January是一月,May是五月,但January and May不是“一月和五月”,那是什么意思?
January and May
英国作家乔叟写了本《坎特伯雷故事集》,其中“商人的故事”里,有一男爵叫January,他60岁时娶了一个叫may的年轻姑娘。January and May就出自这个典故。
January and May的英文解释是:
a marriage or relationship between an older person and one considerably younger.
年长的人与年轻的人之间的婚姻或关系。
所以,January and May指:老夫少妻,也就是我们常说的“老牛吃嫩草”。
例句:
He is 17 years older than her. It's a January and May marriage.
他比她大17岁,因此可以说他们是老夫少妻了。
to have January chicks
这里的chicks不是小鸡,而是指代孩子。to have January chicks这一说法,也同样出自“商人的故事”。男爵January和妻子May婚后不久,May就有了孩子。
所以to have January chicks的意思是:老来得子。
May-December Romance
May是五月,December是十二月,五月是生机勃勃的季节,而十二月是寒冷凋零的时节。May-December Romance比喻:一方是活力少年,一方是迟暮老年的爱情。也就是我们常说的:忘年恋。
例句:
Boris is 24 years older than Symonds.
It's a May-December Romance.
鲍里斯比西蒙兹大24岁,这是一段忘年恋。
拓展:与月份有关的俚语
1. April weather
人生无常,变化不定
2. Long March
长征
3. March of the volunteers
《义勇军进行曲》
4. It'll be a long day in January.
不可能发生的事情
5. April showers bring May flowers
苦尽甘来;黑暗过后的光明
6. Maybees don't fly in June
停止变卦;(想法)不再变来变去
7. a cold day in July
某事几乎不可能发生或发生概率极低