1、英文中mouse与rat都翻译为汉语老鼠,通常以大小来区分二者,mouse是指小鼠,rat指大鼠。
2、Mouse经常成为宠物(pet),被看做好玩(playful)、可爱(loving),而Rat被看做是邪恶的(vicious)、不洁的(unclean)。
3、mouse不含褒贬之意,rat含贬义,就像过街老鼠,肮脏,是害虫。
rat race 激烈的竞争;残酷、高压的生存环境
He decided to get out of the rat race, and went to work on a farm.他决定摆脱这种高压的工作状态,去一个农场工作。
smell a rat 觉得哪里不对,起疑心
He's been working late with her every night this week - I smell a rat!他这周每天晚上都跟她工作到很晚,我觉得不对劲!
lab rat (实验室里的)小白鼠;长期泡在实验室的研究生;实验对象
He is in love with a lab rat and they haven't seen each other for three months.他爱上了一个实验室狂魔,他们已经3个月没见面了。
mouse potato 电脑狂人(长时间使用电脑的人)
I can't believe I spend 10 hours a day on the internet. I'm such a mouse potato!真不敢相信我一天在网上的时间有10个小时,我真是个电脑狂人!
poor as a church mouse 穷得叮当响;一贫如洗
You want to borrow money from him? He is as poor as a church mouse.你想从他那里借钱?他可是一贫如洗。
quiet as a mouse 悄无声息;沉默寡言
She was as quiet as a mouse that nobody noticed her presence.她不声不响,以至于没人意识到她也在场。