English popular expression

英语流行口语脱口秀

榆次张德峰

1. Behave yourself!  请自重！请注意你的行为！

例如：--- Tom, don’t talk and laugh loudly with your desk-mate when the teacher is speaking in class. It’s not polite. You are not a child any more. Please behave yourself.

   --- I’m sorry, Miss Wang. I won’t do it again.

2. music to my ears 爱听的话，好听的话，听起来就像音乐一样动听

例如：He said he would write to me soon.. But I have waited for three weeks without any words from him. When the postman told me that I had got his letter, it was music to my ears.

3. Fall (up) on one’s feet  特别走运，化险为夷

有时候这个短语也做 land/light on one’s feet, 其中one’s 还可以用 both 来代替。一个人从高处跌下，如果脚先落地，就不一定受重伤，否则凶多吉少。英语中有句话 A cat has nine lives. 说猫有九条命，意思是猫的生命力特别强。这是因为猫动作灵活，反应迅速。猫从高处跌下时，总是四脚先着地，所以安然无恙。 Fall on one’s feet 一语即由此而来，字面意思是“脚先着地落下”,但它通常用在口语中表示“特别走运”或“转危为安”。

例如：Her first year was terrible. But she landed on both feet.

   Don’t worry about Mary, s falls on her feet.

4. show a leg  起床，赶快

源于航海用语。19世纪初水手出航可以带女眷同行。每天清晨水手长叫水手起床时常常这样喊：“Show a leg, show a leg or a stocking!” 或 “ Come on, all you sleepers! Hey! Show a leg and put a stocking on it!”这话的意思是准许女眷继续在吊床上躺着，但是必须伸出一条腿，且把长袜穿上，以表示自己是个女的， Show a leg一语后转义为起床或赶快，通常用于口语。Shake a leg是由此演变出来的异体。

例如：Show a leg! It’s past 11 o’colck.

   Come on, Tom, shake a leg, or we’ll never be ready in time.

   Shake a leg! The train won’t wait.

5. Like hot cakes  像刚出炉的蛋糕，很受欢迎的东西，抢手货

例如：This book is selling like hot cakes.

   After people believe that bananas are good for their health, the market started selling them like hot cakes.