VOA词汇掌故2023 他想"无拘无束"地去旅行

And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning¹ English.

欢迎收听VOA慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。

English has many idioms to express close connections.

英语中有许多表示密切联系的习语。

If two people are extremely close and do everything together, we say they are joined at the hip².

如果两个人非常亲密，做任何事情都在一起，我们说他们“交情极深”。

If two people are very similar to each other, we say they are two peas in a pod.

如果两个人长得很像，我们就说他们长得“一模一样”。

And when two people marry, we say they tied the knot³.

当两个人结婚时，我们说他们“喜结连理”。

If you are tied down, that means there are important things you must do, and those things prevent you from doing something else.

“tie down”的意思是有重要的事情必须由你来做，而这些事情会阻止你做其他事情。

For example, you can be tied down by your employment⁴ or some other tasks.

例如，你可能会被你的工作或其他任务拴住。

You can be tied down for an afternoon, a week, a month, or for years, depending on the situation.

你可能会被拴住一下午、一周、一个月或几年，视情况而定。

For example, you might say, "I'm going to be tied down here for the next few hours."

例如，你可以说，“在接下来的几个小时里，我将会被栓在这里。”

But you might also say, "He didn't get married because he didn't want to get tied down."

但你也可以说，“他不结婚是因为他不想被拴住。”

In this second example, tied down refers to a long period of time.

在第二个例子中，tied down指的是很长一段时间。

But what about those people who haven't tied the knot and are not tied down?

但那些还没有结婚、没有被拴住的人呢？

What expression can we use to describe them?

我们可以用什么短语来形容他们呢？

The following exchange gives the answer:

下面的对话给出了答案：

I think Michael would be a great match for Ellen.

我认为迈克尔和埃伦很配。

I think he would too, but I don't think he's ready. Maybe in a few years.

我觉得也是，但我觉得他还没准备好。也许再过几年吧。

You think he's too young?

你觉得他太年轻了吗？

Not really, it's just that he doesn't want to be tied down. He wants to travel and be, you know, footloose and fancy-free.

也不是，只是他不想被束缚住。他想去旅行，自由自在，无拘无束。

Sounds kind of nice, actually!

实际上，听起来挺不错的！

Footloose and fancy-free means that you do not have serious commitments⁵.

Footloose and fancy-free的意思是你没有认真许下承诺。

It expresses freedom and being without serious worries.

它表达了自由和无忧无虑。

Some people may connect the expression with young people who do not yet have serious responsibilities in their lives.

有些人可能会把这个短语与那些在生活中还没有认真肩负起责任的年轻人联系在一起。

American dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster says the first known use of fancy-free dates to 1590 and first meant being free from romantic attachment⁶.

美国词典出版商梅里亚姆-韦伯斯特公司表示，已知第一次使用fancy-free可以追溯到1590年，这个词最初的意思是摆脱浪漫的依恋。

The first known use of footloose came in 1650.

已知第一次使用footloose是在1650年。

In the 1800s, footloose and fancy-free were combined into one expression in American English.

在19世纪，在美式英语中，footloose and fancy-free被合成一个短语。

Footloose and fancy-free is the title of numerous⁷ songs, and Footloose was a popular American musical film released⁸ in 1984.

《Footloose and fancy-free》是众多歌曲的标题歌曲，《Footloose》是一部于1984年上映的美国流行音乐电影。

The movie is about a teenager who moves to a small town where dancing is not permitted.

这部电影讲述了一个少年搬到了一个不允许跳舞的小镇。

But the teenager wants to dance and set his feet free.

但这个少年想要跳舞，想解放他的双脚。

Whether you're feeling tied down or footloose and fancy-free, that's it for this week's Words and Their Stories.

无论你是感觉被束缚还是自由自在，以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。

I'm Andrew Smith.

安德鲁·史密斯为您播报。

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

3 knot   

n.结，难题，一小群；vi.打结；vt. 把...打成结，系牢，捆扎

参考例句：

• He made a knot in the rope.他在绳子上打了个结。
• The knot has come untied.扣儿开了。

4 employment   

n.雇用；使用；工作，职业

参考例句：

• A large office requires the employment of many people.一个大办事处需要雇用好多人员。
• The state of employment in this city is improving.这个城市就业状况正在改善。

5 commitments   

n.委托( commitment的名词复数 )；任务；承担的义务

参考例句：

• I am very tired because I have taken on so many commitments. 我很累，因为我承担了很多的事情。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• These commitments have already been breached. 这些承诺已遭背弃。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 attachment   

n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附

参考例句：

• She has a great attachment to her sister.她十分依恋她的姐姐。
• She's on attachment to the Ministry of Defense.她现在隶属于国防部。

7 numerous   

adj.为数众多的；极多的

参考例句：

• There have been numerous exchanges of views between the two governments.两国政府间曾多次交换意见。
• There are numerous people in the square. 有许多人在广场上。

8 released   

v.释放( release的过去式和过去分词 )；放开；发布；发行

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• With hindsight it is easy to say they should not have released him. 事后才说他们本不应该释放他，这倒容易。