食其它动物的动物；捕食者

参考例句：

• The final part of this chapter was devoted to a brief summary of predator species.本章最后部分简要总结了食肉动物。
• Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard and a fearsome predator.科摩多龙是目前存在的最大蜥蜴，它是一种令人恐惧的捕食性动物。

12 faucet   

n.水龙头

参考例句：

• The faucet has developed a drip.那个水龙头已经开始滴水了。
• She turned off the faucet and dried her hands.她关掉水龙头，把手擦干。