有时候和妈妈辈的人讨论男生,在你一脸花痴地说“那个男生长得很帅”时,妈妈们往往会冷冷来一句,帅又不能当饭吃。那么,老外会怎么表达“帅不能当饭吃”呢?
我们先来看看中国人怎么用英语表达这句话:
1. Pretty face can not feed you.
2. Appearance can't make money./Good look is not a credit card./Being pretty can't help you pay the bill.
3. You cannot count on your appearance to do everything./Being handsome is not everything!
上面的几个说法都可以接受,起码能让老外明白我们的意思,但是真正地道的说法是什么呢?其实可以用一个词组来表达:charm one's way through life。那么“帅又不能当饭吃”的地道说法就是:
You can't charm your way through life.
或者也可以说:
You can't take too much advantage of your beauty.
别滥用自己的美貌。
多类似的词组还有talk one's way out of,以唇舌之功给自己解围。
How come he could talk his way out of all the troubles?
为什么他每回都能凭三寸不烂之舌解决麻烦?
除此之外还有很多动词可以这样搭配:
list your way out of stuckness 制定计划,摆脱懒散
spend your way out of the recession 促进消费来摆脱经济衰退
facebook your way out of job 因facebook上的不当言行而产生职场危机