Vanessa: Why don't we just tell Serena you're not interested in being friends with Blair?
你干嘛不直接跟瑟琳娜说你不想跟布莱尔做朋友？

Dan: Oh, we just started hanging out again. I don't want to rock the boat.
hang out: 一起出来玩
啊，我和她刚刚开始重新交往。我可不想搞砸了。

——Gossip Girl

rock the boat: Do things differently to the point of causing an uproar in society
rock the boat 指的是:找麻烦,或者让人感到厌烦,就像一个孩子站在一艘船当中,故意把船弄得摇摇晃晃,使得船上的人很害怕一样。人们往往会劝别人不要去找麻烦。下面是两个人在办公室里谈论一个很偷懒的同事。

例句:"Sure, I agree Smith isn't worth the big salary he gets, but I wouldn't tell the boss if I were you. Smith is one of his favorites, and he'll think you're just rocking the boat and making trouble."

这个人说:“当然,我同意斯密斯根本没有资格拿那末高的工资。但是,要是我是你,我就不会把这种想法去告诉老板。斯密斯是他的亲信之一。你要告诉他的话,他会以为你想找麻烦呢。”

每当暑假来临,美国的学生就开始计划怎么来安排这三个多月的时间,有不少人动手找工作,赚钱为下一年的学费做准备,有的计划先出去旅行,轻松一番再做打算。下面是一个学生在跟他的妹妹谈他和几个同学的暑期计划。

例句:"After much discussion, five of us in the class have finally decided to go to Europe for three weeks. Preparation is already underway. Please don't rock the boat by telling mother, because I’m sure she wouldn't agree."

这个学生对妹妹说:“我们班上五个同学讨论了好久,最后终于决定去欧洲三个星期。准备工作已经开始了。我肯定妈是不会同意的,所以请你千万不要告诉妈妈,那样会破坏我们的计划的。”