除了“happy”,你还知道哪些“开心”的英语表达?

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在上一篇文章里,我们讨论了“伤心(sadness)”的各种表达,大家可以点击下面的文章回顾一下:

“伤心”除了sad,你还会怎么说?

今天,我们就跟着Liz Walter一起来学习“开心(happiness)”的各种表达。

1)Let's start with the phrase I've used in the title: on cloud nine. Nobody really knows the origins of this phrase – one theory is that it refers to the cumulonimbus cloud that was number nine in the 'International Cloud Atlas' and rises higher than all other clouds, while another relates to one of the stages of enlightenment in Buddhist thought. Still, it's enough to know that if you are on cloud nine, you are extremely happy. In fact, you are in seventh heaven (from the belief in some religions that there are seven levels of heaven, the seventh being the highest).

英语中常用on cloud nine或in seventh heaven来表示“欢天喜地;非常高兴”。

2)Several other happiness idioms rely on the metaphorical idea of being in a very high place. We can say that we are walking/floating on airon top of the world or over the moon. Similarly, something that makes you feel happier is said to lift your spirits.

有些表达“开心”的习语主要是通过身处高处来表达的,比如:walk/float on air;on top of the world;over the moon。也可以用sth. lift one's spirits来表达。

3)Moving away from height metaphors, In British and Australian English, we can say (rather sweetly, I always think) that someone in a generally happy mood is full of the joys of spring. If you are extremely pleased about something that has happened, you can say that you can't believe your luck. In British English, we also say that we are thrilled to bits.

在英式英语和澳大利亚英语里,常用full of the joys of spring来表示“开心”;如果非常开心,则可以说can't believe one's luck。在英式英语中,还可以用be thrilled to bits来表达。

4)If someone has been sad but becomes more cheerful, we say that they cheer up or perk up. Something that brightens up your day makes you feel happier, and if you revel in a situation or an activity, you get great pleasure from it.

如果要表达先伤心后开心的话,常用cheer up或perk up。如果要表达某事令人更开心,可以用brighten up one's day。如果用revel in a situation或an activity,则表示“从...中得到快乐”。

5)There are several rather strange similes connected with happiness: Brits and Australians are as happy as Larry or as happy as a sandboy and Americans are as happy as a clam. It is thought that 'Larry' is the undefeated boxer Larry Foley (1849-1917), and that 'sandboys' were youths whose job was to deliver sand for the floors of inns, and who were 'happy' because they were often rewarded with alcohol! The American version is probably a shortening of 'as happy as a clam at high tide', i.e. when no longer exposed to predators. All of these phrases are slightly old-fashioned now.

比较陈旧的说法有:as happy as Larry或as happy as a sandboy(偏英式英语和澳大利亚英语的用法);as happy as a clam(偏美式英语的用法)。

6)If someone is happy in an enthusiastic and lively way, we can say they are like a dog with two tails, and if they have a self-satisfied air, they are like the cat that got the cream. More crudely, if someone looks completely comfortable and happy in a situation, they are like a pig in muck.

如果是极度开心、富有活力的话,可以说be like a dog with two tails。如果是要表达自我满足式的开心,则可用be like the cat that got the cream。如果要表达某人处于非常安逸开心的场合,则可以用be like a pig in muck。


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