On Pins And Needles
Definition: to be very nervous about something happening
【世博精解】
在中文我们说很急切、很紧张地想知道某事进行的情况,会用“如坐针毡”,而英文则说“如坐针钉”:Be on pins and needles.当你很紧张地等待某件事情的结果时,你可能就会on pins and needles,如:We’re on pins and needles waiting to hear whether she got the job.或者,当你担心可能会有坏事发生时,你也可能很紧张,胆战心惊,不知如何是好,e.g. Dad lost his way today and it has him in such a bad mood that our whole family is on pins and needles.其实,还有一个惯用语叫做have pins and needles, (If someone has pins and needles in a part of their body they feel slight sharp pains in it, usually just after they have moved from being still in one position for a long time).它和紧张没什么关系,指的是因缺乏血循环,使身体某位部麻木而造成的不适感,也就是我们平常说的“发麻”,比如说I’ve been sitting on my leg for the last hour and now I’ve got pins and needles in my foot.
Example dialog :
A: Hi, how are you doing at work?
嗨,工作怎么样?
B. There had been a rumor that someone was going to get fired, but we didn't know whom it would be; so the whole office was on pins and needles all day.
据说公司有人要被开掉,可我们又不知道是谁,所以办公室的人成天都坐立不安的。
作者:Lisa |