The english we speak(BBC教學)第175期:Take it with a pinch of salt 半信半疑

Neil: Hello Helen. Thanks for inviting me here. It's a lovely cafe, isn't it?

尼爾：你好，海倫。謝謝你邀請我來這裏。這家咖啡店真不錯，對吧？

Helen: Yes, it is, Neil. Actually, I wanted to ask you a favour. I know you play the piano and I'd like you to teach me.

海倫：是啊，尼爾。實際上，我想請你幫個忙。我知道你會彈鋼琴，我想讓你教我彈鋼琴。

Waitress: Here is your tea. Madam, sir...

服務員：這是你們點的茶。女士，先生……

Helen: Thank you. I'll pour it.

海倫：謝謝你。我來倒吧。

Neil: I'd be happy to teach you the piano. Are you buying one?

尼爾：我很樂意教你彈鋼琴。你打算買鋼琴嗎？

Helen: No. Our colleague John is giving me one.

海倫：不。咱們的同事約翰會給我一架鋼琴。

Neil: Giving you a piano?

尼爾：給你一架鋼琴？

Helen: Yes. He said he's moving to Australia and will give me his piano. Sugar in your tea?

海倫：對。他說他要移民去澳大利亞，所以他會把他的鋼琴給我。茶裏要加糖嗎？

Neil: I'd take that with a pinch of salt!

尼爾：我可不太相信。

Helen: Oh... OK.

海倫：哦……好吧。

Neil: What are you doing?!

尼爾：你在做什麼？！

Helen: You said you would take that with a pinch of salt, so I am putting some in your tea.

海倫：你說你要加一點鹽，所以我在爲你的茶加鹽啊。

Neil: No, I didn't mean put salt in my tea! I was talking about our colleague John. You need to take what John says with a pinch of salt.

尼爾：不， 我的意思並不是說在茶里加鹽！我是在說我們的同事約翰。你不能完全相信約翰說的話。

Helen: I'm confused.

海倫：我很困惑。

Neil: In English, when we say 'take it with a pinch of salt', we mean don't believe in it completely because it might not be true.

尼爾：在英語中，我們用take it with a pinch of salt這個短語表示不完全相信某件事，因爲那件事可能不是真的。

Helen: Oh. So, John's not going to give me his piano?

海倫：哦。所以，約翰不會給我他的鋼琴了？

Neil: John's always planning to move abroad and promising things. I'm still waiting for a sofa he promised me last year. He said he was going to Peru!

尼爾：約翰一直在計劃移民去外國，而且總是承諾很多事情。他去年就說要把沙發給我，我到現在還在等呢。當時他說他要去祕魯！

Helen: Oh, I see.

海倫：哦，我明白了。

Neil: 'With a pinch of salt' is today's expression in The English We Speak. Here are some examples of how it's used.

尼爾：With a pinch of salt就是今天地道英語節目要講的表達。下面是有關這個短語的例句。

When my cousin says he has absolutely no money, you have to take that with a pinch of salt. He's just mean.

我表哥說他一點錢都沒有，你不能完全相信那句話。他非常吝嗇。

I take everything Mary says with a pinch of salt. She tends to exaggerate things.

我對瑪麗說的所有事情都半信半疑。她往往會把事情誇大。

Helen: Thank you for warning me, Neil. John is a good person but he can't make up his mind.

海倫：尼爾，謝謝你提醒我。約翰是個好人，可是他就是拿不定主意。

Neil: That's right. But if you ever want to learn to play the piano, I can teach you. I'm not very good at it but I can teach you what I know. And you don't need to take that with a pinch of salt.

尼爾：沒錯。不過如果你想學鋼琴，我可以教你。雖然我彈得也不是很好，不過我可以把我知道的都教給你。你完全可以相信我的話。

Helen: Oh, you're such a sweetie!

海倫：哦，你真是太體貼了！

Neil: A sweetie who likes his tea with sugar rather than salt.

尼爾：一個喜歡在茶裏放糖而不是鹽的甜心。

Helen: I'm sorry about that!

海倫：我很抱歉！

Neil: Bye.

尼爾：再見。

Helen: Bye.

海倫：再見。

重點講解：
1. be happy to do sth.
樂意的；情願的；
eg. That's a risk I'm happy to take.
我願意冒這個險。
eg. Our assistants will be happy to answer your queries.
我們的助理很樂意回答諸位的問題。
2. take sth. with a pinch of salt
對…半信半疑；不完全相信；
eg. The more miraculous parts of this account should be taken with a pinch of salt.
對這篇記述中那些頗具神奇色彩的部分也不應全信。
eg. The more miraculous parts of this account should be taken with a pinch of salt.
對這篇記述中那些頗具神奇色彩的部分也不應全信。
3. tend to do sth.
往往會；經常就；
eg. I tend to prefer light colors.
我往往更喜歡淡顏色。
eg. I tend to get very uptight during a match.
比賽時我總會緊張得不行。
4. make up one's mind
拿定主意；下定決心；
eg. Make up your mind, you can't have it both ways.
你決定吧，反正魚與熊掌不可兼得。
eg. It took him a long time to make up his mind.
他用了很久才下定決心。
5. rather than
而非；勝於；而不是；
eg. It was an embryo idea rather than a fully worked proposal.
這只是初步的想法，並非成形的提議。
eg. Its atmosphere is one of repose rather than excitement.
那裏氣氛安寧而不熱鬧。