译词 | “monkey business”是“猴子生意”?

来源:翻译天堂 作者: 时间:2023/10/20


如果外国朋友突然跟你说“monkey business”,可别翻译成“猴子的生意”。


图片

(图源:视觉中国)


“monkey”除了“猴子”的意思,还有一个意思是“淘气鬼,捣蛋鬼”。


图片

(图源:Cambridge Dictionary)


例句:

They ate all the cakes, the monkeys.

他们吃掉了所有的蛋糕,这些捣蛋鬼。

Hey, put that down, you little monkey!

嘿,放下它,你这个小淘气!


“monkey business”也不能按照字面意思去理解,它的意思其实是“骗人把戏;恶作剧”。


释义:

behaviour that is not acceptable or is dishonest

骗人把戏;恶作剧


例句:

The teacher suspected that there had been some monkey business going on while she was out of the room.

老师怀疑她不在教室里的时候有人搞恶作剧。


“淘气捣蛋”这个意思还能延伸出以下几种表达:


1. monkey around 胡闹,捣蛋


例句:

The children were bored and started monkeying around.

孩子们都感到厌烦了,开始胡闹。


2. monkey around with sth 胡乱触摸;随意改变;随意恶劣对待


例句:

They shouldn't start monkeying around with the Constitution.

他们不应该随意改变宪法。


3. make a monkey out of sb 使(某人)出丑;耍弄,愚弄(某人)


例句:

I'm not going to dance too much at the party because I don't want to make a monkey out of myself in front of my coworkers.

我不想在聚会上跳舞跳得太多,因为我不想在同事面前出洋相。


4. throw a monkey wrench in the works 从中捣乱;破坏计划


例句:

The funding for the project was withdrawn so that really threw a monkey wrench in the works.

项目的资金被撤回,这真的打乱了计划。


其他关于monkey的表达:

I'll be a monkey's uncle!  天哪!哎呀!

not give a monkey's  一点都不在乎,完全无所谓

brass monkey weather  极冷的天气

grease monkey  汽车(或飞机)发动机修理工

monkey nut (尤指尚未去壳的)花生

monkey suit  男子晚礼服


源 | 翻译天堂综编自网络、普特英语听力网、Cambridge Dictionary制作|绢生审核|肖英 / 万顷

终审|清欢



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