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What does that mean? 你真的瞭解這個慣用語嗎?
【英文學習】
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 word or set of words is called a “figure of speech.” For a figure of speech to be effective, however, a writer must first understand the original meaning of the word or phrase. The following sentence contains a common figure of speech. Its original meaning is explained.
“In stalking the white-tailed deer, the hunter becomes a throwback to an era when only four-legged predators walked the earth.”
「跟蹤白尾鹿時，獵人好像回到過去只有四肢食肉動物橫行地球的時代。」
A throwback is a return to a precedent. When an entrepreneur moves from assembling his product one at a time to setting up an assembly line to mass produce the product, the advanced process can said to be a throwback to Henry Ford, who introduced mass production. Most animate and inanimate activities are recurring—instincts and scientific principles are timeless—but only when an activity alludes to a precedent set several generations previously is it considered a throwback.
回到過去是指回到先前的狀態。譬如，有位企業家從一次組裝一個產品進步到設立大量生產產品的組裝線時，我們可說這樣的進步過程是「throwback」到Henry Ford的時代，因為他是第一個介紹大量生產概念的人。大部分生命和無生命的活動是反覆發生的－像是永恆不變的天性和科學原理－因此只有提到世代以前的先例時，一項活動才能被稱為「throwback」。
In saying the hunter becomes a throwback, the writer refers to the history of predatory activity. Before there was man, let alone manmade weapons, there were predators stalking their next meal. They did so using the same tactics used by hunters today, such as remaining unmoving for long periods of time and scanning an area, or moving quietly and pausing to listen for sounds of approaching game. Human hunters and leopards are of the same long and lethal lineage.
描寫獵人回到過去，作者提到了過去動物捕食的活動。在人類出現以前，更別提人造武器出現前，掠食性動物總是虎視眈眈地盯著下一餐。牠們和現今獵人使用的手法相同，例如長時間不動，悄悄地移動，或是在獵物接近時暫停動作並仔細聆聽。獵人和獵豹都屬於這類存在已久的獵取手法。
Imagery buries itself in language and takes on new meaning. The transplanted and transformed word or set of words is called a “figure of speech.” For a figure of speech to be effective, however, a writer must first understand the original meaning of the word or phrase. The following sentence contains a common figure of speech. Its original meaning is explained.
“In stalking the white-tailed deer, the hunter becomes a throwback to an era when only four-legged predators walked the earth.”
「跟蹤白尾鹿時，獵人好像回到過去只有四肢食肉動物橫行地球的時代。」
A throwback is a return to a precedent. When an entrepreneur moves from assembling his product one at a time to setting up an assembly line to mass produce the product, the advanced process can said to be a throwback to Henry Ford, who introduced mass production. Most animate and inanimate activities are recurring—instincts and scientific principles are timeless—but only when an activity alludes to a precedent set several generations previously is it considered a throwback.
回到過去是指回到先前的狀態。譬如，有位企業家從一次組裝一個產品進步到設立大量生產產品的組裝線時，我們可說這樣的進步過程是「throwback」到Henry Ford的時代，因為他是第一個介紹大量生產概念的人。大部分生命和無生命的活動是反覆發生的－像是永恆不變的天性和科學原理－因此只有提到世代以前的先例時，一項活動才能被稱為「throwback」。
In saying the hunter becomes a throwback, the writer refers to the history of predatory activity. Before there was man, let alone manmade weapons, there were predators stalking their next meal. They did so using the same tactics used by hunters today, such as remaining unmoving for long periods of time and scanning an area, or moving quietly and pausing to listen for sounds of approaching game. Human hunters and leopards are of the same long and lethal lineage.
描寫獵人回到過去，作者提到了過去動物捕食的活動。在人類出現以前，更別提人造武器出現前，掠食性動物總是虎視眈眈地盯著下一餐。牠們和現今獵人使用的手法相同，例如長時間不動，悄悄地移動，或是在獵物接近時暫停動作並仔細聆聽。獵人和獵豹都屬於這類存在已久的獵取手法。
