世博习惯用语【16】Better late than never 晚做总比不做好

Kathy讲解

世博英语原创课程。未经本站授权，请勿转载！

Better late than never

Definition: It is better for someone or something to be late than never to arrive or to happen.

【世博精解】

这个惯用语从字面上就可以理解“晚做总比不做好; 迟到总比不到强”。如果你参加一个party迟到了，朋友对你说better late than never也就算是个不冷不热的原谅了。那么，还有一句非常相似的better safe than sorry又是什么意思呢？我们也可以从字面上理解：安全些总比（出了问题）说抱歉好。别人对你说这句话就是提醒你要警慎，不要冒险以免发生意外或者说做什么事要保险些，想的周全一点。比如：I’ll hold the ladder while you climb up. Better safe than sorry. 再如，“Thomas, let's pack an extra blanket for the camping trip tonight. It's supposed to be cold, and I'd rather be safe than sorry/ You know, better safe than sorry.”

Example dialog:

Paul : Karen’s card arrived 2 weeks after my birthday.
我的生日都过了两个星期了，我才收到凯伦的贺卡。

Jannet : Oh well, better late than never.
是吗，迟到总比没收到强。