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And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.
欢迎收听VOA慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。
Let's start today's program with a riddle.
让我们以一个谜语来开始今天的节目。
What follows you all day long, but when the night or rain comes, it is gone?
什么东西整天跟着你，但当夜幕降临或下雨时，它就消失了？
If you said your shadow, you are right!
如果你说是你的影子，那你就说对了！
This dark, flat image of yourself can seem huge and threatening, although you know it holds no power.
尽管你知道影子没有力量，但是这种黑色、扁平的形象可能会看起来巨大而有威胁性。
But that image helps to explain this saying: someone is afraid of their own shadow.
但这种形象有助于解释这句谚语：someone is afraid of their own shadow。
We use this expression to describe someone who is afraid of everything, even very small things.
我们用这个表达来形容一个人害怕所有事物，甚至是非常小的事物。
So, this expression is a little bit of an insult.
所以，这是一个含有一点侮辱意味的表达。
First let's hear two friends use this expression.
首先，我们来听听下面这两个朋友是如何用这个表达的。
Hey, can you help me with something?
嘿，你能帮我个忙吗？
I need to plant some flowers at a grave, but I need to do it tonight.
我需要在墓前种些花，但我今晚就得去种。
That's a strange request and usually I say "yes" to those.
这是一个奇怪的请求，通常我都会答应。
But I'm busy tonight. Why don't you ask Beth?
但是我今晚很忙。你为什么不问问贝思呢？
Beth? Are you serious?
贝思？你是认真的吗？
What's wrong with Beth?
贝思怎么了？
Beth is afraid of her own shadow!
贝思连自己的影子都怕！
There is no way she is going to help me plant flowers at night in a cemetery.
她绝对不可能在晚上帮我在墓地种花。
Good point. Okay, I can move some things around and help.
你说得对。好吧，我可以帮你搬东西。
What time should I meet you at the cemetery?
我应该什么时候去墓地和你见面？
Midnight.
午夜。
Midnight? At the cemetery? Now I'm feeling afraid of my own shadow.
午夜吗？在墓地吗？现在我也害怕自己的影子了。
In English, a shadow can also be considered a weak form of ourselves.
在英语中，影子也可以被认为是我们自己的一种较弱的形式。
So, when someone is a weaker version of what they used to be, we can say they are a "shadow of their former self."
所以，当一个人变得比以前更弱时，我们可以说他们“大不如前”。
On the other hand, a person who is "larger than life" casts a big shadow.
另一方面，一个“非同凡响”的人会让别人生活在他的巨大阴影之下。
In this case, the shadow is not from their actual bodies but from their personality and successes.
在这种情况下，阴影不是来自他们真实的躯体，而是来自他们的个性和成功。
To "cast" in this case means to send something out or forward.
“cast”在这里的意思是发出或投射。
Children of very successful people often have problems.
非常成功的人的孩子经常会有问题。
They "live in the shadow" of their parents and can feel not successful by comparison.
他们“生活在父母的阴影之下”，相比之下，他们会觉得自己不成功。
We could also say that the successes of the parents “cast a shadow” over the lives of the children.
我们也可以说，父母的成功给孩子的生活“蒙上了一层阴影”。
Something else that can cast a shadow is our sins--actions considered to be bad.
其他可以投下阴影的是我们的罪过——被认为是不好的行为。
Here is another expression "old sins cast long shadows."
这里还有一句谚语：“old sins cast long shadows。”
Think about your shadow on a sunny day.
想一想在阳光明媚的日子里你的影子是什么样的。
The shadow you cast can be long and far-reaching.
你投下的影子可能很长，延伸得很远。
The same can be said for our past mistakes and sins.
我们过去的错误和罪过也是这样的。
They can reach far into the future.
它们可以延伸到遥远的未来。
They affect our present-day situation.
它们影响着我们现在的处境。
So, the saying "old sins cast long shadows" means that the wrong things we do early in our lives can have long-term effects.
所以，谚语“old sins cast long shadows”的意思是，我们早年做的错事可能会产生长期的影响。
I like to read mysteries.
我喜欢读推理小说。
And often, the sins of one person comes back to cause them great problems.
通常情况下，一个人的罪过会回来给他们带来很大的麻烦。
In one mystery, a jewel thief double-crossed her partner.
在一个奇案中，一个珠宝窃贼出卖了她的同伙。
She kept the jewels they stole together for herself.
她把他们一起偷的珠宝都留给了自己。
She changed her name and moved to a quiet English village.
她改了名字，搬到了一个安静的英国村庄。
She thought she had gotten away with it.
她以为自己侥幸逃脱了。
But her partner in crime found her…and eventually so did the police.
但她的犯罪同伙找到了她……最终警察也找到了她。
In the end, they were both arrested.
最后，他们都被逮捕了。
When the police came to take the jewel thief away, she said, "How did you find me? My crime was so long ago."
当警察来带走这个珠宝窃贼时，她说：“你们是怎么找到我的？我是很久之前犯的罪了。”
The detective answered, "Old sins cast long shadows."
侦探回答说：“所有过去的罪恶都会投下长长的影子。”
"Old sins cast long shadows" also can be used in another way.
“Old sins cast long shadows”也可以以另一种方式来使用。
It can be used to talk about other people's sins and how they affect us.
它可以用来谈论别人的罪过以及它们是如何影响我们的。
It means that sometimes people suffer from the sins of others.
它的意思是人们有时会因他人的罪过而受苦。
As far as usage, please note that the verb "cast" is often used with shadow and shadow expressions.
至于用法，请注意动词“cast”经常与shadow和shadow相关的短语连用。
And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. Until next time…I'm Bryan Lynn.
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。下次见……我是布莱恩·林恩。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
