VOA慢速英语2016--歹徒为什么总是“在潜逃中”?

Why Are Gangsters² Always 'On the Lam'? 歹徒为什么总是“在潜逃中”?

Drug gang leader Joaquin Guzman was recaptured Friday by Mexican marines after six months on the lam.

Many in America know that “on the lam” means on the run or hiding from police -- especially after escaping from jail or prison.

That perfectly³ describes what Guzman was doing. Last July, he escaped from a maximum security prison and had been hiding from police, moving from place to place. 

“On the lam” is an informal phrase, used almost exclusively in the United States. LearnersDictionary.com says the “expression is now used mainly to suggest or imitate the language of old movies about gangsters.”

Movies about gangsters, or criminals, are popular around the world.

But where did such an odd phrase come from? In other words, what are its origins?

The Online Etymology⁴ Dictionary says the word “lam” means “flight” or “to run off.” It may come from the expression “on the lam,” which appeared in the late 1890s in the United States.

William Safire wrote many columns about language before he died in 2009. In 1998, he wrote about “on the lam” in the New York Times newspaper. He noted⁵ that “the origin of the expression is in heated dispute among slang etymologists” -- or people who study words.

Safire notes that the famous American writer Mark Twain used the word “lam” or “lamming” twice in his books, in 1855 and 1865.

When anyone who has been “on the lam” has been recaptured, news writers often say the person will now have to “face the music.” We will tell you about this expression soon.

Words in This Story

on the lam – expression to be running from the police, especially after escaping from prison

exclusively – adv. only

gangster¹ – n. a member of a group of violent criminals

odd – adj. strange or unusual

origin – n. the point or place where something begins or is created; the source or cause of something

slang – n. words that are not considered part of the standard vocabulary of a language and that are used very informally in speech especially by a particular group of people

traced to – v. to follow (something) back to its cause, beginning, or origin; to find out where something came from

1 gangster   

n.匪徒，歹徒，暴徒

参考例句：

• The gangster's friends bought off the police witness.那匪徒的朋友买通了警察方面的证人。
• He is obviously a gangster,but he pretends to be a saint.分明是强盗，却要装圣贤。

2 gangsters   

匪徒，歹徒( gangster的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gangsters offered him a sum equivalent to a whole year's earnings. 歹徒提出要给他一笔相当于他一年收入的钱。
• One of the gangsters was caught by the police. 歹徒之一被警察逮捕。

3 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

4 etymology   

n.语源；字源学

参考例句：

• The hippies' etymology is contentious.关于嬉皮士的语源是有争议的。
• The origin of OK became the Holy Grail of etymology.OK的出典成了词源学梦寐以求的圣杯。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。