VOA慢速英语2020 不要“忘恩负义”

And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning¹ English.

现在是美国之音慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。 

Relationships between people can be complex.

人与人之间的关系可能很复杂。 

So, to help there are some good rules to follow.

所以，为了有所帮助，有一些好的规则需要遵守。 

For example, when dealing² with people at work or with a friend, it is usually a good idea to stay calm and be easygoing.

例如，在与同事或朋友打交道时，保持冷静、随和通常是个好主意。 

Personal or working relationships can be damaged if you shout at other people or get angry with someone.

如果你对别人大喊大叫或对某人生气，你的个人或工作关系都会受到破坏。 

This is especially true if that certain "someone" helps you in a meaningful way – like making sure you get paid!

如果某个“人”以一种有意义的方式帮助了你，比如确保你得到报酬，这一点尤其正确！ 

To describe that situation, the English language has a very useful expression: to bite the hand that feeds you.

要描述这种情况，英语中有一个非常有用的短语：to bite the hand that feeds you。 

This phrase means that you act badly toward³ the person who is helping⁴ or has helped you.

这个短语指的是你对帮助你或曾经帮助过你的人表现不好。 

When you bite the hand that feeds you, you are being unthankful, ungrateful, unappreciative.

当你“bite the hand that feeds you”时，你是不懂得感恩的，忘恩负义的，不领情的。 

And that is a lot of "un" words.

这有很多带“un”的单词。 

In other words, you turn against, attack, and even harm someone who is helping you.

换句话说，你会转而反对、攻击甚至伤害那些帮助你的人。 

We often use this expression as a word of advice -- as in dont bite or you should not bite the hand that feeds you.

我们经常用这个表达作为忠告，比如don’t bite or you should not bite the hand that feeds you。 

Now lets use it in an example.

现在让我们在一个例子中使用它。 

Lets say someone comes to your place of business and wants to buy something from you or even offer you a chance at a new job.

比如说，有人来到你的办公地点，想从你这里买东西，甚至想给你提供一份新工作。 

But you, in return, are rude to that person.

但是你反而对那个人很粗鲁。 

In that case, I could say to you: "You should not bite the hand that feeds you."

在那种情况下，我可以对你说：“你不应该恩将仇报。” 

This expression can also mean to turn against someone who helped you in the past.

这个表达还可以指背叛过去帮助过你的人。 

Used this way, you do not show respect for someone who has been there for you.

在这种情况下，你没有对曾经对支持你的人表示尊重。 

Some people say this phrase goes all the way back to ancient Greece.The poet Sappho was said to have used it over 2,600 years ago.

有些人说这个短语可以追溯到古希腊。据说诗人萨福在2600多年前就使用过这个表达。 

Other experts claim that one of Aesops Fables⁵, called The Gardener and His Dog, shows an example of this expression.

其他专家声称，伊索寓言《园丁和狗》就是这样的一个例子。 

The story goes something like this: A gardeners dog was playing in a garden near a well and then fell in.

故事是这样的：一个园丁的狗在花园的一个井边玩耍，然后掉了进去。 

The owner ran to help.He reached his hand into the well to pull out his dog.But as the man did this – the dog bit him on the hand!

园丁跑过去帮忙。他把手伸进井里，想把他的狗拉出来。但就在他这么做的时候，狗咬了他的手！ 

"What very ungrateful behavior! I only came to help!" said the gardener.

“多么忘恩负义的行为！我只是来帮忙的！”园丁说。 

So, he left the dog and walked away.

于是，他丢下狗走了。 

The dog bit that hand that fed him.

狗咬了那只曾喂他的手。 

And that was a big mistake.

这是个很大的错误。 

Here is another example.

再举个例子。 

Lets say I am working as an interior⁶ designer.

假设我是一名室内设计师。 

I go into peoples homes and decide how to improve them.

我走进人们的家，决定如何改善设计。 

I choose everything from wall paint and floorings to artwork, tables, and chairs.

我选择所有的东西，从墙面油漆、地板到艺术品、桌子和椅子。 

Now, because I own my own business, my clients⁸ are very important to me.

现在，因为我自己做生意，我的客户对我来说非常重要。 

They are my bread and butter, meaning my earnings⁹ are based on the money they pay me.

他们是我的“面包和黄油”，意思是我的收入取决于他们付给我的钱。 

If my clients are happy with my work, they will tell other people.

如果我的客户对我的工作满意，他们会告诉其他人。 

And that word-of-mouth business means more work and more money for me.

对我来说，口碑营销意味着更多的工作和更多的钱。 

But there is a problem: I have a difficult client⁷.

但有一个问题：我有个难缠的客户。 

He is always changing his mind about design decisions and does not communicate well.

他在设计决策上总是改变主意，并且不善于沟通。 

So, small issues often become big problems.

因此，小问题往往成为大问题。 

What should I do?

我该怎么办？ 

On one hand, I could tell him to find another interior designer.

一方面，我可以告诉他再找个室内设计师。 

On the other hand, I could just find a way to work with him.

另一方面，我可以找到和他一起工作的方法。 

If the economy is weak, it may not be a good idea to lose a client, even a difficult one.

如果经济疲软，失去一个客户可能不是一个好主意，即使是一个困难的客户。 

I decide to not bite the hand that feeds me and put up with the difficult client.

我决定不忘恩负义，容忍那个难相处的客户。 

If the economy improves, then I can show him the door!

要是经济好转，我就可以推掉这笔单子！ 

And thats our show for today.

以上就是我们今天的内容。 

Try using this expression.

试试这个表达。 

Have you ever bitten the hand that fed you or perhaps someone bit your hand?

你有没有不知感恩的时候？或者有人这么对你吗？ 

Until next time ... Im Anna Matteo.

下次见。安娜·马泰奥为您播报。 

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

3 toward   

prep.对于，关于，接近，将近，向，朝

参考例句：

• Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
• Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了，并跑了过去。

4 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。

5 fables   

n.寓言( fable的名词复数 )；神话，传说

参考例句：

• Some of Aesop's Fables are satires. 《伊索寓言》中有一些是讽刺作品。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Little Mexican boys also breathe the American fables. 墨西哥族的小孩子对美国神话也都耳濡目染。 来自辞典例句

6 interior   

adj.在内的，内部的，内地的，国内的；n.内部

参考例句：

• There is water in the interior of the cave.在山洞的内部有水。
• They went into the interior room.他们进了内室。

7 client   

n.委托人，当事人，顾客

参考例句：

• She can't come to the telephone;she's serving a client.她不能来接电话，她正在接待一位顾客。
• The lawyer produced a clever defence of his client.律师机智地为委托人辩护。

8 clients   

n.顾客( client的名词复数 )；当事人；诉讼委托人；[计算机]客户端

参考例句：

• a lawyer with many famous clients 拥有许多著名委托人的律师
• She understood the importance of establishing a close rapport with clients. 她懂得与客户建立密切和谐的关系的重要性。

9 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%。