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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 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 laboratory team approached the project as if it were an onion, systematically exploring its multiple facets till their eyes were red with exhaustion.”
實驗室研究團隊處理問題就像是處理洋蔥，系統性地探討各個層面，直到眼睛疲憊發紅。
Onions are vegetables that are recognizably layered. Each layer lends itself to peeling away to expose another layer underneath. Because the onion cells, when cut, produce a lighter-than-air gas, the peeling off of the layers irritates the eyes. The irritation brings tears, which are produced to wash away the irritation. These two characteristics of most onions—multi-layered composition and irritation of the eyes of anyone handling them—are universally recognized.
洋蔥這種蔬菜最明顯的特質，就是具有許多層次，每撥開一層，就會看到下面一層。此外，切開洋蔥會產生一種比空氣輕的氣體，所以剝洋蔥會讓眼睛不舒服，產生淚液，以洗掉刺激物。一般人都很清楚洋蔥這兩種特質，也就是多層次的結構以及刺激眼睛的特性。
In saying scientists approached a project “as if it were an onion,” the writer used a simile to compare the methodical deconstruction of a complex object or compound to the peeling of the vegetable. Layer by layer, the scientists sorted and scrutinized the object or compound and recorded their findings. That they continued their quest till their “eyes were red” is an ancillary allusion to the onion and its capacity to stimulate tear glands in eyes. The laboratory experiment may not actually produce an irritating gas, but hours of squinting through microscopes can produce something similar, eyestrain.
用處理洋蔥(as if it were an onion)比喻處理問題，就是將處理複雜物質及化合物時抽絲剝繭的方法，用剝洋蔥來相比擬，如同科學家對事件的逐層處理、仔細檢視物質與化合物，並記錄 研究發現。這裡提及科學家持續探索，直至「眼睛發紅」，同樣指涉洋蔥刺激淚腺的特點。研究室所進行的實驗可能未必真的產生刺激氣體，但對著顯微鏡連續看好 幾小時的確會造成類似的結果，使眼睛疲勞。
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 laboratory team approached the project as if it were an onion, systematically exploring its multiple facets till their eyes were red with exhaustion.”
實驗室研究團隊處理問題就像是處理洋蔥，系統性地探討各個層面，直到眼睛疲憊發紅。
Onions are vegetables that are recognizably layered. Each layer lends itself to peeling away to expose another layer underneath. Because the onion cells, when cut, produce a lighter-than-air gas, the peeling off of the layers irritates the eyes. The irritation brings tears, which are produced to wash away the irritation. These two characteristics of most onions—multi-layered composition and irritation of the eyes of anyone handling them—are universally recognized.
洋蔥這種蔬菜最明顯的特質，就是具有許多層次，每撥開一層，就會看到下面一層。此外，切開洋蔥會產生一種比空氣輕的氣體，所以剝洋蔥會讓眼睛不舒服，產生淚液，以洗掉刺激物。一般人都很清楚洋蔥這兩種特質，也就是多層次的結構以及刺激眼睛的特性。
In saying scientists approached a project “as if it were an onion,” the writer used a simile to compare the methodical deconstruction of a complex object or compound to the peeling of the vegetable. Layer by layer, the scientists sorted and scrutinized the object or compound and recorded their findings. That they continued their quest till their “eyes were red” is an ancillary allusion to the onion and its capacity to stimulate tear glands in eyes. The laboratory experiment may not actually produce an irritating gas, but hours of squinting through microscopes can produce something similar, eyestrain.
用處理洋蔥(as if it were an onion)比喻處理問題，就是將處理複雜物質及化合物時抽絲剝繭的方法，用剝洋蔥來相比擬，如同科學家對事件的逐層處理、仔細檢視物質與化合物，並記錄 研究發現。這裡提及科學家持續探索，直至「眼睛發紅」，同樣指涉洋蔥刺激淚腺的特點。研究室所進行的實驗可能未必真的產生刺激氣體，但對著顯微鏡連續看好 幾小時的確會造成類似的結果，使眼睛疲勞。
