DONNY 在北京学汉语，他的中国朋友要是遇到了不知道用美语怎么说的词，就会来请教他。今天是吴琼要问的：拗口。
DONNY: 吴琼，What's up?
WQ: 我表姐要生宝宝了，发动全家给孩子起名儿呢，这不，我翻翻字典，找点灵感。
DONNY: Interesting! 我也来出主意!
WQ: 孩子姓唐，你说叫什么好？
DONNY: 唐？嗯...唐 - 老 - 鸭。
WQ: 啊？!
DONNY: Haha! I'm sorry, Wu Qiong. I know this is a terrible name, but when you mentioned the word "唐”， the name rolled right off my tongue.
WQ: Rolled right off your tongue? 从舌头上滚下来？我明白了，就是顺口，脱口而出。你一听到“唐”字，顺口就说出了唐老鸭。 那...如果不顺口，也就是拗口，该怎么说呢？
DONNY: You can say it's a tongue twister. Tongue is spelled t-o-n-g-u-e, and twister, t-w-i-s-t-e-r.
WQ: 哦，tongue twister， 就是说起来拗口的东西! This name is a tongue twister 这个名字真难念。
DONNY: 没错! Wu Qiong, you know the luxury car brand "Mercedes-Benz", do you?
WQ: Mercedes-Benz? 就是奔驰嘛!
DONNY: Right. The Chinese translation 奔驰 rolls right off the tongue. However, if we call the brand 梅赛德斯?本兹， to me , that's a tongue twister! It's like I'm tripping over my own tongue when I try to say it.
WQ: Trip over your own tongue? 我知道 t-r-i-p, trip 是摔倒的意思，所以 trip over one's own tongue 就是打磕巴，吃螺丝吧？
DONNY: Absolutely!
WQ: DONNY, We need to find a good name for this baby. We don't want people to trip over their own tongues when they say the baby's name!
DONNY: Of course, but first let's see what you've learned today!
WQ: 第一，顺口叫 to roll right off the tongue
第二，拗口的东西则是 a tongue twister
第三，打磕巴，吃螺丝，叫 to trip over one's own tongue。 |