Unit 3: Diction

1. Unit 3: Diction • Diction means the proper choice of words and phrases in translation on the basis of accurate comprehension of the original. • A noted linguist said, “the meaning of a word is its use in the language and each word, when used in a new context, is a new word. ”

2. Story • 1) The play is really a love story. • 2) This war is becoming the most important story of this generation. • 3) Some reporters who were not included in the meeting broke the story. • 4) The story about him became smaller and by and by faded out from the American TV.

3. 5) Don’t tell stories again, Tom. I don’t believe your stories. • 6) It is quite another story now. • 7) He storied about his age.

4. A word in different collocations or context. • Example: • Like charges repel; unlike charges attract. • 相同的电荷相斥，不同的电荷相吸。 • He likes mathematics more than English. • 他喜欢数学胜于喜欢英语。 • Like knows like. • 英雄识英雄。 • The two pictures are very like. • Like attracts like. • 物以类聚。 • Like cures like. • 以毒攻毒。 • Like for like. • 以牙还牙。

5. 1. Correspondence at word level (1)   word-for-word correspondence • Marxism 马克思主义 • 激光 laser • aspirin 阿斯匹林 • 打白条 to pay sb. IOUs 回扣 commission • 强硬政策tough policies 好票 good seats (2) one word---multiple equivalents of the same meaning • wife: 妻子，爱人，夫人，老婆，老伴，媳妇，堂客，内人，贱内 • potato: • 马铃薯，洋芋，土豆、山药蛋

6. 人： • human being, man, people, person,--- • 犬： • dog, hound, pointer (猎犬) , puppy • 3） one word----several equivalents of different meanings • cousin: • 堂兄，堂弟，表姐，表妹，堂姐，堂妹--- • president： • 总统，总裁，主席，董事长，会长，校长，院长，--- • carry: • 拿, 搬, 扛, 运，提, 背, 拎，挑，抬, 担，搂，抱，握,举，端，托, 夹, 执, 携, 挟, 抓, 持, 挎, 挽，---

7. cut: • 切、割、截、剁、斩、砍、劈、剖、剪、裁、刻” • 笑： • smile, giggle(傻笑), laugh, ridicule, deride（嘲笑）, guffaw (laugh very loudly) • 走： • walk, saunter/stroll(漫步，闲逛）, amble（漫步）, stride（大步走）, trudge（跋涉） （4）words without equivalents • 阴: the soft inactive female principle or force in the world

8. 2. Choice of the meanings • 1) Judging from the part of speech: • round • There are several round tables in the dinning-room. • (adj. 圆的) • Come round and see me tomorrow. • (adv. 到某处) • He had a tour round the world. • (prep.在---周围) • She rounded up the boys. • (v. 集合)

9. but • He knows some methods but he doesn’t know how • to apply them. • （连词，但是） • There are no buts about it. • （名词, excuses） • The word occurs in the last line but one. • （介词，除去） • There was not a single person there but was moved • to tears. • （关系代词，who not）

10. 2）judging from the context • We hope Mr. White will not forget himself, gone are the days when a representative of a large country in UN may do whatever he likes. • (behave without proper dignity 忘乎所以） • We hope that our most respected Secretary General will not forget himself, his poor health is known to everybody. • (act unselfishly 忘我，无私）

11. 3) Judging from collocation • delicate skin • delicate child • delicate vase • delicate difference • delicate sense of smell • delicate food 娇嫩的皮肤 娇弱的小孩 容易碰碎的花瓶 微妙的差别 灵敏的嗅觉 美味的食物

12. 接风 接骨 接球 接电话 接电线 接任 接生 接新生 接风 接骨 接球 接电话 接电线 接任 接生 接新生 give a dinner for sb. from afar set a broken bone catch a ball answer the phone connect wires take over a job deliver a child meet the freshmen play tennis/ play chess/play football/ play tricks/ play cards/ play the violin/play the flute

13. a heavy rain/ a heavy sea/ a heavy load/ a heavy buyer/ a heavy crop/ a heavy demand/ heavy news/ heavy sorrow/ a heavy vote/ a heavy thinker a heavy schedule/ a heavy politician/ heavy advertising/ a heavy play/heavy casualties He can appreciate modern music. （欣赏） I do not appreciate fully what he means. （理解） I appreciate the regard you have for me. （感谢）

14. Ambivalent words 词义对立词 消防员；司炉工 • fireman • cleave • overhear • overlook • ambition 劈开；粘住 偷听；无意中听到 忽视；细看 抱负；野心

15. 褒贬译法： • 1. John was an aggressive salesman who did his job quite well. • 2. Hitler pursued an aggressive policy after he seized power. • 3.Hans was too obviously flattering the gentleman by saying he was the most courageous man he had ever seen. • 4. Mr. Brown felt greatly flattered when he received the invitation to deliver a lecture.

16. 5.He had lied to me and made me the tool of his wicked deeds. • 6.The enemy’s scheme went bankrupt. • 7.The stubborn boy refused to listen to his parents’ advice. • 8.The invaders met a stubborn resistance from the local people. • 9. As luck would have it, no one was in the building when the explosion occurred. • 10.As luck would have it, there was rain on the day of the picnic.

17. 3. 引申 • 3.1．词义的引申 • It is regrettable that our appeal remains a dead letter. • 遗憾的是，我们的呼吁没有得到响应。 • (1)具体含义的引申 • They have their smiles and tears. • Every life has its roses and thorns. • During the war, he was an embryo surgeon, and joined the mobile medical team. • I was not one to let my heart rule my head. • There is a mixture of the tiger and the ape in the character of the imperialists. 欢乐与悲哀 有苦又有甜 胚胎---初出茅庐的 情感—理智 残暴—狡猾

18. 动物的隐喻性意义： • 由于人们对日常生活中常见的动物比较熟悉和了解，语言中用动物来作隐喻的例子很多。 • 猴子： • 猪： • 猫： • 狗： • 狐狸： • 虎： • 母老虎： • 孔雀： 精明；灵活；瘦小 笨；懒惰；贪吃；脏； 轻手轻脚；嘴馋 奴性；凶恶；走狗，狗头军师；狼心狗肺；狗东西 狡猾 凶狠；有生气；虎视眈眈；龙腾虎跃； 霸道；凶；无理 美丽、骄傲

19. (2)抽象概念的引申 • A nice enough young fellow, you understand, nothing upstairs. • （脑子里是一张白纸） • The Iraqi War makes all the international morality or international laws become impossible. • （失去作用） • There are three steps which must be taken before we graduate from the integrated circuit technology. • （完全掌握） • The Great Wall is a must for most foreign visitors to Beijing. • 必不可少的参观游览项目

20. 3.2 比喻的引申: • 如果英语的比喻在内容、形式、形象上与汉语相近似，可以相互借用，不用引申。如： • The man is as stubborn as a mule. • 犟得像头牛。 • I am only a small potato in this office. • 小人物 • Don’t put your finger into another’s pie. • 别管他人闲事。 • 汉语中没有相似的比喻，需要引申： • Last night, I heard him driving his pigs to market. （鼾声如雷） • She is as busy as a bee recently. • （特别忙） • Old Mr. Jones kicked the bucket last week. • （呜呼哀哉） • Don’t cross the bridge before you get to it.（不必担心太早）

21. 词义选择应注意的几个问题： 1.词义选择，避免望文生义 受原文表层语法结构的影响和字面意思的束缚，对约定俗成、固定搭配、成语等易产生望文生义的错误。

22. 例1： “I will teach him to deceive others,” he said. 【误】他说，“我要教他去欺骗别人。” 【正】他说，“我要告诫他不要骗人。”

23. 例2： My dogs are killing me. 【误】我的狗要咬死我了。 【正】我的双脚疼死我了。

24. 例3：He didn’t speak (for) long. 【误】他长时间没有说话了。 【正】他说话时间不长。

25. 例4： I bought a tape-recorder for a song. 【误】我买一台录音机来听唱歌。 【正】我廉价买了一台录音机。 小节结束

26. 2. 词义选择，立足三 “意” • 每一个词汇都有： • 基本意义（basic meaning） • 衍生意义（derivative meaning） • 搭配意义（collocative meaning）

27. 例1：kill 1）They killed a bottle of whisky between them. 【译文】他们两人喝完了一瓶威士忌酒。 2）He killed ten good years on that job. 【译文】他在那件工作上浪费了整整10年。 3）Her bright red hat killed the quiet colour of her dress. 【译文】她戴着一顶红色的帽子，这和她一身的素装很不相称。 4）These flowers kill easily. 【译文】这些花很容易枯死。 5）The funny play nearly killed me. 【译文】这出有趣的戏几乎把我笑死。

28. 6）That bus ride every day kills off all of my energy. 【译文】每天坐那趟公共汽车使我筋疲力尽。 7）This carpet kills the sound of footsteps. 【译文】这条地毯使脚步声消失。 8）The bill was killed in the House. 【译文】议案在议会被否决了。 9）That has killed her affection. 【译文】那件事使她炽热的感情冷淡了。 10）Care killed a cat. 【译文】忧虑伤身〔谚语〕

29. 例2：sight 1) It cost him a sightof trouble. 【译文】那给他招来一大堆麻烦。 2) I know him only by sight. 【译文】我跟他只是面熟。 3) He fell in love with her at first sight. 【译文】他对她一见钟情。 4) The next election was already in sight. 【译文】下届选举已经临近。 5) Take a careful sight before firing. 【译文】瞄准之后再射击。

30. 6) I have lost sight of my old friend for many years. 【译文】我已多年未得到老友的音讯。 7) The Great Wall in China is one of the sights of the world. 【译文】中国长城是世界名胜之一。 8) The Statue of Liberty is a noble sight. 【译文】自由神像是一个宏伟的景物。 9) It is worth a longsight more than that. 【译文】这个比那个价值高的多。 10) Do what is right in your own sight. 【译文】做你认为对的事。

31. 3. 词义选择，瞻前顾后 “瞻前”指看词的前缀，“顾后”指看词的后缀，即观察派生词的词义。派生词由词根、前缀、后缀组成，这是 “扩大词汇的三把钥匙” 。

32. 例1：pure 1) Pure water is useful. 【译文】净水有用。 2) This is purely water. 【译文】这不过是水。 3) Purify the water before drinking it. 【译文】请将水净化后饮用。 4) Purified water is useful. 【译文】净化了的水有用。 5) Purifying water is useful. 【译文】净化用水有用。

33. 例2 : like 1）All music is alike to Tom. 【译文】啥音乐在汤姆听来全都一样。 2）That, I think, is hardly likely. 【译文】我想，那不大可能。 3）Man’s life is often likened to sea voyage. 【译文】人生常被比作海上航行。 4）His likeness to his brother was remarkable. 【译文】他长像酷似他兄弟。 5）Things cannot be always to one’s liking. 【译文】事情不会总是称心如意的。 6）Like likes like. 【译文】物以类聚。

34. 4. 词义选择, 看词在句中的位置 词义选择要看词在句子中的位置，前后的“邻居”等，位置改变，意思随之而改变，邻居不同，词义不同。

35. 例1：only 1) The French only love arts. 【译文】法国人只爱文艺而已。 2）The French love arts only. 【译文】法国人爱的只是文艺。 3）Only the French love arts. 【译文】只有法国人爱好文艺。 4）The French love their only arts. 【译文】法国人爱好他们惟一的文艺。

36. 例2：naturally 1) They are behaving naturally. 【译文】他们举止自然。 2) Naturally, they are behaving well. 【译文】当然，他们表现很好。 3) She is naturally gentle. 【译文】她天生就温柔。

37. Thank You!