词汇大师(Wordmaster)--Slangman: Hand-Related Terms

Broadcast on "Coast to Coast": January 30, 2003

AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on Wordmaster -- Slangman David Burke is on hand in Los Angeles to give us a hand with some handy slang¹. Get the idea of this week's topic? Well, you've got to hand it to that Slangman, always careful about his health. Just listen to his New Year's resolution:

SLANGMAN: "Dear diary: on one hand, I want to make the resolution to stop eating junk food. But on the other hand I love it so much! Now this expression is actually a two-part expression: 'on one hand' and then 'on the other hand.' You can't say one without the other. So when you say 'on one hand' it means first I need to consider the positive reasons. Then when you say 'on the other hand,' it means next I need to consider the negative reasons.

So on one hand I want to make the resolution to stop eating junk food -- which is food that's not good for you -- but on the other hand I love it so much, and chocolate is my favorite food group ... hands down. (laughter)"

RS: "That makes it difficult."

SLANGMAN: "Yes it does, because 'hands down' means 100 percent. OK, I'll try my hand at eating only healthy foods. Now when you 'try your hand' at something, it simply means to try something that's usually physical, where you would need your hands, but it could also be at something non-physical. So I'll try my hand at eating only healthy food. I'll make sure not to have any candy -- especially chocolate -- on hand."

RS: "Oh, chocolate on hand."

AA: "Not literally²."

SLANGMAN: "Not literally on your hand but 'on hand' simply means available. So I'll make sure not to have any candy, especially chocolate -- my favorite -- on hand, so I can avoid it. I know myself like the back of my hand; if it's in my house, I'll eat it. This has got to be one of the strangest expressions."

RS: "It certainly is."

SLANGMAN: "I always thought this even when I was a kid. To know something like the back of one's hand, it just means to know something very well. But how many of us really know the back of our hands."

RS: "Or the front of our hands, for that matter."

SLANGMAN: "I can't even describe the back of my hand to you. But even so we still say that. So I 'know myself like the back of my hand,' however well that is, who knows, but it's a common expression. Well, actually I do remember reading a handout³ that says that chocolate has certain properties that can actually prevent tooth decay⁴. Now a 'handout' is anything that is written that has helpful information that you hand out, or give, to someone. It also means a donation of money, in fact, that you would give to a poor person. 'I'm going to give that person a handout.'"

AA: "Now is it true that it can prevent tooth decay, or is it just good for you in other ways?"

SLANGMAN: "No, my dentist actually told me that chocolate can prevent tooth decay. And I even heard on the news about two months ago, they said it can even reduce your risk of getting cancer. How about that? Well so, on one hand it may actually be very handy to have chocolate on hand. When something is very 'handy,' it means it's very convenient. So on one hand, which we already learned, it may actually be very handy -- convenient -- to have chocolate on hand. On the other hand, my teeth would be fabulous⁵ but I would be too fat to move."

RS: "That would be a problem."

SLANGMAN: "That could be a problem. Then people would probably want to 'lend me a hand' and 'wait on me hand-and-foot,' which is another strange expression. It means to act like my servant and bring me anything I need. Well, I would have people 'eating out of my hand.' And that means people doing anything I want."

RS: "Not necessarily eat out of your hand."

AA: "No."

SLANGMAN: "Oh wait, that's just too 'underhanded.' This is an interesting expression. That means dishonest, it's like stealing something while covering what you're stealing with your hand. And now that I'm done reading my New Year's resolution, you're welcome to give me a hand. (clapping) Thank you. This is another interesting expression, because depending on the context⁶ it means two different things. If you give someone a hand, it can either mean you're applauding⁸ for them or it means you're helping⁹ them.

So, oftentimes we see on TV shows when a host is introducing an actor, an actress, a famous person, they'll say 'OK let's give these people a hand,' let's applaud⁷ them. But if the context is different, and these two people are having trouble doing something, and then we hear 'let's give them a hand,' it means let's help them. So it all depends on the context."

AA: Slangman David Burke in Los Angeles. Can't wait to get your hands on books and other materials to learn slang? Then visit David's Web site -- slangman.com. Our address is voanews.com/wordmaster. And our e-mail is [email protected]. With Rosanne Skirble, I'm Avi Arditti.

MUSIC: "Keep Your Hands to Yourself"/The Calling

1 slang   

n.俚语，行话；vt.使用俚语，辱骂；vi.辱骂

参考例句：

• The phrase is labelled as slang in the dictionary.这个短语在这本字典里被注为俚语。
• Slang often goes in and out of fashion quickly.俚语往往很快风行起来又很快不再风行了。

2 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

3 handout   

n.散发的文字材料；救济品

参考例句：

• I read the handout carefully.我仔细看了这份分发的资料。
• His job was distributing handout at the street-corner.他的工作是在街头发传单。

4 decay   

vi.腐烂，衰落；n.腐烂，腐朽，衰败状态

参考例句：

• The vegetables have begun to decay.那些蔬菜已开始腐烂。
• Our powers decay in old age.我们的体力在老年时就衰退。

5 fabulous   

adj.极好的；极为巨大的；寓言中的，传说中的

参考例句：

• We had a fabulous time at the party.我们在晚会上玩得很痛快。
• This is a fabulous sum of money.这是一笔巨款。

6 context   

n.背景，环境，上下文，语境

参考例句：

• You can always tell the meaning of a word from its context.你常可以从上下文中猜出词义来。
• This sentence does not seem to connect with the context.这个句子似乎与上下文脱节。

7 applaud   

vt.鼓掌欢迎，赞同；vi.鼓掌欢迎，欢呼

参考例句：

• The pupils that had been watching started to applaud.一直在一旁观看的小学生们开始鼓起掌来。
• Please don't applaud until everyone has performed.请在每个人表演完毕后再鼓掌。

8 applauding   

v.鼓掌( applaud的现在分词 )；称赞，赞许

参考例句：

• A low and applauding murmur ran through the assembly. 会众中响起了一阵轻轻的赞美声。 来自辞典例句
• The audience showed its approval by applauding. 观众鼓掌以示赞许。 来自辞典例句

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。