美国人似乎有不少用眼睛这个字,也就是英文里的eyes这个字组成的成语和俗语。我们曾经在前面的课文中给大家介绍过eyes pop out,这是指某个人在感到十分惊奇的时候,眼睛睁得大大的,似乎连眼珠子都快掉出来了。但是,眼睛睁大的时候并不完全是出于惊奇。
比如说,当你在交通十分拥挤的情况下开车的时候,你一定会很紧张。这时,你的眼睛就会张得大大的,注意地看周围是否有危险的情况。美国人有一个常用的俗语用来形容这种情景的: to keep one's eyes peeled. To keep one's eyes peeled实际上就是提高警觉的意思。住在华盛顿的人经常会说:
例句-1: "The beltway is very dangerous to drive on, especially during the rush hour. So be sure to keep your eyes peeled when you change lanes to pass one of those big trucks they call eighteen wheelers."
例句-2: "Joe, I'm going to have to drill this lock out of the door for us to get in. The drill will make some noise, so keep your eyes peeled for the cops."
要是你老是很警觉的话,也就是说要是你老是keep your eyes peeled,你就可能会避免受人蒙蔽。美国人经常说: to have the wool pulled over one's eyes。
To have the wool pulled over one's eyes,这个习惯用语的意思就是:蒙蔽某人。美国是一个自由贸易的国家,但是在做生意的过程中受骗也是经常发生的。下面有关一位黄先生的例子就能说明问题:
例句-3: "Poor Mr. Brown--his partner certainly pulled the wool over his eyes. He had no idea the partner was stealing all the profits until the man suddenly left town."
To pull the wool over one's eyes这个俗语也可以用在其他方面,下面就是一个例子:
例句-4: "I won't vote for that politician again. I've seen him pull the wool over the eyes of the voters with lots of promises, but he never carries them out once he gets into office."