VOA词汇掌故2023 你是一个"笨手笨脚的人"吗?

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

欢迎收听VOA慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。

Have you ever felt out of place?

你是否曾感到手足无措？

Have you ever felt clumsy, like you cannot move gracefully² and smoothly³?

你是否曾觉得自己笨手笨脚的，比如你不能优雅而平稳地移动？

If you answered yes, then today's show is for you!

如果你回答是，那么今天这期节目就是为你准备的！

Today we talk about what happens when a big animal runs loose in a small area.

今天我们要讨论的是当一只大型动物在一个小区域里乱跑时会发生什么。

The expression is to be a bull⁴ in a china shop.

这个短语是to be a bull in a china shop（笨手笨脚的人；鲁莽闯祸的人）。

China is fragile⁵, meaning very easy to break.

瓷器是易碎的，意思是很容易被打破。

Imagine a large bull running loose in a china shop.

想象一下，一头大公牛在瓷器店里乱跑。

All the fragile plates, bowls, and tea cups in the shop would be on the floor and broken in a million pieces.

店里所有易碎的盘子、碗和茶杯都会掉在地上摔得粉碎。

So, a bull in a china shop describes a person who is awkward⁶ and clumsy.

所以，a bull in a china shop形容的是笨手笨脚的人。

Wherever they go, they create a mess.

无论他们去哪里，他们都会制造混乱。

This can happen on purpose or on accident.

这可能是故意的，也可能是意外。

If you are behaving wildly in a small space and are breaking things here and there, you are acting⁷ like a bull in a china shop.

如果你在一个狭小的空间里表现得很疯狂，到处打碎东西，那么你就像在瓷器店里乱跑的公牛（即你是一个冒冒失失的人）。

But maybe you don't mean to.

但也许你不是故意的。

Maybe you are just very big or your body movements are not very graceful¹.

也许你只是块头很大，或者你的身体动作不是很优雅。

This expression can describe a person or a situation.

这个短语可以描述人或情况。

For example, a fancy wedding is my bull in a china shop situation.

例如，我在一场华丽的婚礼上表现得笨手笨脚。

I always end up knocking something over or saying the wrong thing.

我总是以打翻东西或说错话而告终。

This expression is used in other ways.

这个短语还有其他用法。

When a person feels out of place and deals too roughly with a delicate problem they can say they feel like a bull in a china shop.

当一个人感到手足无措，用过于粗暴的方式处理一个微妙的问题时，他们可以说自己笨手笨脚的。

If you are this kind of person, you do not handle light situations well at all.

如果你是这样的人，你根本不能很好地处理微妙的问题。

For some reason and sometimes through no fault of your own … you just make things worse.

出于某种原因，有时并不是你自己的错，但你会把事情弄得更糟。

It can also mean you rush into a situation without thinking about it clearly.

它也指你在没有想清楚的情况下就匆忙进入一种情景。

Acting like a bull in a china shop means recklessly⁸ attacking a problem without proper planning.

Acting like a bull in a china shop意思是在没有妥善规划的情况下鲁莽地解决问题。

So, when you act like a bull in a china shop, you create damage.

所以，当你表现得像一头闯进瓷器店里的公牛时，你就造成了损害。

You leave a big mess in your wake.

你留下了一大堆烂摊子。

This could be an actual mess or a figurative one.

这可能是真正的混乱，也可能含有比喻意义。

For example, if you are a bull in a china shop you may not be invited to a problem-solving meeting at work.

例如，如果你是冒冒失失的人，你可能不会被邀请参加工作中解决问题的会议。

You may bring a little too much mayhem with you.

你可能会带来更多的混乱。

This expression can also mean you handle a delicate situation badly.

这个短语也可以表示你把一个微妙的问题处理得很糟糕。

You don't react calmly and carefully.

你不会冷静而谨慎地做出反应。

Instead you add fuel to the fire.

相反，你会火上浇油。

This means you make the situation worse.

意思是你让情况变得更糟。

For example, when it comes to relationship issues, Diedre is like a bull in a china shop.

例如，当谈到感情问题时，迪德丽就像一只闯进瓷器店里的公牛。

She always ends up making more trouble.

她最后总是制造更多的麻烦。

One time she tried to help a married couple who had been arguing a lot.

有一次，她试图帮助一对经常争吵的夫妇。

After Deirdre's "help" the couple ended their marriage.

在迪德丽的“帮助”下，这对夫妇离婚了。

It is widely believed that this expression came from real animals causing real damage at outdoor markets in the 1800s.

人们普遍认为，这个短语来自19世纪在户外市场上造成真正破坏的真实动物。

Word expert say that many languages have a similar expression but maybe they use a different animal, for example an elephant.

词汇专家表示，许多语言都有类似的表达方式，但它们可能使用了不同的动物，例如大象。

And elephant would also do a lot of damage in a china shop.

大象在瓷器店里也会造成很大的破坏。

And that's all the time for this Words and Their Stories. Until next time ... I'm Anna Matteo.

以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。下期见。我是安娜·马特奥。

1 graceful   

adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的

参考例句：

• His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了!
• The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。

2 gracefully   

ad.大大方方地；优美地

参考例句：

• She sank gracefully down onto a cushion at his feet. 她优雅地坐到他脚旁的垫子上。
• 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 smoothly   

adv.平滑地，顺利地，流利地，流畅地

参考例句：

• The workmen are very cooperative,so the work goes on smoothly.工人们十分合作，所以工作进展顺利。
• Just change one or two words and the sentence will read smoothly.这句话只要动一两个字就顺了。

4 bull   

n.公牛，买进证券投机图利者，看涨的人

参考例句：

• It's only a hair off a bull's back to them.这对他们来说，不过九牛一毛。
• Many dogs closed around the bull.很多狗渐渐地把那只牛围了起来。

5 fragile   

adj.易碎的，脆的，易损坏的，虚弱的，脆弱的

参考例句：

• The old lady was increasingly fragile after her operation.那位老太太手术后身体越来越虚弱。
• This glass disc looks very fragile.这个玻璃盘子看起来很容易碎。

6 awkward   

adj.笨拙的，尴尬的，使用不便的，难处理的

参考例句：

• John is so shy and awkward that everyone notices him.约翰如此害羞狼狈，以至于大家都注意到了他。
• I was the only man among the guests and felt rather awkward.作为客人中的唯一男性，我有些窘迫。

7 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

8 recklessly   

a.不在乎的；不顾后果的

参考例句：

• If you drive as recklessly as that,you'll end in hospital. 要是你开车老是那样鲁莽，总有一天要住进医院。
• He was arrested for driving recklessly. 他因鲁莽开车被捕。