“猫”的故事
作者：
来源：《中学生英语·中考指导版》2014年第03期
        Today， let’s start with the word “cat”. Cats are the most popular pets among Americans. So it is not surprising that there are many expressions about cats.
        今天我们就来说一说“猫”这个词。猫是最受美国人喜爱的宠物之一，所以有很多关于猫的表达一点儿也不奇怪。
        Some cats like to catch small birds， such as canaries （金丝雀）. If someone looks very proud or satisfied with himself， we say he “looks like the cat that ate the canary”.
        有一些猫喜欢捕捉小鸟，比如说金丝雀。如果有谁看起来非常傲慢或者自满，我们会说他看上去就像吃了金丝雀的猫。
        Sometimes， a cat likes to play with a small animal it catches. So if you “play cat and mouse” with someone， you change between different kinds of behavior when dealing with a
nother person. For example， a child might offer something sweet to her little brother and then take it away when he reaches for it.
        有时候，猫喜欢逗弄自己抓到的小动物。所以如果说你和某人玩猫抓老鼠的游戏，那就是说在和别人相处的时候，你的行为总是让人捉摸不透。比如说，一个小孩可能会给她的弟弟一些糖果，但是，当弟弟伸手准备拿的时候，她又把糖果拿走了。
        A cat will often catch small animals and present them to its owner. If it “looks like something the cat dragged in （将……拖catnap/拉进去）”， it must be something in bad condition.
        猫总是会抓一些小动物并把它们放到主人面前。如果说什么东西看上去就像猫拖来的东西，那么这个东西肯定是一团糟。
        Two old and funny expressions describe something that is the best or finest. Americans might say that something is “the cat’s meow （猫叫声）” and “the cat’s pajamas （睡衣裤）”.
        有两个古老而有趣的表达方式用来形容某样东西是最好的或最精致的。美国人可能会说某样东西是“猫叫声”和“猫的睡衣裤”。
        Children might call a child who is easily frightened a “fraidy-cat” or a “scaredy-cat”. A “copycat” is someone who acts just like someone else or copies another person’s work.
        孩子们可能会管一个很容易被吓到的小孩叫做胆小鬼。山寨猫则是指模仿别人或抄袭他人作品的人。
        A “fat cat” is a person with a lot of money. Look at that cool guy， he’s got everything！That guy is a real fat cat. All the girls stick to him like bees on honey.
        肥猫指的是有钱人。看那个家伙，他真是个有钱人。女人像叮着蜂蜜的蜜蜂一样叮着他。
        You may have known that cats spend most of their time sleeping. Sometimes people sleep for a short time during the day. This is called a “cat nap （小睡；打盹）”.
        你也许知道猫大部分的时间都在睡觉。有时候人们会在白天短暂地睡一会儿，这就叫做 打个盹儿。
        If you tell about something that was supposed to be a secret， we say you “let the cat out of the bag”. If you are not able to speak out or answer a question someone might ask if “the cat has got your tongue”.
        如果你说出本该保密的事，我们会说你“把猫从口袋里放出来了”。如果你不能说出来或者给予回答，也许有人会问“猫把你的舌头叼去了吗？”
        Have you ever watched children in a classroom when their teacher leaves for a few minutes？ “When the cat’s away， the mice will play” means people sometimes misbehave （行为不端；胡作非为） when there is no supervision （监督；监管）.
        你曾观察过当老师离开几分钟时待在教室里的孩子们吗？“猫儿不在，鼠儿成精”意思就是人们在没有监管的情况下，有时候会胡作非为。
        You may have heard this expression “curiosity （好奇心） killed the cat”. This means
being too concerned about （关心……） things that are not your business might cause problems.
        你可能听过“好奇心杀死猫”这个说法。它的意思是过分关心与你无关的事可能会招惹麻烦。
        If your home is very small， you might say “there is not enough room to swing （摇摆；悬挂） a cat”. But you probably should not try this at home！
        如果你家很小，你可能会说空间还不够晃荡一只猫。但或许你不该在家做此尝试！
        If you ever had cats as pets， you must know it is difficult to train them or to get them to do something. Cats are not like sheep or cows that can be moved in a group. So we say a difficult or impossible job “is like herding （放牧；使……成移动） cats”.
        如果你曾经养过猫当宠物，那么你肯定知道训练它们或者让它们做什么是非常困难的。猫不像绵羊或奶牛那样可以成地被驱赶。所以我们会说很难或者不可能完成的任务像把猫赶到一起那样难。