形容一件事情遙遙無期，我們總是會(huì)說“要等到猴年馬月啊？”，可是大家知道嗎？猴年馬月真的來了！有網(wǎng)友表示：終于等到你！還好沒放棄！

實(shí)際上，猴年馬月并不是真的遙遙無期，而是每逢12年就有一次，今年的猴年馬月開始于2016年6月5日，結(jié)束于2016年7月3日。

我們都知道老祖宗的12生肖紀(jì)年法，而12生肖不光能紀(jì)年，還可以紀(jì)月。每年農(nóng)歷正月到臘月對(duì)應(yīng)的屬相依次是：虎、兔、龍、蛇、馬、羊、猴、雞、狗、豬、鼠、牛。

因此，每年都會(huì)有一個(gè)馬月，而正巧遇到了猴年，就有了猴年馬月。

雖然我們中國人說猴年馬月，而在英語中，卻是“驢年”：donkey's years。“驢年”是個(gè)啥？讓老外給你們解釋一下吧！

A query asked if the British slang term for 'a very long time' was donkey's years or donkey's ears. My first thoughts were, "donkey's years of course - what would ears have to do with it?". It turns out that I was being rather hasty. Donkey's years is now the more commonly used slang term when meaning 'a long time', but donkey's ears, although used little in recent years, has been a jokey alternative for some time - from the early 20th century.
一份問卷調(diào)查了英國描述“很長時(shí)間”的俚語俚語是donkey's years還是donkey's ears。我的第一反應(yīng)就是：“當(dāng)然是donkey's years”，這和耳朵有什么關(guān)系？但事實(shí)證明我還是太草率了。donkey's years在現(xiàn)在，普遍被用作表示“很長時(shí)間”，donkey's ears雖然如今用的很少，但從20世紀(jì)初期開始，被用作一種滑稽的替代。

Donkey's ears works as rhyming slang whereas donkey's years doesn't. In rhyming slang the last word of a short phrase is rhymed with the word that gives the slang meaning.
donkey's ears作為一種同韻俚語，然而donkey's years卻不是。在同韻俚語中，短語中的最后一個(gè)詞和俚語意思的詞押韻。

注：為什么老外形容時(shí)間長用的是驢子呢？因?yàn)轶H走路總是緩慢拖著步子，要完成一段旅程實(shí)在要花上太長的時(shí)間了！于是這個(gè)詞就應(yīng)運(yùn)而生了！

例句：I haven't heard that one for donkey's ears.（我已經(jīng)很久沒聽說過這事兒了）

猴和馬作為十二生肖中的成員，總會(huì)被用到表示時(shí)間的短語中，下面讓我們來看一下十二生肖的英文翻譯吧！

鼠（rat）

Chinese see rats as dirty, but they also think laoshu are smart and agile. Most people in the West, however, see little good in the creatures. Mice, on the other hand, are more likeable.
中國人認(rèn)為rats的形象很臟，但也認(rèn)為他聰明敏捷。但大多數(shù)西方人認(rèn)為這種生物也有好的一面。而另一方面，mice更可愛一些。

牛（ox）

Westerners respect the ox for its strength and hardworking spirit. However, bulls are generally viewed negatively, thanks to their aggressivenature. Cows are considered the "cutest" of the three.
西方人因?yàn)榕５牧α亢筒晦o辛勞的精神而尊重它。但是，bulls常常因?yàn)槠渚哂星致孕裕豢醋鰩в胸?fù)面意義的。Cows在這三個(gè)詞中意思最可愛。

虎（tiger）

Simply put, if you see a tiger, you'd better run. In the West, a tiger may be a beautiful woman, or it may be handsome man. Calling someone a tiger means you understand that they can be dangerous.
簡單說來，如果你看到老虎，最好快跑。在西方，老虎可以是漂亮的女人，或者帥氣的男士。把某人稱作老虎，意味著你知道他們可能很危險(xiǎn)。

兔（rabbit）

Many Chinese think the rabbit is cute and docile. However, few Americans can say the word rabbit without thinking of the clever cartoon character Bugs Bunny.
許多中國人認(rèn)為兔子可愛溫順。但是，幾乎所有美國人一說到兔子這個(gè)詞，就能夠想到那個(gè)聰明的卡通角色兔八哥。

龍（dragon）

The dragon has come to be a political symbol associated with China. Many people see China as a great dragon: ancient and beautiful, but also mysterious.
龍已經(jīng)成為了一個(gè)與中國相關(guān)的政治象征。許多人認(rèn)為中國是一條巨龍：古老，美麗，但也很神秘。

蛇（snake）

The snake is often seen as a dangerous or wicked creature, though serpent is more often used in contexts discussing evil. The Western image of an evil serpent calls up the Bible's depiction of Satan as a serpent.
蛇經(jīng)常被看做是危險(xiǎn)邪惡的生物，雖然serpent更多用于在談?wù)撔皭旱那闆r下。西方邪惡蛇的形象讓人想起圣經(jīng)中對(duì)于撒旦——邪惡之蛇的描述。

馬（horse）

They are known for their beauty and strength. In the US, they may be kept as pets by people who can afford their upkeep and have enough land for them to graze.
馬因美麗和富有力量而名。在美國，能夠養(yǎng)得起馬，并有足夠的草場(chǎng)讓馬馳騁的人會(huì)把馬當(dāng)做寵物來養(yǎng)（愛上一匹野馬~而我心中沒有草原……）。

羊（sheep/goat）

The word "sheep" has also been used to describe people who buy into the latest commercial fads. The words "goat" has no special meaning.
Sheep這個(gè)詞經(jīng)常用來指趕商業(yè)潮流的人，而goat卻沒有特殊含義。

山羊年or綿羊年？老外都被繞暈了>>>

奧巴馬幽默拜年：山羊綿羊都要快樂>>>

猴（monkey）

Throughout the world, monkeys are known to be clever, agile and more than a little impatient.
世界各地，人們都認(rèn)為猴子聰明敏捷，還有點(diǎn)急躁。

雞（rooster）

To Chinese, a rooster is strong and proud. The chicken, on the other hand, is viewed as weak, or even stupid. These definitions also apply in the West.
對(duì)于中國人來說，rooster這個(gè)詞雄壯而驕傲。而另一方面，chicken被看做虛弱或者愚笨的。對(duì)于西方人來說，這種定義也同樣適用。

狗（dog）

Dogs are called "man's best friend" in the West.
在西方人眼中，狗是人類的朋友。

豬（pig）

The word "boar" usually refers to a wild pig. These animals are often difficult to capture and extremely ugly. The word "pig" most often refers to the farm-raised animal.
Boar這個(gè)詞常常指野豬。這種動(dòng)物又難馴服，又丑。而pig這個(gè)詞常指家養(yǎng)的動(dòng)物。

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