Top 10 Animal Idioms
Here atiShow English we love to share our favourite idioms with you. In this article we』ll list our Top 10 English Animal Idioms! Which one do you like best?
在iShow English，我們喜歡與您分享我們最喜歡的習語。在本文中，我們將列出我們的十大英語動物習語！你最喜歡哪個？
What is an idiom?(什麼是成語)
An idiomis a word or phrase that is not taken literally. An idiom is an expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its individual words, but has a separate meaning of its own.
一個 成語是沒有採取一個單詞或詞組的字面。成語是一種表達方式，不能從其單個詞的含義中理解，而是具有其自身的單獨含義。
Ten – Like Turkeys Voting For Christmas
像火雞一樣投票給聖誕節
We』ll start the list with an idiom featuring the turkey. This idiom describes a situation when youchoose to do something that will end badly for you. Christmas is obviously a bad time for turkeys – many of them will end up being eaten over Christmas dinner!
我們將以火雞的成語開始說起。這個成語描述了一種情況，當你選擇做一些對你來說很糟糕的事情時。對於火雞來說，聖誕節顯然是一個糟糕的時期 - 其中許多的火雞最終會在聖誕節晚餐時被吃掉！
Nine – Canary In A Coalmine
金絲雀在煤礦
Another feathered friend in a precarious situation? Yes! Like the poor turkey at Christmas, our canaryis at risk once it enters the coalmine. The helpful canary will serve as an early warning of danger or trouble ahead. How does it warn us? By dropping dead. At least the canary doesn’t get eaten, I guess.
在另一個不穩定的情況下，另一位有羽毛的朋友？是! 就像聖誕節期間可憐的火雞一樣，我們的金絲雀一旦進入煤礦就處於危險之中。有用的金絲雀將作為危險或事故的早期預警。它如何警告我們？通過放棄死亡。我猜，至少金絲雀不會被吃掉。
Eight – Pigs Might Fly
豬可能會飛
It’s time to move on from the flying birds (yes, turkeys canfly) to an animal that definitely cannot fly. Pigs are – somewhat unfairly – known as fat and lazy animals, hence the difficulty imagining them growing wings and taking to the sky. There really is little chance of that happening. Still, why fly when you can take to the water like the swimming pigs of the Bahamas.
現在是時候從飛鳥（是的，火雞可以飛）轉移到絕對無法飛行的動物身上。豬- 有些不公平 - 被稱為肥胖和懶惰的動物，因此很難想像它們會長出翅膀並向空中攀爬。真的有這種事情發生的可能性很小。不過，為什麼你可以像巴哈馬的遊泳豬一樣上水 。
Seven – Whale Of A Time
一次鯨魚
Let’s swim our past our paddling pigs out into the deep blue sea until we find some whales. The whales are mighty creatures; you won’t find anything bigger on Earth. The impressiveness of this mammal lead to whale being used to describe a really great example of something. A whale of a time is used to help us understand that thetime had was impressive, or just really enjoyable.
讓我們經過我們的划槳豬到深藍色的大海，直到我們找到一些鯨魚。鯨魚是強大的生物; 你在地球上找不到更大的東西。這種哺乳動物令人印象深刻，導致鯨魚被用來形容一個非常好的例子。一次鯨魚是用來幫助我們理解有時間令人印象深刻，或者只是很過癮。
Six – Butterflies In My Stomach
在我胃裡的蝴蝶
Let’s be honest, if I was in the middle of the ocean and I saw a pod of whales I might feel anxious. That anxiousness– that can be described as a fluttery feeling – is sometimes referred to as butterflies in the stomach. Different things give us butterflies: an English test, a smile from someone special or making a speech in front of a large group of people.
老實說，如果我在海洋中間，我看到一群鯨魚，我可能會感到焦慮。這種焦慮- 可以被描述為一種顫動的感覺 - 有時被稱為胃中的蝴蝶。不同的東西給了我們焦慮：一個英語測試，一個特殊的人的微笑或在一大群人面前演講。
Five – As Sick As A Parrot
像鸚鵡一樣生病
Our next featured idiom – a British classic – features the beautiful, talkative, intelligent parrot. What joyous emotion does the colourful parrot convey? That’s right! Disappointment, misfortune or despair. The English language doesn’t always make sense. This idiom is often used to describe a sportsperson or team who has suffered a surprising or crushing defeat.
我們的下一個特色成語 - 英國經典 - 以美麗，健談，智能的鸚鵡為特色。五彩鸚鵡傳達的是什麼歡樂的情感？那就對了！失望，不幸或絕望。英語並不總是有意義的。這個成語通常用於描述遭受驚人或慘敗的運動員或團隊。
Four – Wouldn’t Say Boo To A Goose
不要對鵝說噓聲
Geeseare known as aggressive animals and you should probably avoid startling them. This British idiom is slightly confusing because most people wouldn’t say boo to a goose. This expression – however – is used to describe someone very timid or nervous. You might also come across the similar expression wouldn’t say boo to a fly, which certainly makes more literal sense. Who is frightened of a fly?
鵝被稱為攻擊性動物，你應該避免讓它們吃驚。這種英國成語有點令人困惑，因為大多數人都不會對鵝說噓聲。然而，這種表達用於描述非常膽小或緊張的人。你可能也會遇到類似的表達，不會對蒼蠅說噓聲，這當然更具有字面意義。誰被一隻蒼蠅嚇壞了？
Three – Raining Cats and Dogs
下貓和狗
Cats and dogsare our most popular pets, and we even call the dog man’s best friend. We weren’t always so found of these animals, as this idiom probably originates from dead cats and dogs being discarded in open sewers! Heavy rain would wash the bodies away. Despite the horrible history of this idiom it remains one of the most widely used idiomatic expressions, and often the first learned by people learning to speak English.
貓和狗是我們最受歡迎的寵物，我們甚至稱狗為人類最好的朋友。我們並不總是如此發現這些動物，因為這個成語可能源於死貓和狗在開放的下水道中丟棄！大雨會把屍體洗掉。儘管這個成語的歷史可怕，但它仍然是最廣泛使用的習慣用語之一，並且通常是學習說英語的人學習的第一個。
Two – Ants In Your Pants
兩隻螞蟻在你的褲子裡
Are you gettingexcited because we are nearly at number one in our list? So excited that you are wriggling about as if you have ants in your pants? Probably not, but at least you understand the context of this antsy expression. This idiom can also be used to describe that nervous movement when you are anxious about something. The word pants means different things in the UK and the US. You』d be much better off in America with ants in your pants, that is for sure.
您是否因為我們在列表中排名第一而感到興奮？很興奮，你正在蠕動，好像你的褲子裡有螞蟻？可能不是，但至少你了解這種煩人表達的背景。當你對某些事物感到焦慮時，這個成語也可以用來描述這種神經運動。褲子這個詞在英國和美國意味著不同的東西。在美國，你的褲子裡的螞蟻會好多了，這是肯定的。
One – Let The Cat Out Of The Bag
讓貓走出袋子
Why did we choose this idiom as our favourite? We promise to let the cat of the bagand tell you! Everyone loves a good secret, and it is normal to get excited when a secret is revealed. This expression paints a great mental picture too – a secret cat being let out of a bag. How awesome is that? Finally, and perhaps most important of all, we get to share a picture of a cute moggy in a bag.
為什麼我們選擇這個成語作為我們的最愛？我們保證讓袋子的貓告訴你！每個人都喜歡一個好秘密，當秘密被揭露時，興奮是正常的。這個表達也描繪了一個偉大的心理圖片 - 一個秘密的貓從包裡出來。這有多棒？最後，也許最重要的是，我們可以在一個袋子裡分享一個可愛的moggy的照片。
So how did we do? Did you learn any new idioms? Are you satisfied with our top ten or are we daft for missing your favourite? Well, what are you waiting for? Let the cat out of the bagand let us know!
那我們怎麼辦？你學到了什麼新的習語嗎？你對我們的前十名感到滿意還是因為錯過了你最喜歡的東西而感到沮喪？那麼，你還等什麼呢？讓貓從袋子裡拿出來讓我們知道！