这个常见于资讯报道和文学读本的“墙上的文字”,指的是迫在眉睫的不吉祥的预兆(a sign orwarning of impending disaster)。它来源于《旧约·但以理书》(Book of Daniel)。
《旧约》中记载道,古巴比伦国王伯沙撒(King Belshazzar of Babylon)在宫廷设宴纵饮时,擅自使用了从耶路撒冷的圣殿中取来的高脚杯(goblets taken from the sacred temple in Jerusalem)。突然,墙上出现了一段看不懂的文字:“Mene, Mene, Tekel, Upharsin.”国王让犹太先知但以理(Daniel)来解释,原来那是触怒上帝而即将大难临头的意思。
例句:
When two people are discussing the layoffs occurring in their company and one says to the other, "The writing is on the wall for all of us," she means their jobs are likely to be eliminated, too.
当两个人在谈论公司正在发生的裁员时,一个人对另一个说:“墙上的字是对我们所有人写的。”她的意思是,他们的工作也岌岌可危。
6.All Roads Lead to Rome
条条大路通罗马
You can still see portions of the Appian Way, which connected Rome to Brindisi, Italy, eventhough the road was constructed more than 2,000 years ago.
现在你仍旧可以看到亚壁古道,将罗马与意大利的布林迪西相连,而这条道路早在2000年前就被建成了。
【BBC最爱用的英语典故,就是这6个】相关文章:
★ 美国学生下乡务农
最新
2016-11-11
2016-11-02
2016-11-01
2016-11-01
2016-11-01
2016-10-28