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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。
Today we talk about two expressions involving letters of the alphabet.
今天我们讨论两个与字母表中的字母有关的短语。
They both warn us to be careful, and they sound similar.
它们都警告我们要小心，而且它们听起来很相似。
But their meanings are very different.
但它们的意思却大相径庭。
Here is the first one: to watch our p's and q's.
这是第一个：to watch our p's and q's。
When we watch our p's and q's, we are on our best behavior.
watch our p's and q's指的是我们在行为上表现得最好。
We are careful of our language too--so, no swearing.
我们也要注意我们的语言——所以，不要说脏话。
We do things politely and without causing trouble to others.
我们做事要礼貌，不给别人惹麻烦。
The expression is something an older person might say to children.
年长的人可能会对孩子们说这个短语。
"When you go to school, watch your p's and q's and mind your teachers."
“上学的时候，注意你的言谈举止，听老师的话。”
There are several stories about how the expression began.
关于这个短语的起源有几个故事。
Some word experts say it comes from people drinking in taverns or bars, places where alcohol is served.
一些词汇专家说，它来自在酒吧（即提供酒的地方）喝酒的人。
Bartenders would keep track of how much people drank by counting their pints (p's) and quarts (q's).
调酒师会通过计算人们的品脱和夸脱来记录他们喝了多少酒。
Other experts say the expression comes from the classroom.
其他专家表示，这个短语来自课堂。
Schoolchildren were taught to be careful writing the letters "p" and "q," which are easy to confuse.
老师教导学生们写字母“p”和“q”时要认真，因为这两个字母很容易混淆。
And other experts say the phrase may come from the early days of the printing press.
还有的专家说，这个短语可能来自早期的印刷机。
Letters were set in presses backwards so they would appear on the printed page correctly.
印刷机上的字母是反向放置的，这样它们才能被正确地印在纸上。
P's and q's needed careful placement.
P's和q's需要小心放置。
Now on to our second expression: to dot our i's and cross our t's.
现在来看我们的第二个短语：to dot our i's and cross our t's。
To dot our i's and cross our t's means to be very careful.
To dot our i's and cross our t's的意思是要非常小心谨慎。
But it means to be careful about procedures.
但它的意思是要注意程序。
We make sure we have followed directions correctly and have done everything the right way.
我们确保我们正确地遵循了指示，并以正确的方式做了每件事。
While it may have its roots in spelling correctly, we use this expression in many situations.
虽然它可能源于拼写正确，但我们在许多情况下都使用这个短语。
For example, when the TikTok star read her contract with an advertising company, she was careful to dot her i's and cross her t's.
例如，当这位抖音明星阅读她与一家广告公司的合同时，她会非常小心谨慎。
She didn't want anything to fall through the cracks.
她不想遗漏任何事情。
She didn't want to overlook any small detail that may affect her business.
她不想忽略任何可能影响她生意的小细节。
If you are making a deal or spoken agreement with someone, a friend might warn you to dot your i's and cross your t's.
如果你正在与某人达成协议或口头协议，朋友可能会警告你要小心谨慎。
Be careful of the small details.
注意小细节。
It is common knowledge that the smallest details are often where mistakes are made.
众所周知，最小的细节往往是出错的地方。
So, that is why it is important to dot your i's and cross your t's.
所以，这就是“注意细节”重要的原因。
Now, let's hear two friends use these expressions
现在，让我们来听下面两个朋友是如何使用这些短语的。
Are you sure you packed everything?
你确定你把所有东西都打包好了吗？
Yes, I'm sure. Please don't ask me again!
是的，我确定。请不要再问我了！
Well, you usually forget something. Remember last time … at the airport?
嗯，你通常会忘记一些东西。还记得上次……在机场吗？
Let's not bring up that again. I won't forget my passport this time.
别再提那件事了。这次我不会忘记带我的护照的。
I just wanted to make sure that we dot all our i's and cross all our t's.
我只是想确保我们注意了所有细节。
By being careful and thorough, we save time and money.
我们细心谨慎些就可以节省时间和金钱。
Don't you ever get tired of being careful and thorough?
你一直这样细心谨慎，你不会感到厌倦吗？
Don't you just want to be crazy and impulsive … for once in your life? Come on, throw away that list!
难道你一辈子就不想疯狂和冲动一次吗？快点，扔掉那张清单！
What are you doing? Give me my list back and behave!
你在干什么呢？把我的清单还给我，规矩点！
Seems like you not only have to dot your i's and cross your t's … you also need to watch your p's and q's!
看来你不仅要注意细节，还要注意你的言行举止！
And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. Until next time … I'm Anna Matteo.
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。下次见……我是安娜·马特奥！
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
