Expressions about Dogs
Americans use many expressions with the word dog.
美国人使用很多和狗相关的词汇。
People in the United States love their dogs and treat them well.
在美国，人们喜欢狗，也善待它们。
They take their dogs for walks, let them play outside and give them good food and medical care.
他们带狗散步，让它们到户外活动，并给它们提供优质食物与医疗。
However, dogs without owners to care for them lead a different kind of life.
然而，无人照顾的流浪狗生活就大不一样了。
The expression, to lead a dog's life, describes a person who has an unhappy existence.
过狗一样的生活（to lead a dog's life）这个表达就描述了生活不尽如意的一类人。
Some people say we live in a dog-eat-dog world. That means many people are competing for the same things, like good jobs.
有人说，我们生活在一个竞争激烈的世界（dog-eat-dog world）。很多人竞争同一样东西，例如好工作。
They say that to be successful, a person has to work like a dog. This means they have to work very, very hard.
他们称，一个人想要成功得像狗一样工作（work like a dog）。意思是他们得非常努力地工作。
Such hard work can make people dog-tired. And, the situation would be even worse if they became sick as a dog.
如此努力的工作使人疲惫不堪（dog-tired）。同时 ，如果他们病得厉害（sick as a dog），情况会更糟。
Still, people say every dog has its day. This means that every person enjoys a successful period during his or her life.
尽管如此，人们常说every dog has its day，意思是说人一生中总有他或她的出头之日。
To be successful, people often have to learn new skills.
想要成功，人们往往需要学习新的技能。
Yet, some people say that you can never teach an old dog new tricks. They believe that older people do not like to learn new things and will not change the way they do things.
然而，有人说，你不能教会老狗新把戏（you can never teach an old dog new tricks）。他们认为年长的人不喜欢学习新事物，不会改变他们做事的方式。
Some people are compared to dogs in bad ways.
有些人被以一些不好的方式来比作狗。
People who are unkind oruncaring（冷漠的）can be described as meaner than a junkyard（垃圾场） dog.
不友好或冷漠的人们可以用比垃圾场的狗还刻薄（meaner than a junkyard dog）来形容。
Junkyard dogs live in places where people throw away things they do not want.
Junkyard dogs（垃圾场的狗）生活在人们把不要的东西扔进去的地方（垃圾场）。
Mean dogs are often used to guard this property. They bark or attack people who try to enter the property.
凶狠的狗通常用来看护这类场所。有人试图进入这类场所时，它们便吠叫或攻击。
However, sometimes a person who appears to be mean and threatening is really not so bad. We say his bark is worse than his bite.
然而，有些人看上去凶狠极具威胁，实际没那么严重。我们就说他吠叫的程度比咬的程度更厉害（his bark is worse than his bite言语比行动吓人）。
A junkyard is not a fun place for a dog. Many dogs in the United States sleep in safe little houses near their owners' home.
垃圾场对狗来说可不是个好玩的地方。美国的很多狗都睡在主人家附近安全的小狗屋里。
These doghouses provide shelter. Yet they can be cold and lonely in the winter.
这些狗屋（doghouse）提供庇护。然而冬天它们在狗屋里就又冷又孤单。
Husbands and wives use this doghouse term when they are angry at each other.
夫妻之间彼此生气时就会用到狗屋（doghouse）这个字眼。
For example, a woman might get angry at her husband for coming home late or forgetting their wedding anniversary.
例如，妻子可能因为丈夫回家太晚或忘记他们的结婚纪念日而生气。
She might tell him that he is in the doghouse. She may not treat him nicely until he apologizes.
她可能会告诉丈夫，他被打入冷宫了（in the doghouse）。在丈夫道歉前她都不会好好对他。
However, the husband may decide that it is best to leave things alone and not create more problems. He might decide to let sleeping dogs lie.
然而，丈夫可能会决定最好还是顺其自然，不要再制造更多矛盾。他可能决定不要多事（let sleeping dogs lie）。
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