What does that mean? 你真的瞭解這個慣用語嗎?
很多字詞並非表面所見的意思，字詞的組合會產生不同的解釋。這樣的慣用法，我們稱之為「比喻」。一個成功的比喻，作者本身必須相當瞭解字詞的源起。以下的句子為讀者介紹一個比喻及其來源。
Imagery buries itself in language and takes on new meaning. The transplanted and transformed sets of words are called “figures of speech.” For a figure of speech to be effective, however, a writer must first understand the original meaning of the phrase. The following sentence contains a common figure of speech. Its original meaning is explained.
“The searchers moved into the area in single file, talking quietly forward and backward along the line, before reaching a tree-less area and fanning out.”
「搜索隊成一縱列進入該區域，輕聲前後傳話，接著進入沒有樹木的區域並擴展散開。」
A hand fan is an ancient response to still, warm air and the discomfort that can arise from it. Its roots go back many centuries in both Asia and Europe, dating respectively to the second and fourth centuries BC. Individual crude fans presumably predate those manufactured ones. The fans were made of light but stiffened materials, some constructed from nature (feathers) and some from man’s ingenuity (paper). The devices were of two basic designs: rigid and folding. The latter became a stylistic statement as well as a tool for coquetry and coy flirtation.
古時若空氣凝滯燠熱，令人不適，便會用上手持的扇子。手持扇起源於許多個世紀前，在亞洲可追溯至公元前二世紀，歐洲可追溯至公元前四世紀。個人自行製作、未多加工的扇子，年代大約又早於成批製造的扇子。扇子的材料質輕堅硬，有些取自天然（如羽毛），有些得自人造（紙類）；設計特點有二，一是堅固，二是能折疊。折疊不僅獨具風格，也便於賣弄風騷、掩面調情。
The term “fanning out” is specifically linked to folding fans. The devices are stored with their folding stems collapsed together into a single shaft. In this way a folding fan is easily transported in a pocket. For use, the fan is grasped in the palm of the hand with the thumb pushing sideways upon the top stem to open it, the other stems trailing behind. Thus, one narrow stem becomes several stems spread widely, with the attached covering material ready to move the still air. Similarly, the line of searchers spreads out to cover a broad stretch of ground during one pass.
本句「fanning out」一詞和摺扇有關，摺扇平常扇骨收攏，疊為一柄，方便置於袋中攜帶。使用時，則以手持扇，拇指將最外層的扇骨一推，其餘扇骨也就隨之展開。如此一來，原先一柄細窄的扇子，便舒展出數柄扇骨，覆蓋骨上的扇面就能用來搧風。本句中，搜索隊也同樣四散展開，在一次搜索中搜尋一片廣大區域。
Imagery buries itself in language and takes on new meaning. The transplanted and transformed sets of words are called “figures of speech.” For a figure of speech to be effective, however, a writer must first understand the original meaning of the phrase. The following sentence contains a common figure of speech. Its original meaning is explained.
“The searchers moved into the area in single file, talking quietly forward and backward along the line, before reaching a tree-less area and fanning out.”
「搜索隊成一縱列進入該區域，輕聲前後傳話，接著進入沒有樹木的區域並擴展散開。」
A hand fan is an ancient response to still, warm air and the discomfort that can arise from it. Its roots go back many centuries in both Asia and Europe, dating respectively to the second and fourth centuries BC. Individual crude fans presumably predate those manufactured ones. The fans were made of light but stiffened materials, some constructed from nature (feathers) and some from man’s ingenuity (paper). The devices were of two basic designs: rigid and folding. The latter became a stylistic statement as well as a tool for coquetry and coy flirtation.
古時若空氣凝滯燠熱，令人不適，便會用上手持的扇子。手持扇起源於許多個世紀前，在亞洲可追溯至公元前二世紀，歐洲可追溯至公元前四世紀。個人自行製作、未多加工的扇子，年代大約又早於成批製造的扇子。扇子的材料質輕堅硬，有些取自天然（如羽毛），有些得自人造（紙類）；設計特點有二，一是堅固，二是能折疊。折疊不僅獨具風格，也便於賣弄風騷、掩面調情。
The term “fanning out” is specifically linked to folding fans. The devices are stored with their folding stems collapsed together into a single shaft. In this way a folding fan is easily transported in a pocket. For use, the fan is grasped in the palm of the hand with the thumb pushing sideways upon the top stem to open it, the other stems trailing behind. Thus, one narrow stem becomes several stems spread widely, with the attached covering material ready to move the still air. Similarly, the line of searchers spreads out to cover a broad stretch of ground during one pass.
本句「fanning out」一詞和摺扇有關，摺扇平常扇骨收攏，疊為一柄，方便置於袋中攜帶。使用時，則以手持扇，拇指將最外層的扇骨一推，其餘扇骨也就隨之展開。如此一來，原先一柄細窄的扇子，便舒展出數柄扇骨，覆蓋骨上的扇面就能用來搧風。本句中，搜索隊也同樣四散展開，在一次搜索中搜尋一片廣大區域。
Posted at 2012-08-21 10:10:17
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