VOA慢速英语:Words and Their Stories: Food Expressions

Now, the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.  A listener from Brazil, Elenir Scardueli, sent us a list of popular expressions about food.  So today we will talk about expressions that use vegetables and fruits.
现在，这里是美国之音慢速英语词汇掌故节目。巴西的一位听众给我们发来了一串有关食物的常用表达的名单。因此今天，我们要讨论的是那些使用了蔬菜名和水果名的俗语。 。

For example, a cucumber is a long, green vegetable that people often eat in salads.  You might say a person is as cool as a cucumber if he never seems to worry about anything and stays calm in a stressful situation.  If you put a cucumber in a solution of vinegar and spices for a long time, it becomes a pickle.  But if you are in a pickle, you are in trouble or a difficult situation.
比如，黄瓜是一种长型的绿色蔬菜，人们常在沙拉中吃到。当一个人从不为任何事担忧，或在紧张的形势下仍能保持冷静，你也许会说这个人“as cool as a cucumber(镇定自若)”。如果你长时间把黄瓜放在醋和辣椒的混合液中，它会变成为泡菜。但如果你正“in a pickle(处于困境之中)”，那就是说你有了麻烦，或者遇到了困难。

If two people are very similar, you might say they are like two peas in a pod.
如果两个人长得非常相似，你会说他们就像“two peas in a pod（一个豆荚里的两颗豌豆）"。

There are several expressions about beans.  If someone is very energetic, you might say she is full of beans. If you say something does not amount to a hill of beans, you mean it is of little importance.  I might say you don’t know beans about a subject if you do not know anything at all about it.  But if you spill the beans, you tell something that was supposed to be a secret.
关于豆子的俗语有好几个。如果一个人精力充沛，你可以说她“full of beans(精力旺盛)”。如果你说某样东西“does not amount to a hill of beans(一文不值)”，你的意思是说它并不重要。如果你对某件事情一无所知，我可能会说你“don’t know beans about a subject（一窍不通）”。但如果你“spill the beans(泄密)”，那你说了某些本该是秘密的事情。

Potatoes are a popular food in many areas.  But something is considered small potatoes if it is not important.  You probably would not want to hold a hot potato in your bare hands.  This also means a problem or issue that no one wants to deal with.  Someone might call you a couch potato if you sit and watch television all day and get little or no physical exercise.
在很多地方，土豆是一种很受欢迎的食物。但如果某个东西是不重要的，那它则被认为是“small potatoes(小人物，不重要的)”。你大概不想徒手捧着“hot potato(烫手山芋)”，这代表了没有人想去处理的难题。如果你成天坐着看电视，很少锻炼，也许会有人称你为“a couch potato(懒人)”。

Like potatoes, turnips are root vegetables that grow in the ground.  Here is an old saying: you cannot squeeze blood out of a turnip.  That means you cannot get something from a person that he or she is not willing or able to give.
和土豆一样，萝卜也是生长在泥土中的根菜类蔬菜。有句老话叫做：石头榨不出水。意思就是你无法从不能或不愿意给予的人身上得到任何东西。

Farmers have to separate the valuable parts of their crops from the waste.  So separating the wheat from the chaff means keeping what is valuable and rejecting what is worthless.
农民们得将作物的有用部分和无用部分分开。所以去芜存菁的意思是留下有用的、丢掉无用的。

Students often have to take a difficult test to gain entrance to a special school.  So you could say the ones who are chosen are the best ones, or the cream of the crop.
学生们经常得参加一个有难度的考试来获得一个特殊学校的入校权。所以你可以说被选上的人是最棒的，或者是精华。

There is an old saying that forbidden fruit tastes the sweetest. That means some people get pleasure from doing something that they are not supposed to do.
老话讲禁果最甜。意思是某人通过一些不该做的事情而得到的快乐。

Bananas are a popular fruit to eat.  But if you go bananas, you are wild with excitement or worry.
香蕉是受大家欢迎的一种水果。但是如果说“你疯了”，就是说你因兴奋和担忧变得疯狂。

Finally, let us talk about lemons.  Lemons have a sour taste if you eat them plain.  But lemons make a nice drink when you mix their juice with sugar and water.  So here is an expression about lemons that we like: If life gives you lemons, make lemonade. This means you should always try to make the best of a bad situation.
最后我们来说说柠檬。柠檬吃上去很酸。但是将柠檬汁里加水和糖便是一个很好的饮料。所以有个关于柠檬的表达是：如果生活给了你柠檬，就做成柠檬汽水。意思是在逆境中也要尽力做好。

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