#EZTALK #你不知道的美國大小事 #ratVSmouse
🇺🇸 Idioms 美國生活用語：老鼠 rat╱mouse 🐁

說到美國老鼠，你會想到可愛的米老鼠，還是《料理鼠王》裡頭的老鼠？趁鼠年第一天，來介紹老美眼中的老鼠！

💪順便搞懂 rat 跟 mouse 的不同之處吧！

1⃣ rat
2⃣ rat out/on
3⃣ smell a rat
4⃣ the rat race
5⃣ quiet at a mouse
6⃣ poor as a church mouse
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As we enter the Year of the Rat, it’s a good time to think about rodents and their cultural significance. The first animal in the Chinese Zodiac, rats are associated with intelligence, diligence and ambition. And people born in the Year of the Rat can look forward to being wealthy and successful.

鼠年即將到來，正好來介紹一下鼠類跟其文化意涵。身為十二生肖排名第一，老鼠通常會讓我們想到聰明、勤勞且有野心。鼠年出生的人可望成功富有。

In America, however, rats don’t have such a positive image. They are seen as dirty pests that steal food and spread disease. It’s therefore no accident the rat-related idioms are all negative. 1⃣ First, the term “rat” itself. In colloquial American English, a rat is a deceptive, disloyal person or an informant. Ex: Don’t trust Tommy—he’s a rat!

不過在美國，老鼠可就沒有這麼正面的形象。牠們被視為髒東西，愛偷食物並且散播疾病，所以沒有意外地，跟老鼠有關的美國用語都是負面的。首先來看看 rat 這個字，在美式口語英文中，講某人是 rat，就是說他是「騙子、不忠實」，或是「告密者」。如：Don’t trust Tommy—he’s a rat!（別相信湯米，他是個騙子！）

2⃣ “Rat” can also be used in the verb phrase “rat out/on,” which means “to inform on sb.” Ex: The thief ratted out his accomplices to avoid jail time. 3⃣Another phrase is “smell a rat,” which means “to suspect an instance of wrongdoing, deception or betrayal.” Ex: The witness smelled a rat when he saw the suspect leaving the scene of the crime. 4⃣Finally, “the rat race” describes the intense competition and long hours of the urban work environment. Ex: Eric dreamed of leaving the rat race and buying a small farm.

因此 rat 也可延伸作為動詞：rat out/on，指「出賣某人」，如：The thief ratted out his accomplices to avoid jail time.（那個小偷出賣他的同夥逃避坐牢。）另一個片語則是 smell a rat，指「發覺有可疑之處」，如：The witness smelled a rat when he saw the suspect leaving the scene of the crime.（目擊者看到嫌犯離開案發現場時覺得行為可疑。）最後是 the rat race，用來形容職場競爭激烈且工時長的現象。如：Eric dreamed of leaving the rat race and buying a small farm.（艾瑞克夢想著離開這競爭激烈的工作環境，去鄉下種田。）

While the Chinese “shu” is usually translated as “rat,” it can also refer to mice. And mice have a slightly better reputation in English than rats. Mice are small, quiet and shy, so 5⃣ “quiet at a mouse” refers to someone who is shy and timid. Ex: The new student in our class is quiet as a mouse. 6⃣And if someone is “poor as a church mouse,” they’re really poor. This is because churches usually don’t usually store food, so mice who lived in them would have nothing to eat. Ex: My parents were poor as a church mouse when I was born.

雖然中文字「鼠」常常翻作 rat「大老鼠」，不過也可以指 mouse（複數形 mice）「小老鼠」。在英文中，小老鼠的形象比大老鼠稍微好些。小老鼠體型較小，安靜又害羞，所以 quiet as a mouse 可以用來形容某人「害羞膽怯的」，如：The new student in our class is quiet as a mouse.（我們班新來的學生很害羞。）要是說某人 poor as a church mouse，就是說他們「非常窮」。由來是因為教堂通常不會儲藏食物，所以住在教堂裡的老鼠根本沒東西可吃。如：My parents were poor as a church mouse when I was born.（我父母在我出生時候非常窮。）

【✍重點單字】
1. rodent「嚙齒類動物」
2. Chinese Zodiac「十二生肖」：zodiac指西洋占星的十二星座。
3. diligence「勤奮」：當名詞，形容詞 diligent。
4. it’s no accident that…「沒有意外，……」
5. colloquial「口語的」：相對於書寫文字而言，較不正式的說法。
6. deceptive「愛騙人、說謊的」：當形容詞，名詞 deception。
7. informant「告密者」
8. urban「都市的」：相反詞為 rural「鄉下的」。
9. reputation「名聲」

#鼠年行大運 #鼠錢鼠不完
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🔔 按下「搶先看」，每週五【美國大小事】，由 Judd 編審分享最即時美國新鮮事！想知道更多美國文化，請看 👉 http://bit.ly/EZTalk嚴選

<學習方法分享: 隨時記下優良句子/名言>
喬今天要分享是關於學習方法中的隨時記下良句。喬上禮拜看到彭于晏(Eddie Peng)轉發我很喜歡的quote- “If your dreams don’t scare you, they aren’t big enough.”在此勉勵各位同學持續學習英文，一定會有回報的。

▲ Uniquely versatile and undeniably edgy, Naima, this funky girl is surely entitled to the award.
獨特地有才華而且不可否認地前衛～…

☛ 這是在喬高中時看ANTM(America’s Next Top Model)時，Tyra Banks在Season 4的Finale中其中一句敘述冠軍Naima的話語，非常激勵我，於是從此以後我就常在寫作中運用此句型(優良副詞+形容詞 & 分詞構句句型)，例如改寫為:

e.g. Uniquely versatile and undeniably arduous, I think I can definitely make it to the end.
獨特地有才華而且不可否認地有熱情，我一定可以走到最後

▲ Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.
成功並非是幸福的關鍵，幸福才是成功的關係。如果你熱愛目前所從事的事情，你將會成功。

☛ 喬從高中就很愛查Quote、常常發現簡單的單字卻可以衍伸出碩大的道理。記下這些Quote對於自己英文的學習也是有幫助的。往往在人生方向類的文章，喬就會寫下這些Quote

(查詢Quote的好網站: brainyquote.com )

▲ It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.
因為忠於自我而被討厭勝於不做自己而被喜歡

☛ 這是喬最喜歡的quote之一，生活中難免會遇到一些與自己不合的人，工作上難免要做表面工夫，然而私交就好好做自己，不要虐待自己跟不合的人往來吧！往往在人生方向類的話題/主題，喬也很愛使用這句quote

以上就是今天的分享，在分享一個火影忍者中聽到的名言：「只有努力不會背叛你(Diligence will not betray you.)。」所以各位同學一起加油吧！