| 查看: 1375 | 回复: 11 | |||
| 当前只显示满足指定条件的回帖，点击这里查看本话题的所有回帖 | |||
[交流]
【ZZ】Words and Their Stories: Deep Six
|
|||
|
Sailors seem -- to those of us on land -- to lead exciting, even mysterious lives. Many things are different at sea. Even the language is different. Simple words like "right" and "left" are not the same.On a ship, "right" is "starboard." And "left" is "port." Sailors are responsible for many colorful English expressions. One of these is deep-six. It means to hide something or put it where it will not be found. You can also deep-six, or reject a proposal. One language expert says that deep six is the bottom of the ocean. "Deep," in this case, means deepest. The "six" in the expression comes from the six feet that make up a fathom -- which is a little less than two meters. Sailors measure the depth of the water in fathoms. Thus, the deep six is the deepest fathom...the final six feet at the bottom of the ocean. A sailor who never wants to see something again will give it the deep-six. He will drop it from the ship to the ocean bottom. You can deep-six something even if you are not a sailor. All you do is throw it away or put it where it will never be found. You might, for example, deep-six an unplesant letter from a former friend. Another expression linked to sailing is batten down the hatches. That is what sailors do to prepare their ship for a storm at sea. Battens are thin pieces of wood. Hatches are the openings in the deck. Before a storm, sailors cover the hatches with waterproof material. Then they nail on battens to hold the hatch coverings firmly in place. This keeps rain and waves out of the ship. Now, people use the expression to mean to prepare for dealing with any kind of trouble. A news report, for example, might say that people in Washington were battening down the hatches for a big winter storm. Or a newspaper might report that "defense lawyers were 'battening down the hatches' for testimony by someone who observed the crime." An old expression of the sailors that is still heard is to sail under false colors. Experts on language say the expression was born more than two hundred fifty years ago, when pirates sailed the seas, attacking and robbing trade ships. Pirate ships often flew the flag of a friendly country as they sailed toward the ship they planned to rob.They sailed under false colors until they were close enough to attack. Then the pirates pulled down the false flag, and showed their true colors. They raised the pirate flag -- with its picture of a skull and crossed bones. Today, a person, not a ship, is said to sail under false colors. Such a person appears to be something he is not. His purpose is to get something from you. If you are careful, you will soon see his true colors, and have nothing to do with him. adress https://voa.52en.com/voa-se-html/20113/voa-201141894701.html |
回复此楼» 猜你喜欢
一志愿A区211，22408 321求调剂
已经有8人回复
-
295分求调剂
已经有6人回复
-
一志愿中科大材料与化工，353分还有调剂学校吗
已经有13人回复
-
085600材料与化工调剂
已经有6人回复
-
320求调剂
已经有6人回复
-
期刊推荐
已经有5人回复
-
有没有接收比较快的sci期刊呀，最好在一个月之内的，研三孩子求毕业
已经有7人回复
-
又一批高校组建人工智能学院 师资行吗 不是骗人吗
已经有4人回复
-
337求调剂
已经有3人回复
-
申博/考博
已经有5人回复
lppv
荣誉版主 (文坛精英)
无与伦比俱乐部部长
- ESEPI: 42
- 应助: 5 (幼儿园)
- 贵宾: 2.158
- 金币: 9455.2
- 散金: 21883
- 红花: 262
- 沙发: 257
- 帖子: 29946
- 在线: 3646.7小时
- 虫号: 937152
- 注册: 2010-01-05
- 性别: MM
- 专业: 无机合成和制备化学
- 管辖: English Cafe
7楼2011-09-04 09:53:16
3楼2011-09-04 08:55:34
 |
4楼2011-09-04 09:05:21
 |
5楼2011-09-04 09:11:10
