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■某酒樓的霓虹招牌可能是故障的關係,英文變成了「NASTY Seafood Restaurant」。作者提供
Lina CHU
某天逛街的時候,看見某酒樓的霓虹招牌,可能是故障的關係,英文變成了「NASTY Seafood Restaurant」, 譯成中文就是「令人討厭的海鮮酒家」,覺得很有趣,今次就說nasty這英文字和一些相關的常用語。
Nasty是一個負面的形容詞,形容某些事物,甚至人物,令人討厭或不悅,很多時被看成nice(好)的相反詞。
形容負面事物
形容事物時,nasty指這些事物是壞的、不好的,甚至於有危險的。例如:
Because of the nearby landfill, there is a nasty smell in this area.
由於附近有堆填區,區內傳出陣陣惡臭。
They were having a barbecue but then the weather turned nasty.
他們正在燒烤,但天氣突然變壞。
The radiation level can become nasty if the damages of the power plant cannot be under control.
如果電廠的損毀情況不受控制,輻射水平可能升至危險程度。
有一句常用語,cheap and nasty,就是指一些物品價錢平,但品質差。
They didn't have much money to spend in the trip, and had to find a room in a cheap and nasty boarding house.
他們這次旅行沒有多少錢可花,故此要住平價低級旅館的房間。
指待人態度差
形容人的時候,nasty指這人待人不友善,處事令人不快。例如:
He is a mean and nasty boss who is always finding faults with his employees.
他是刻薄不仁的老闆,經常挑僱員的錯處。
She didn't intend to be nasty to her friends. She is simply not very good at communicating with people.
她的本意不是對待朋友不好。她只是不善於與人溝通。
英文有一句諺語「a nasty piece of work」,不是真的說工作,而是指一個不誠實,經常惹麻煩,甚使人討厭的人。
He is a nasty piece of work in the neighborhood. He is a hooligan who causes a lot of troubles.
他是這鄰里的麻煩人,是一個流氓,經常鬧事。
凡事都有兩面,不要盡看負面。Nasty是一個負面形容詞,它有許多相反詞,例如nice、good、delightful等等,都是正面的字眼。 █linachu88@netvigator.com
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