VOA慢速英语2020 与"山羊"相关的表达（在线收听）

Now, Words and Their Stories, a program from VOA Learning English.

On this program, we take English expressions and explain where they came from and how to use them.

In all languages, animals often find themselves in the center of many common expressions. English is no different. Today we focus on the goat!

People have been dealing with goats for a long time. A website on the history of goats, The Goat Guide, says their story dates back many centuries. It claims that people began using the animals as food over 9,000 years ago!

Goats are nosy, social animals. They are strong and can live in any number of environments. They can eat almost anything and a lot of it!

Among all domesticated animals, goats probably have the most going for them. Milk from goats never costs a lot. And goat milk is easy for the body to digest. Their meat is tasty and can be prepared in different ways. In addition, goat hair is used to make some of the finest and softest clothing money can buy.

With such a long history and so much going for goats, you would think that English has many expressions with the word goat.

But it doesn't.

We only found two. And one is just a noun: the word goatee.

Now, goats have small, tufts of hair on the lower part of the face. So a goatee is facial hair in about the same part of the chin on a man. It looks a little like the beard on a male goat.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary claims that the word goatee first appeared in 1841. At that time, a goatee only meant hair growing on a man's chin, much like a goat's. However, by the 1990s, the word had come to mean any facial hair that is on the chin but not higher up on the cheeks. So it also involved men wearing a mustache. Some would argue -- and people who study men's facial hair do -- that a true goatee is only hair on the chin.

The next goat-related expression is more interesting -- to get someone's goat.

Hearing this expression the first time, you might think it means to steal someone's goat. But that is wrong.

If someone gets your goat, they make you angry.

But why?

That's a good question. The answer is ... we're not so sure.

A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English says that "to get someone's goat" may come from the French expression prendre la chevre, which means to take the goat.

Apparently, one way people could get milk was from a goat. So naturally, taking the animal would anger its owner.

Another explanation has to do with horseracing.

In the 1900s, people who trained horses were said to have put goats near racehorses to keep them calm. Just before the race, the goat was removed. This would, supposedly, make the horse nervous and ready to run.

However, there is no evidence to support this explanation. People who study languages for a living have a name for it -- folk etymology. Another term for it is an urban legend.

In earlier times, "to get your goat" had another meaning. If something got your goat, it could have made you nervous or worried.

In his book Smoke Bellow, American writer Jack London tells the story of two men crossing a bridge that is very high off the ground. The lead character, Smoke, makes it safely across and shouts a warning back to the other.

"Your turn," he called across. "But just keep a-coming and don't look down. That's what got my goat. Just keep a-coming, that's all. And get a move on. It's almighty rotten."

Here, he means looking down made him feel frightened. Americans don't really use the expression in this way any longer. It is a good example of how the meaning of an expression can change over time.

Let's talk about some other words that mean the same as "got someone's goat."

We have already used the word "annoy." Some similar words are aggravate, bother and bug. You can also irk and vex someone. So, something that gets your goat is irksome or vexing. And if someone has gotten your goat, you could also say he or she has rubbed you the wrong way.

With all of these expressions, it can be an action that gets your goat or a person who gets your goat.

Let's say you work with someone who doesn't clean up after herself. You can say, she really gets your goat. Or if you want to make it less personal, you can say, "It really gets my goat when she makes a mess at the coffee machine."

Now, if something often gets your goat or rubs you the wrong way, it can become a pet peeve. Pet peeves are those seemingly small things that get on your nerves.

While a person can get your goat or get on your nerves, he or she cannot be called a "pet peeve." But their actions can!

For example, one pet peeve of mine is when one person takes up two seats on a crowded train, especially if a pregnant woman or older adult needs a seat! Is it a big deal? No. But it gets my goat, nonetheless.

And that brings us to the end of this Words and Their Stories.

So, what gets your goat? What rubs you the wrong way? Do you have any pet peeves? Let us know in the Comments Section!

I'm Bryan Lynn.

And I'm Anna Matteo.

这里是VOA学英语出品《词汇掌故》节目。

在这档节目中，我们选取英语表达并解释它们的来源以及使用方法。

在所有的语言中，动物经常会出现在许多常见表达的正中间。英语也不例外。今天我们关注的焦点是goat（山羊）！

人们已经与山羊打交道很多年了。一个关于山羊历史的网站山羊指南显示山羊的历史可追溯至很多世纪以前。该网站声称人们在九千多年前就开始将山羊当作食物了！

山羊是很不安分的群居动物。它们生命力顽强，能在任何环境中生存。它们几乎什么都能吃且它们的数量庞大！

在所有的家畜中，山羊也许是最适合作为家畜的。羊奶从来不贵。羊奶也很易于人体消化。羊的肉很美味，且有很多种烹调方式。另外，羊毛可以用来制作一些物美价廉、质地柔软的衣服。

有着如此悠久的历史以及这么多令人喜爱山羊的优点，你认为英语里会有很多含有单词“goat”的表达。

但不是这样的。

我们只找到了两个。其中一个是名词：单词“goatee（山羊胡子）”。

山羊脸部偏下的部位长有几绺胡子。因此，“goatee”指的是男性下颌近乎同样部位的脸部毛发。它看起来有点像雄山羊的胡子。

韦氏词典声称单词“goatee”是在1841年第一次出现的。在那个时候，“goatee”仅仅表示男性下颌上长的胡子，很像山羊的胡子。然而，到了20世纪90年代，这个单词开始表示不高于脸颊的下颌上的所有面部毛发。因此它也包括男性的八字须（mustache）。一些人会争论，研究男士面部毛发的人也会争辩道：真正的“goatee”仅仅是下巴上的胡子。

下一个和山羊相关的表达更有趣：“get someone's goat（使人恼怒）”。

第一次听到这个表达，你也许认为它的含义是偷盗某人的山羊。但这是错误的。

如果某人带走你的山羊，这个人会惹你生气。

但为什么呢？

这是个好问题。答案是……我们不太确定这个答案是对的。

《俚语词典》和《非常规英语》上说“get someone's goat”也许来源于法语表达“prendre la chevre”，这个法语表达的意思是带走山羊。

很显然，人们获取动物奶汁的一种方式就是挤羊奶。所以自然带走羊会惹怒羊的主人。

另一种解释说是和赛马有关联。

在20世纪90年代，据说驯马的人会在赛马附近放些羊，好让马儿保持镇定。在比赛马上要开始的时候，羊子就会被带走。这应该会让赛马变得紧张起来，准备奔跑。

但是，没有支持这一解释的证据。那些靠研究语言谋生的人称此为民俗词源，另一个术语叫做坊间传说。

“get your goat”在早期还有另一个释义。如果某物“get your goat”，它使你紧张或者变得不安。

杰克伦敦在他的书《Smoke Bellow（烟雾缭绕）》中讲述了一个两个男人过桥的故事，这座桥离地很高，主角“Smoke”安全过桥后向另一个人喊出警告。

“轮到你了”，他喊道。“就往前看，不要往下看。往下看会让你紧张不安。只看向前方，就这样。往前移动。这桥烂得太厉害了。”

这里，他的意思是往下看让他感觉非常害怕。美国人真得不再这样使用这个表达了。它是一个表达随着时间意思会改变的典型例子。

让我们来谈一些其他和“got someone's goat”意思相同的单词吧。

我们已经用过了单词“annoy（惹怒）”。一些相近意思的单词有“aggravate（使激怒）”、“bother（使不安）”和“bug（使恼怒）”。你也可以“irk（激怒）”和“vex（惹恼）”某人。因此，让你生气的事情是令人讨厌或烦恼的。如果某人让你生气，你也可以说他或者她惹怒（rub sb the wrong way）了你。

所有这些表情，这些表达可以是一个让你生气的行为或者是一个让你生气的人。

假设你和一个做事不收拾的人一起共事。你可以说。她真得让你很生气。或者，如果你想让它不那么私人化，你可以说：“她把咖啡机弄得一团糟，我真得很生气。”

如果某事经常惹恼你或者让你生气，那它就是让人气恼的事（a pet peeve）。“pet peeves”指的是那些看起来很小却能让你生气（get on one's nerves）的事情。

尽管一个人能让你生气，但他或者她是不能被称作“pet peeve”的。但他们的行为可以！

例如，能让我生气的一件小事就是在拥挤的火车上一个人占两个位子，尤其是当一个孕妇或者老人需要座位的时候！这是什么大事吗？不是。尽管如此，但这事让我生气。

这就到了本期《词汇掌故》的节目尾声了。

那么，能惹恼你的是什么？什么会让你生气？有会让你想发火的小事情吗？请在评论区告诉我们！

我是布莱恩·林恩。

我是安娜·马特奥。