VOA慢速英语:Proverbs Tell About Love, War and Money

Today we talk about proverbs. A proverb is a short, well known saying that expresses a common truth or belief. Proverbs are found in most cultures and are often very old.
今天我们来说说谚语。谚语，即简短而广为人知的名言警句，通常表达普遍的真理或信条。谚语往往出现在大多数文化中，并且通常都很古老。。

In American history, Benjamin Franklin was famous for his proverbs. Franklin lived in the seventeen hundreds. He was a leader of the American Revolution against English rule. He was also a scientist, inventor and writer.
在美国历史上，本杰明•富兰克林闻名于他的谚语。富兰克林生活在18世纪。他是美国反抗英国统治的独立战争领袖，同时也是一名科学家、发明家和作家。

For many years, Franklin published a book called "Poor Richard's Almanac." He included many proverbs that he had heard or created. Some of them are still used today. Like this one: "Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise."
富兰克林用多年的时间出版了一本名为《穷汉理查德的年历》的书。他在书中收录了许多他听到的或自己创造的谚语。当中一些谚语沿用至今。例如这句：“睡得早，起得早，富裕聪明身体好。”

Franklin is also remembered for other proverbs like, "A penny saved is a penny earned." This means that money should not be wasted.
富兰克林的另一些谚语也为后世所流传，例如：“省一文则赚一文。”这告诉我们不能浪费钱财。

Here are other examples of proverbs that Americans use. The first ones are about love. Some people say, "All is fair in love and war." They mean that anything you do in a relationship or in battle is acceptable.
以下是其它一些美国人所常用的谚语。前面几个是关于爱情的。有人说：“爱情和战争是不择手段的”，意思是在恋爱或者战斗中，你所做的一切都是可以接受的。

Another proverb about love is, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." This means you love someone even more when he or she is far away. But other people say, "Out of sight, out of mind." You may not even think about that person when he or she is not with you. Which of these proverbs do you think is most true?
“小别胜新婚”是另一条有关爱的谚语。其意思是当你爱的人远离你时，你对他或她的爱会更深。但也有人会说“眼不见，心不烦”。当他或她不在你身边时，你压根就不会想到这个人。你更倾向于哪句谚语呢？

Another proverb says "Love is blind." In other words, when you are in love with someone, you may refuse to see anything bad about that person.
还有谚语说“爱情使人盲目”。换句话说，当你爱上某人时，你可能会忽略这个人身上的任何缺点。

Here is another popular saying about love: "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach." Some people believe that a woman can win a man's love if she prepares his favorite foods.
还有话说“抓住一个男人心先要抓住他的胃”。有些人相信一个女人能赢得男人的爱，如果她能备好一桌他最爱的菜。

Some people are only interested in having a relationship with someone who is very good-looking. You might tell them that "Beauty is only skin deep." Your girlfriend may be lovely to look at, but she may also have some bad qualities. Or the opposite may be true. Your boyfriend is a wonderful person, but not good-looking. So what a person looks like is not really important.
有些人只有兴趣和外貌娇好的人谈恋爱。你可以对这种人说“不要以貌取人”。尽管你女朋友外貌很好看，可也不排除她有缺点。或者正好相反，你有个人品很好的男朋友，但是长相不佳。因此，一个人的长相如何真的不重要。

Another proverb is true in love and war or other situations: "Actions speak louder than words." It means that what you do is more important than what you say.
“百说不如一干”这句话在爱情里、在战场上、在其他任何情况中都是真理。它意味着实际行动比说的话更重要。

Sadly, we have no more time for this program. So we must say, "All good things must come to an end."
可惜的是，我们的节目时间接近尾声了。只能说“天下无不散之筵席。”

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