作者： 360abc

本栏目由李福兵原创编写，Eyre绘图。

在上一讲里，我们曾给朋友们介绍过片语pick up the tab, 它的意思是“支付费用。”三朋四友相约一起共进晚餐，总有人要pick up the tab的，但有些人在饭局快要结束时就会随便找个理由开溜，在英文中可以用stiff someone来描述他们。看看下面的句子是怎样描述的：

Tom invited me to have dinner last night. As the dinner drawn to its close, he suddenly told me that he must run because of something emergent. He had stiffed me.
(译文：Tom昨晚邀请我共进晚餐。当饭局接近尾声时，他突然告诉我因为急事他必须走人。他不付钱就走了。)

这里的片语stiff someone的意思是“未付给某人应得的钱”，即我们常说的“不付钱就开溜”的意思。If you stiff someone, then you hurried to another place without paying money you have to pay. 这个片语是新出现的表达，多用于当人们有急事而记了付账的情况。再看另一个例子：

The play had begun. Jumping out of the tax, Tom stiffed the taxi driver and hurried to the ticket office.
(译文：戏已经开始了。Tom跳出出租车，不付钱给司机就匆忙的来到售票房。)

如果一个人说好请客吃饭，饭局结束前，他突然开溜，留下一个独自的你付账，这时你除了说他stiff  you外也可以说他让你做收尾工作。

After having had dinner, my girlfriend always leaves me holding the bag. I must sweep the floor and wash dishes.
(译文：晚饭过后，我的女友总是让我做收尾工作。我必须拖地和洗碗。)

这里leave someone holding the bag又是一个新的片语，意思是“让人代为负责收尾”。从字面上看，他的意思是“留下某人收拾包裹”，所以人们形象的翻译为“让某人做收尾工作”。需要注意的是，这个片语中hold始终使用的是ing形式。If you leave someone holding bag, then you run away before ending and others have to deal with the final work. For example：

It’s time to knock off，but there are still lots of work to do. Suddenly, Tom tells me that he must go home and deal with some important private cases. He does it again to leave me holding the bag.
(译文：该下班了，但仍然有许多工作要做，突然，Tom告诉我说他必须回家处理一些重要的私人事情。他又一次的让我做收尾工作了。)

结束语：今天我们学习了两个比较新的片语。Stiff someone的意思是“未付钱就开溜，没有付给某人应得的钱”，往往用于一些不是出于主观目的的情况下。leave someone holding the bag的意思是“让某人负责做收尾工作”。

本栏目由李福兵原创编写，Eyre绘图。

随着社会的进步，文明的发展，人类的许多生活方式已经逐渐发生了改变。过去，人们度蜜月总选择一些风景优美、久负盛名的地方，可是现在越来越多的人把蜜月花在爱心工作上，他们到一些孤儿院帮助那里的人们过上稳定的生活，到乡村小学去传授自己的知识等等。

Where are you going to visit during your vacation this summer? Perhaps you could soak up the sun on the sand beaches or view some beautiful landscapes. But why don’t you take a humanitarian one? In the labors of love, you could go to an isolated village to help children study their courses or help build an orphanage.
(译文：这个夏天你准备到哪儿度假？也许你会去做日光浴，或参观一些风景名胜。但为什么你不度一个人道关怀的假期呢？在这类爱心工程中，你可以去一个偏远的村落辅导孩子们学习他们的功课或帮助建造一个孤儿院。)

在这句话中，我们看到一个片语labor of love, 它的意思是“不讲报酬自愿承担的工作”，也就是我们常说的爱心工作或爱心工程。从字面上就很好理解这个片语：labor本来意思是“劳动、工作”，love的意思是“爱、热爱”，所以整个片语的意思是“充满爱意的，不讲报酬自愿承担的工作。”The idiom means that some volunteers do something that is hard work but they do without any reward because they want to. For example:

It’s a labor of love to look after poor children in orphanages. For them, presenting some interesting books to the children is a labor of love too.
(译文：照顾孤儿院的穷孩子是一项不讲报酬的爱心工作。给这些孩子一些有趣的书籍也是一项爱心工作。)

昨天朋友请吃饭，我非常高兴。饭局接近尾声，他突然接到一个电话，然后告诉我他有急事，必须立即去处理，于是留下我一个人pick up the tab!

Yesterday, one of my friends invited me to have dinner with him. After a long, leisurely dinner, he got a call on his cell phone. Then he told me that he must run immediately. I thought that he was leaving me to pick up the tab!
(译文：昨天我的一个朋友请和共进晚餐。一段又长又轻松的晚餐后，他用手机接了一个电话。接着他告诉我他有急事且必须立即去处理。我想他正留我下来付账!)

这里的片语pick up the tab的意思是“付账，支付费用”。从字面上理解，Pick up 在这里是“支付”的意思，而tab相当于check or bill, so the phrase, pick up the tab, means to pay for something, especially when it is not your responsibility to pay. For example:

When the check comes, the lobbyists always pick up the tab.
(译文：当付账时，说客总是支付这个费用。)

结束语：几个朋友准备建立一个读书社，专门帮助那些穷苦的孩子们，也算是一项爱心工程吧(labor of love)。当他们去工商部门办理执照时，主管负责人不理不睬的，后来只好买了包香烟并付了账(pick up the tab)，后来的事情才算顺利。

本栏目由李福兵原创编写，Eyre绘图。

俗话说江山易改，本性难移，这个俗话常用形容那些改不了旧习的人们。英文中也有相同的表达：old habits die hard.

It’s no doubt that we all have bad habits. As the saying goes, “old habits die hard”, our earnest attempts to break those habits often end in frustration.
(译文：毫无疑问，我们都有不好的习惯。正如俗话所说：本性难移，我们认真的努力要改掉它却总以失败告终。)

片语old habits die hard的意思是“恶习难改。”从字面上看它的意思是“旧习惯很难死掉”，不正是人们常说的“本性难移”吗？The idiom is used to say that it is difficult to make people change their attitudes or behaviors. 注意这个片语还可以表达为：old traditions/customs die hard. 如：

She never demands his husband stop smoking because she knows it isn’t necessary. As the saying goes, “Old traditions die hard.”
(译文：她从来不要求他的丈夫戒烟，因为她知道这是没有必要的。正如俗话所言“本性难移嘛。)

汉语中有句俗话叫世上无难事，只怕有心人。它告诉我们只要心中有志，就能克服困难，所以有人也称之为“有志者事竟成”。呵呵，英文中还真有这个片语呢？

Perhaps there is an element of truth in sayings that old habits die hard, but there is another saying called “where there is a will, there is a way”. It tells us that if you keep a stiff upper lip to chase your goal, you will get successful.
(译文：也许，俗语本性难移有可信之处。但是也有另一个俗话叫有志者事竟成。它告诉我们如果你坚定不移的追求你的目标，你就会获得成功。)

片语where there is a will, there is a way严格讲是一个谚语，从字面上很容易理解其意思：哪儿有了志气(有了必胜的信念)，就会有一条路(通往成功的路)，这不就是指有志者事竟成吗？The idiom is used to say that if you really want to do something, you will find a way to succeed. For example:

We have failed so many times to do the experiment. But as the saying goes, “where there is will, there is way.” Let’s try it again.
(译文：我们的实验已经失败很多次了。但是俗话说有志者事竟成，让我们再试一次。)

结束语：英语学习也许真的很难，不过俗话说的好，有志者事竟成(where there is a will, there is a way)，只要努力，就能成功的学好它。关健是要克服我们的惰性，许多人曾不止一次的发誓要学好英语，可是最终因为自己的惰性而不得不放弃，所谓本性难移呀(old habits die hard)!