翻译示例
1.动物词
Dictionary of Translation studies gives the definition of foreignization , to a certain extent, maintaining the foreignness of the source text and break the linguistic nom of the target language. Such as "胆小如鼠"( as timid as a mouse )
"crocodile tears"(鳄鱼的眼泪).本人以为一种文化本身没有的被另一种文化接受，跨文化教化作用
Birds of a feather flock together 物以类聚
To kill two birds with one stone 一箭双雕
我属鸡,我从来不吃鸡,鸡年是我的本命年.
I was born in the year of the Rooster. I never eat chicken. The year of the Rooster will bring me good luck or bad luck
After reading this translation, the target reader may be somewhat confused, because he doesn't understand what's "the year of the Rooster" and why it will bring good or bad luck to a person born in this year.
2.成语
谋事在人,成事在天
Man proposes, Heaven disposes (Yang)
Man proposes, God disposes ( Hawkes )
巧媳妇做不出没米的粥
Even the cleverest housewife can't cook a meal without rice (Yang)
Even the cleverest housewife can't make bread without flour (Hawkes )
In the two examples, we can compared translation of "天"and"粥".
1. 天下無不散之筵席/ There is no never ending banquet under the sun./ All
good things must come to an end.
or The best of friends must part.
2. 五十步笑百步/ The (soldier who retreated ) 50 paces jeered at the one
who (retreated) 100 paces./ The pot calls the kettle black.
3. 當局者迷/ The participant’s perspective are clouded while the
bystanders’ views are clear./ You can’t see the forest for the trees ,but
onlookers see the whole game.
4. 塞翁失馬 / The squire at the frontier lost his horse. (The horse
eventually came back bringing some other horses with it.)/
This expression has its origin in a Chinese fable. See e.g. (From the
Chinavista website)
Chinese Fable#6 Blessing or Bane
Certain bad luck is actually "a blessing in disguise."
5. 各花入各眼/ Different flowers look good to
different people/ Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
6.. 禍不單行/ Good luck seldom comes in pairs but bad things never walk
(occur) alone./ Misery loves company.
7. 以毒攻毒/ Fight poison with poison/ Fight fire with fire.
8. 花開堪折直需折 / Pick the flower when it is ready to be picked . /
Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.
9. 歲月不留人 / Age and time do not wait for people./ Time and tide waits
for no man.
10. 家家有一本難念的經/ Each family has its own difficult scripture (or
sutra) to recite./ Each family has its own kind of hell.
11. 虎父虎子/ Tiger father begets tiger son/ A chip off the old block.
12. 人算不如天算 / Man’s schemes are inferior to those made by heaven/ Man
proposes and god disposes.
13. 有錢能使鬼推磨 / If you have money you can make the ghosts and devils
turn your grind stone./ Money makes the world go around.
Or: Money talks.
14. 好事多磨 / Good (happenings, results, achievements etc..) must go
through many trials and tribulations/ The course of true love never runs
smooth.
15. 盜亦有道 / Transliteration: (Even) Theives have "their (own) way/code
of behaviour" (Tao) /The "their way " (Way=Tao) can be interpreted in
different ways,
the most general being "Even thieves have their principles."
Another interpretation is : "even the bad guys have a conscience". So, could this also mean "There is honour amongst thieve" ?. Well, a
recent "Time essay" in Time’s magazine seems to imply it does.
Time Essay, by James Poniewozik. Page 64. Time magazine, Canadian Edition.
June 24,2002.
"They held up the myths of honor among thieves-we don’t sell drugs, we
don’t kill civilians...."
16. 大丈夫能屈能伸 / A great (or successful) man can bend and stretch./ A
man must learn to sail in all winds.
17. 不入虎穴,焉得虎子 / If you don’t go into the cave of the tiger, how
are you going to get its cub ?/ Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
18. 又要馬兒好,又要馬兒不食草 / You want you horse to look good but you
also want it not to have to eat grass./ Want to have your cake and eat it
too.(Implying: You cannot have your cake and eat it too.)
19. 無風不起浪 / There is no wave without wind./ There is no smoke without
fire.
20. 入鄉隨俗 / Follow the local custom when you go to a foreign place./ In
Rome do as the Romans do.
21. 物以類聚 / Things of the same characteristics congregate together./ Birds of a feather flocks together.
Or: Like attracts
22. . 醉翁之意不在酒 / The drunken gentleman’s desire is not about the
wine./ Kissing the baby for the nurse (or nanny).
23. 牛不飲水,不能按牛頭低 / You cannot push a cow’s head down unless it is
drinking water by it’s own will./ You can lead a horse to water, but you
can’t make him drink.
24. 驕兵必敗 / The arrogant (or over-confident) army will lose the battle
for sure./ Pride goes before a fall.
25. 一箭雙雕 / Shoot two birds (geese , wild foul, whatever) with one
single arrow./ Kill two birds with one stone.
26. 本性難移 / It’s is impossible to change your basic characteristics./ A
leopard cannot change its spots.
Or: Old habits die hard.
27. 三個和尚擔水無粥食 / 3 monks fetching water resulted in no rice gruel
(to eat.)/ Too many cooks spoil the broth.
28. 一將功成萬骨枯 / Tens of thousands of bones will become ashes when one
general achieves his fame./ What thousands must die so that Caesar may
become great.
28. 一刻被蚊咬終日怕蚊叮 / Once bitten by a mosquito, you worry about mosquitoes all day. /
(Another version)
Once bitten by a snake, you are even fright
ened by a rope that resembles a
snake. Once bitten, twice shy.
29. 金玉其外, 敗絮其中/ Golden coloured on the outside, but rotten inside.
(This is from a fable ,"What the tangerine hawker said". The golden colour
refers to the skin
of the tangerine.) / All that glitters is not gold and
beware of the skeleton in the closet.
30. 欲速則不達 / If you are in a hurry you will never get there./ More
haste, less speed.
31. 打鐵趁熱 / Strike while the iron is hot./ ditto
32. 狡兔有三窟/ The crafty rabbit has three different entrances to it’s
lair/ Do not put all your eggs in one basket.
33. 老婆是別人的靚 / Your neigbour’s wife looks prettier than your own./
The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.
34. 女人心海底針 / A woman’s heart is like a needle in the bottom of the
ocean. A woman’s heart is as deep as the ocean . (from the movie "Titanic")
35. 以攻為守 / Use attack as the tactic of defense./ The best defense is 36. 英雄所見略同 / The views (opinions) of heroes are roughly the same./
Great minds think alike.
37. 以身作則 / Set yourself as the standard/ Example is better than
precept.
38. 婚姻是戀愛的墳墓 / Matrimony is the grave of romance. /Marriage is the
death of romance.
39. 將軍難免陣上亡 / It is not unusual for a general to meet his death in
battle. There is the second line of a couplet. The first line says: A
hunting dog will eventually lost its life on the mountain. / Those who
lived by the sword died by the sword.
39b 上得山多終遇虎/ When you go up to the mountain too often, you will
eventually encounter the tiger. / The fish which nibbles at every bait
will be caught.
40. 玉不琢不成器,人不學不成才 / Jade (or precious stones) must be carved
and polished before it becomes an ornament, man must be educated before he
can achieve great things.
41. 童言無欺 / A child’s words have no guile./ Similar t "from the
mouths of babes."
42. 有麝自然香 / When you have musk, you will automatically have
fragrance. /Good stuff need not be advertised, they advertise themselves.
43. 夜長夢多 / Lots of dreams can occur over a long night. /The longer you
wait, the more unexpected developments may occur.
44. 遠水不能救近火 / You cannot fight a fire with water from far
away. /Urgent local problems cannot be solved by distant .resources.
45. 狗口不出象牙 / Elephant tusks cannot grow out of a dog’s mouth./ Nice
things (words) won’t come from a bad source.
46. 紙包不著火 / Paper cannot wrap up a fire./ You cannot cover up a
scandal easily.
As pointed out by Sparkler this is similar to the English proverb
of "Murder will out."
Or : Truth will out.
47. 天下烏鴉一樣黑 / All crows are of the same colour (black) under the
sky.
/ Crime; corruption; graft; favouritism; nepotism etc..is the same
everywhere.
48 為人不作虧心事,夜半敲門也不驚. / If you have a clear conscience,
you won’t worry about a knock on your door at night. /"do right and fear
no man"
Source : C-E language forum.
(See Link in the Chinese page)
Also similar to the English Proverb
49. 樹大有枯枝,族大有乞兒 / Big trees have rotten branches and large clans
have beggars. / There are always some dead wood within a large
organization.
There is a black sheep in every fold
50a.猛虎不及地頭虫/ The fierce tiger is inferior to the local worm./ A
superior force in a foreign and unfamiliar territory is inferior to a
weaker but local force.
50b 虎落平陽被犬欺./ When the tiger comes down from the mountain to the
plains, it is bullied by the dogs / When you are out of your element, your
power (or influence) is greatly diminished.
This is similar to the English phrase " Like a fish out of water "
50c. 龍游淺水被蝦戲./ In shallow waters, shrimps make fool of
dragons. /similar to 50 b above.
51.趕狗入窮巷/ Don’t chase a dog into a blind ally./ ergo, it will have no
choice but to make a desperate stand and attack you.
52a.樹大召風/ Big trees attract strong wind.(see 52b) /see #52b below
52b.人怕名﹐豬怕壯/ Men should worry about fame just as pigs about being
fat. /When you are big and/or famous you are more of a target for attack, jealousy etc.. ( Fat pigs , you guessed it, are
headed for the dinning table.)
53. 忠言逆耳, 良藥苦口./ Honest opinions (suggestions, criticisms) go
against your ear while good medicine tastes bitter./ "What hurts us
instructs us."
54. 巧婦難為無米灶./ Even the most resourceful housewife cannot create
miracles from a riceless pantry./ When you are poor and have no food, even
the craftiest
housewife cannot produce a meal.
55.井底蛙之見 /The view of a frog residing at the bottom of a well.
This expression is also originated from a Chinese fable. See e.g.( from
the Chinavista website)
Chinese Fable#2: Frog at the bottom of a shallow well
Similar but not identical to the phrase "Tunnel vision."
In the "frog" case, the frog has a very limited knowledge of what the
outside world is like, but think that it knows everything there is to
know.
In the case of "tunnel vision", we have some one whose view is "narrow and
limited". So although the two are not exactly identical, there are some
56.十隻手指各有長短./ Ten fingers. all of different lengths. /There are
always good and bad
(attributes, characteristics etc..)
within a group (of things, people, whatever..).
57 書中自有顏如玉,書中自有黃金屋/In textbooks you will find girls with
complexions like jade and houses made of gold./ Through studying you wil
l
gain success and fortunes will follow.
58. 種瓜得瓜, 種豆得豆/ If you plant melons , you get melons; if you plant
beans, you get beans./ you reap what you sow.
59. 冰生于水已寒於水,青出于?#123;已勝於?#123;/ Indigo is derived from blue
but is more pleasing than blue; ice is formed out of water but is colder
than water /The master is surpassed by the apprentice.
60a. 三個臭皮丈,一個諸葛亮/ Three shoemakers equal to one Kuon Ming /Kuon
Ming is the legendary strategist in the Chinese historic period known as "
The Three Kingdoms " period. This proverbs says that 3 ordinary people
putting their heads together can come up with good ideas.(see 60b)
60b. 一人計短,二人計長./ Literally: One person’s plans(or schemes) are
short(i.e. ineffective)but those made by two people are long (i.e. much better, or more effective.) /Similar t Two heads are better than one.
61 覆水難收 /Water thrown out is hard to put back into the
container. /What is done cannot be undone.
62. 一言(已)出,駟馬難追. /Once a word leaves your mouth, you cannot chase
it back even with a "chariot drawn by 4 horses." /You cannot take back
what you have said.
Similar to : A word spoken is past recalling.
Or: A slip of tongue cannot be recalled.
Or: A word once let go cannot be recalled.
63. 病從口入,禍從口出 /Sickness goes in through the mouth and trouble
comes out of the mouth. /physical illness is usually caused by something
you eat or inhale but trouble is usually caused by what you say.( Careless
talk leads to trouble.)
64. 樹高千丈﹐落葉巋根 /Even for a tree of 10000 feet, it’s leaves return
to the root when they fall. /Many older people, no matter how far they
roam, or how successful they become, want to go back to their homeland to
pass their remaining years.
65 路遙知馬力﹐日久見人心/ When there is a lot of distance to cover, you’ll know how good your horse is.The heart of others will be revealed
over a long period of time. /A hard task separates the weak from the
strong and time will tell the truthful from the guile.
66. 有心栽花花不長, 無心插柳柳成蔭 / The flower that you spent time to
care for does not grow while the willow that your accidentally planted
flourishes and gives shade.
A nice one:
"A watched flower never blooms, while a carelessly planted willow grows
into shade. " As seen on the CE Forum /
Sometimes what we wanted to spend time on developing does not work out
well, but the project we have unintentionally started, and did not pay
much attention to, flourishes and bears fruit.
67。路是人踏出來的 / Road is made by people walking on the ground . /(The
solution to something) or (the road to success) etc.. is made by you
walking through places where there were no roads before.
68 解鈴
還須繫鈴人/ The proper person to remove the bell should be the one
who who originally tied it on./ The proper person to unravel a
misunderstanding (or a mistake etc..) is the one who committed such an error to start with.
69.留得青山在﹐不怕無柒燒/ If you managed to save the green mountain, you
won’t worry about having no fire wood to burn. /(i) If you don’t kill the
golden goose, you will still get a golden egg everyday.
(ii) He who fights and run away, may live to fight another day.
70.天無絕人之路/ The sky (or heaven) (meaning whatever supreme being that
oversees us) does not make dead end streets for people./ When god closes
one door he/she/it opens another.
“跳进黄河洗不清”"eve if one jumped into the Yellow River, one can not wash oneself clean--there\'s nothing one can do to clear one\'s name "
歪风邪气unhealthy practices and evil phenomena
物以类聚，人以群分Birds of a feather flock together.
往事如风"The past has vanished (from memory) like wind.; What in past, is past."
望子成龙hold high hopes for one\'s child
屋漏又逢连阴雨Misfortunes never come singly. When it rains it pours.
文韬武略military expertise; military strategy
唯利是图draw water to one\'s mill
无源之水,无本之木water without a source, and a tree wiithout roots
无中生有make/create something out of nothing
无风不起浪There are no waves without wind. There\'s no smoke without fire.
徇私枉法bend the law for the benefit of relatives or friends
新官上任三把火a new broom sweeps clean
虚心使人进步,骄傲使人落后Modesty helps one go forward, whereas conceit makes one lag behind.
蓄势而发accumulate strength for a take-off
心想事成May all your wish come true
心照不宣have a tacit understanding; give tacit consent; tacit understanding
先入为主First impressions are firmly entrenched.
先下手为强catch the ball before the bound
像热锅上的蚂蚁like an ant on a hot pan
现身说法warn people by taking oneself as an example
息事宁人pour oil on troubled waters
喜忧参半mingled hope and fear
循序渐进step by step
一路平安，一路顺风speed somebody on their way; speed the parting guest
严以律己,宽以待人be strict with oneself and lenient towards others
鱼米之乡a land of milk and honey
有情人终成眷属"Jack shall have Jill, all shall be well."
有钱能使鬼推磨Money makes the mare go. Money talks.
有识之士people of vision
有勇无谋use brawn rather than brain
有缘千里来相会Separated as we are thousands of miles apart, we come together as if by predestination.
与时俱进advance with ti
mes
以人为本people oriented; people foremost
因材施教teach students according to their aptitude
欲穷千里目，更上一层楼"to ascend another storey to see a thousand miles further; Ascend further, were you to look farther; Would eye embrace a thousand miles? Go up, one flight."
欲速则不达Haste does not bring success.
优胜劣汰survival of the fittest
英雄所见略同Great minds think alike.
冤家宜解不宜结Better make friends than make enemies.
冤假错案"cases in which people were unjustly, falsely or wrongly charged or sentenced; unjust, false or wrong cases"
一言既出，驷马难追A real man never goes back on his words.
招财进宝Money and treasures will be plentiful
债台高筑become debt-ridden
致命要害Achilles\' heel
众矢之的target of public criticism
知己知彼,百战不殆Know the enemy and know yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles with no danger of defeat.
纸上谈兵be an armchair strategist
纸包不住火Truth will come to light sooner or later.
左右为难between the devil and the deep blue sea; between the rock and the hard place
抛砖引玉a modest spur to induce others to come forward with valuable contributions; throw a sprat to catch a whale
破釜沉舟cut off all means of retreat；burn one‘s own way of retreat and be determined to fight to the end
抢得先机take the preemptive opportunities
巧妇难为无米之炊If you have no hand you can\'t make a fist./ One can\'t make bricks without straw.
千里之行始于足下a thousand-li journey begins with the first step--the highest eminence is to be gained step by step
前事不忘,后事之师Past experience, if not forgotten, is a guide for the future.
前人栽树,后人乘凉One generation plants the trees in whose shade another generation rests.
One sows and another reaps.
前怕狼,后怕虎fear the wolf in front and the tiger behind/ hesitate in doing something
强龙难压地头蛇Even a dragon (from the outside) finds it hard to control a snake in its old haunt - Powerful outsiders can hardly afford to neglect local bullies.
强强联手win-win co-operation
瑞雪兆丰年A timely snow promises a good harvest.
人之初,性本善Man\'s nature at birth is good.
人逢喜事精神爽Joy puts heart into a man.
人海战术huge-crowd strategy
世上无难事，只要肯攀登"Where there is a will, there is a way. "
世外桃源a fictitious land of peace away from the turmoil of the world;
死而后已until my heart stops beating
岁岁平安Peace all year round
上有天堂，下有苏杭"Just as there is paradise in heaven, ther are Suzhou and Hangzhou on earth."
塞翁失马，焉知非福Misfortune may be an actual blessing.
三十而立"A man should be independent at the age of thirty.
At thirty, a man should be able to think for himself." 升级换代updating and upgrading (of products)
四十不惑Life begins at forty.
谁言寸草心，报得三春晖"Such kindness of warm sun, can\'t be repaid by grass. "
水涨船高When the river rises, the boat floats high.
时不我待Time and tide wait for no man.
杀鸡用牛刀break a butterfly on the wheel
实事求是seek truth from facts; be practical and realistic; be true to facts
说曹操,曹操到Talk of the devil and he comes.
实话实说speak the plain truth; call a spade a spade; tell it as it is
实践是检验真理的唯一标准Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth.
山不在高，有仙则名"No matter how high the mountain is, its name will spread far and wide if there is a fairy; "
韬光养晦hide one\'s capacities and bide one\'s time
糖衣炮弹sugar-coated bullets
天有不测风云Anything unexpected may happen. a bolt from the blue
团结就是力量Unity is strength.
爱屋及乌Love me, love my dog.
百闻不如一见Seeing is believing.
比上不足，比下有余"worse off than some, better off than many; to fall short of the best, but be better than the worst
笨鸟先飞A slow sparrow should make an early start.
不眠之夜white night
不以物喜，不以己悲not pleased by external gains, not saddened by personnal losses
不遗余力spare no effort; go all out; do one\'s best
不打不成交"No discord, no concord.
拆东墙补西墙rob Peter to pay Paul
辞旧迎新bid farewell to the old and usher in the new; ring out the old year and ring in the new
大事化小，小事化了try first to make their mistake sound less serious and then to reduce it to nothing at all
大开眼界open one\'s eyes; broaden one\'s horizon; be an eye-opener
国泰民安The country flourishes and people live in peace
过犹不及going too far is as bad as not going far enough; beyond is as wrong as falling short; too much is as bad as too little
功夫不负有心人Everything comes to him who waits.
好了伤疤忘了疼once on shore, one prays no more
好事不出门，恶事传千里Good news never goes beyond the gate, while bad news spread far and wide.
和气生财Harmony brings wealth
活到老，学到老One is never too old to learn.
既往不咎let bygones be bygones
金无足赤,人无完人Gold can\'t be pure and man can\'t be perfect.
金玉满堂Treasures fill the home
脚踏实地be down-to-earth
脚踩两只船sit on the fence
君子之交淡
如水the friendship between gentlemen is as pure as crystal; a hedge between keeps friendship green
老生常谈，陈词滥调cut and dried, cliché
礼尚往来Courtesy calls for reciprocity.
留得青山在，不怕没柴烧"Where there is life, there is hope."
马到成功achieve immediate victory; win instant success
名利双收gain in both fame and wealth
茅塞顿开be suddenly enlightened
没有规矩不成方圆Nothing can be accomplished without norms or standards.
每逢佳节倍思亲
On festive occasions more than ever one thinks of one\'s dear ones far away.It is on the festival occasions when one misses his dear most.
谋事在人，成事在天"The planning lies with man, the outcome with Heaven. / Man proposes, God disposes. "
弄巧成拙be too smart by half; Cunning outwits itself.
拿手好戏masterpiece
赔了夫人又折兵throw good money after bad
3.颜色
4.植物
英语中很多植物，尤其是花都具有特定的含义如：金盏花虽然美丽却象征痛苦与悲哀。茉莉花在中国象征纯洁，入梦则没特别的指意，而在英国却象征一段浪漫的恋爱将至。在这种情况下贸然的归化将彻底遗失特有的文化内涵。所以只好采用注释的办法以指示(而非传达)“洋味”。
再比如“茶树”、“果树”等在翻译成英语时常常省略tree，因为这些词本身就包含“树”的意思，如orange(橘子树)，banana(香蕉树)等
枯藤缠绕着老树，树枝上栖息着黄昏时归巢的乌鸦，小桥下，流水潺潺，旁边有几户人家，在古老荒凉的道路上，秋风萧瑟，一匹疲惫的瘦马驮着我蹒跚前行。夕阳向西缓缓落下，悲伤断肠的人还漂泊在天涯。
枯藤老树昏鸦，小桥流小人家，古道西风瘦马。夕阳西下，断肠人在天涯。
《天净沙·秋思》（枯藤老树昏鸦）译文
英语写作基础教程P19-21