流行美语 (Popular American) 272

Larry跟李华一起去逛商店。李华今天要学两个常用语，burn a hole in one's pocket和burned.

LL: Wow, Li Hua - check out this new flat-screen TV! Too bad it's so expensive!

LH: 是啊，现在物价这么贵，美元又一个劲儿贬值，真不知道还有什么人愿意买这么贵的电视。

LL: You're right, Li Hua. Spending money on things like that can really burn a hole in your pocket.

LH: 什么？把我的口袋烧个洞！这可太危险了。你说It can burn a hole in my pocket肯定还有别的意思吧？

LL: You guessed it! The phrase means that an item or expenses such as bills consume a lot of a person's earnings¹.

LH: 那跟在口袋里烧个洞有什么关系呢？

LL: Since money is traditionally carried in our pockets, the saying 'burn a hole in your pocket' symbolizes² such high expenses.

LH: 要这么说，living in the big city can burn a hole in your pocket. 除了电视，还有房租、电费和食物，光是日常花销就能在“我的口袋里烧个大洞”。

LL: Well said, Li Hua! If you have the same salary but move to a more expensive city, the daily cost of living can burn a much bigger hole in your pocket than before.

LH: 这就是为什么花钱要有计划，不能想买什么买什么，否则肯定入不敷出。

LL: Gas prices have climbed to new highs. I only drive to work twice a week to save money, because it was really beginning to burn a serious hole in my pocket.

LH: 最近油价确实贵得吓人，还好我坐地铁上班，既省钱又环保。

LL: There are so many things that can potentially burn a hole in your pocket. Expensive habits can really hurt you, which is why I'm glad that I quit smoking.

LH: 是啊，你戒烟一年省的钱够加好几箱油的！

LL: Soaring³ gas prices and cigarette taxes were burning such a big hole in my pocket that I basically gave up driving and smoking!

LH: 你知道还有什么花销最多吗？

LL: Let' me guess. Going out to eat!

LH: 没错！跟朋友、同事、家人出去吃饭也是一笔不小的开销。

******

LH: 说起现在的开销。我前两天出去看房子，才发现这里的房价原来这么贵！

LL: It really is! Didn't you want to continue renting?

LH: 我本来也是要继续租公寓住的，可是，说来话长。

LL: What happened? Did you get burned?

LH: Get burned? 被烧伤？

LL: 'Getting burned' is when you commit to something or personally invest in something with your emotions or money and you basically get nothing in return.

LH: 噢，getting burned是吃亏的意思啊。那真让你说着了。我跟另外两个人一起签了约，结果她们最后一刻反悔了。

LL: Did you put down a deposit⁴?

LH: 我交了两个月的租金，其中一半是押金，结果因为违约，押金没要回来？ I definitely got burned!

LL: That's terrible! Did the two other roommates have another option, or did they end up getting burned, too?

LH: 那两个人的押金也没要回来。但是她们决定一起到另外一个地方去租房子，起码她们还有个伴儿。

LL: So, they kind of burned themselves on violating⁵ the terms of the contract, but you were burned worse because what happened was a result of their actions and not yours.

LH: 没错。她们自己反悔，押金被扣还说得过去，我可是被她们连累的。

LL: It sounds like you know what 'getting burned' means. Now the next step is ensuring that it doesn't happen again! Did you learn any lessons from getting burned?

LH: 要说教训，那就是，下次一定不能轻信别人。这就是为什么我在四处看房子，我准备咬咬牙，自己买个公寓。

LL: Well, it looks like you've got it figured out. Hopefully you won't burn a hole in your pocket for a price.

LH: (Laughing) 听上来真滑稽。我为了下次不再吃亏上当，宁可准备倾囊而出，自己花钱去买个公寓。

LL: I know. You will probably end up burning a hole in your pocket so that you don't get burned again. How ironic⁶!

今天李华学到了两个常用语。一个是burn a hole in one's pocket, 指价格昂贵。另一个是 burned, 指吃亏上当。
 

1 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

2 symbolizes   

v.象征，作为…的象征( symbolize的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The use of light and dark symbolizes good and evil. 用光明与黑暗来象征善与恶。
• She likes olive because It'symbolizes peace. 她喜欢橄榄色因为它象征着和平。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 soaring   

adj.往上爬升的；高耸的

参考例句：

• The house prices in the city seemed soaring up without limit. 这个城市的房价好像在无限制地飞涨。
• They were amazed at the soaring drive of our oil workers. 他们对我国石油工人的冲天干劲感到惊奇。

4 deposit   

n.定金，存款，矿藏；vt.使沉淀，寄存，储蓄

参考例句：

• There is too much deposit in a bottle of wine.酒瓶里有太多的沉淀物。
• The hotel requires a deposit for all advance bookings.旅馆规定凡预订房间都要先付订金。

5 violating   

亵渎( violate的现在分词 )； 违反； 侵犯； 强奸

参考例句：

• Ignorance of a law does not excuse a man for violating it. 一个人不懂法律不构成犯法的理由。
• It was sued by the U.S. federal government for violating antitrust law. 它被美国联邦政府指控违反了反托拉斯法。

6 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。