如何在写作中活用谚语

一、引用谚语的技巧

1. 用as the saying goes来引出谚语，其意为“常言道”“正如有句谚语所说”；它可以放在句首，也可以放在句末，有时也可放在句子中间。如：

“More haste[急速]， less speed，” as the saying goes.

常言道：“欲速则不达。”

“Accidents will happen，” as the saying goes.

正如有句谚语所说：“天有不测风云。”

As the saying goes，“A miss is as good as a mile.”

正如有句谚语所说：“失之毫厘，谬以千里。”

However， as an old saying goes，“Every coin has two sides.” Having a private[私人的] teacher also has its disadvantages.

但是，正如有句谚语所说：“每个硬币都有两个面。”请家庭教师也有其不利之处。

2. 用There is a saying going like this 来引出谚语，其意为“有句谚语是这样说的”。如：

There is a saying going like this，“A friend in need is a friend indeed.” What is a true friend？

A true friend is a person who can share your happiness and sorrow[忧伤].

有句谚语是这样说的：“患难见真情。”什么样的朋友才算是真正的朋友呢？

真正的朋友就是能与你分享快乐和分担忧愁的人。

There is a Chinese saying going like this，“Traveling ten thousand miles is better than reading ten thousand books.” Indeed， travel benefits[有助于] us a lot.

中国有句谚语是这样说的：“读万卷书不如行万里路。”旅游对我们的确很有益处。

3. 用which is a saying we are all familiar with来引出谚语。此时的 which 引出的是一个非限制性定语从句，注意其前用逗号，不可用句号。其实，这类表达若运用得当，对于提高书面表达得分非常有帮助，因为引用谚语不仅是一种高级表达，还能恰当地用上非限制性定语从句，可以说是“高级中的高级”了。如：

“Honesty is the best policy，” which is a saying we are all familiar with. Everyone is likely to make mistakes，so are the children.

“诚为上策。”这是我们大家都熟悉的一句谚语。每个人都可能犯错误，小孩子也一样。

“An apple a day keeps the doctor away，” which is a saying we are all familiar with. In fact， apples contain plenty of nourishments[营养] which are good for our health.

“一日一苹果，医生远离我。”这是我们大家都熟悉的一句谚语。事实上，苹果含有大量对我们身体有益的营养成份。

二、套用谚语的技巧

套用谚语就是直接将谚语套用在自己的句子中，使之成为自己句子的组成部分。下面略举几例，同学们可以从中学习如何在自己的句子中套用谚语。

1. Beggars cannot be choosers. 叫花子不能挑肥拣瘦。如：

Like it or not， remember， beggars cant be choosers.

不管你是喜欢还是不喜欢，记住，叫花子不能挑肥拣瘦。

I dont care much for the Christmas present， for beggars cant be choosers.

什么样的圣诞礼物我都不介意，因为叫花子不能挑肥拣瘦。

I would have preferred a bed， but beggars cant be choosers， so I slept on the sofa.

我本想要张床，但是叫花子不能挑肥拣瘦，所以我就睡在沙发上了。

Usually I hate pancakes[薄煎饼] but beggars cant be choosers. So I walked in hoping to find some unfinished pancakes since I had no money.

通常我不喜欢吃烙饼，但是叫花子不能挑肥拣瘦，所以我还是走了进去，希望能找到一些别人吃剩的烙饼，因为我身无分文。

2. Once bitten， twice shy. 一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井绳。如：

She certainly wont swim again—once bitten， twice shy.

她肯定不会再游泳了——所谓一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井绳。

I try to avoid meeting her. Probably because once bitten， twice shy， I always feel nervous whenever I see her.

我尽量避免与她见面。也许是一朝被蛇咬，十年怕井绳吧，我每次见到她都感到很紧张。

3. It never rains but it pours. 不雨则已，一雨倾盆；祸不单行。如：

First his car broke down， then he lost his key—it never rains but it pours！

先是他的汽车出了故障，接着又丢了钥匙——真是祸不单行！