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And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.
您现在收听的是VOA慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。
Many English expressions and idioms use parts of the body to describe things unrelated to the body.
许多英语短语和习语会用身体的某一部分来描述与身体无关的东西。
For example, a green thumb means to be good at growing vegetables, flowers and other plants.
例如，a green thumb是指擅长种植蔬菜、花卉和其他植物。
And if something costs an arm and a leg, it is very expensive.
如果一件东西costs an arm and a leg，说明它非常昂贵。
Well, today, we talk about your shoulder. This part connects your arm to your body.
今天，我们来谈谈肩膀。它连接的是手臂和身体。
And the shoulder finds its way into many expressions. For starters, let’s talk about “shoulder” as a verb.
肩膀出现在很多表达中。首先，我们来谈谈“shoulder”作动词的用法。
If you shoulder something, you accept it as your responsibility; you give support, or you take the blame.
如果你承担了某件事，说明你把它当作自己的责任；你要么给予支持，要么承担责任。
Here is an example: Since he was the leader of the project, he shouldered the blame for its failure.
举个例子：由于他是该项目的负责人，他承担了该项目失败的责任。
And this is a great place to start.
这是一个很好的开始。
This idea of taking responsibility and giving support leads us to some other “shoulder” expressions.
这种承担责任和给予支持的想法让我们想到了其他一些“shoulder”的表达。
For example, during difficult times in our lives, it is often necessary to have a shoulder to lean on or a shoulder to cry on.
例如，在我们生活中的困难时期，经常需要有一个可以依靠的肩膀或一个可以哭泣的肩膀。
When we lean on someone’s shoulder, we ask for their help.
当我们lean on someone’s shoulder，是指我们寻求他们的帮助。
When we cry on someone’s shoulder, they are there for support.
当我们cry on someone’s shoulder，是指他们会支持我们。
It is important to have at least one friend who has a good shoulder to cry on.
重要的是，至少要有一个朋友，可以让你靠在他的肩膀上哭泣。
These friends are great because they don't ask questions. They just listen and let us cry.
这些朋友很棒，因为他们不会问东问西。他们会倾听，并让我们哭泣。
You can also put your head on someone’s shoulder.
你也可以把头靠在别人的肩膀上。
This means you are getting comfort and support from that person.
这意味着你从那个人那里得到了安慰和支持。
We call people who give us a shoulder to lean on or cry on our “support system.”
我们把那些给我们肩膀去依靠或哭泣的人称为“支持系统”。
There is another way our shoulders give us support.
我们的肩膀还有另一种支持我们的方式。
If you are successful in your career but others have come before you, you can say you are standing on the shoulders of giants.
如果你在事业上取得了成功，但其他人在你之前，你可以说你站在巨人的肩膀上。
This means you have not succeeded on your own.
这意味着你不是只靠自己就能成功的。
You have learned from others in the same field who had earlier successes.
你已经从同领域的其他人那里学到了早期的成功经验。
This expression is often used in science.
这个表达经常用在科学领域。
This is an area where discoveries are often built upon the works of others.
这个领域的发现往往建立在他人成就的基础上。
Because this expression uses the word “giant,” we often use it when talking about very well-known people.
因为这个短语用的是““giant”这个词，所以我们在谈论非常有名的人时经常用这个词。
For example, in the world of science, the giants may include Isaac Newton or Albert Einstein.
例如，在科学界，巨人可能包括艾萨克·牛顿或阿尔伯特·爱因斯坦。
Now, from our shoulders, let’s move up to our heads. Our heads are centered between our shoulders.
现在，我们从肩膀往上，移动到我们的头部。我们的头在两肩之间。
So, it should not be surprising that we have a couple of expressions that use both.
所以，有些表达同时用到头和肩膀，就不足为奇了。
If you have a good head on your shoulders, you are thoughtful and smart.
如果你have a good head on your shoulders，说明你是有思想的、聪明的。
You do the right thing, and people can count on you.
你做了正确的事情，人们可以信赖你。
When you have a good head on your shoulders, you often achieve success in life.
如果你头脑清醒，就通常会在生活中取得成功。
This quality, people say, often puts you head and shoulders above the rest.
人们说，这种品质通常会让你比其他人更出色。
This means you are much better than those in a similar field or competition.
这意味着你比同类领域或竞争对手强得多。
Let's here it used in an example: You have applied for a job.
我们来听一个例子：你申请了一份工作。
You have more education and much more experience than the job requires.
你的教育和经验比这份工作要求的更多。
You also have special skills that make you even more desirable.
你也有特殊的技能，这让你备受青睐。
You feel these factors put you head and shoulders above the other candidates.
你会觉得这些因素让你远远超过了其他候选人。
Here’s another example: You are preparing to run in a race.
还有另一个例子：你正在准备参加一场比赛。
You have clocked the fastest time, and you have trained more than all the other runners.
你跑得最快，而且比其他所有的跑步者训练得都多。
That certainly makes you head and shoulders above the rest.
这肯定会让你远远高于其他人。
And that’s all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》的全部内容。
Until next time, I’m Anna Matteo.
下次见，我是安娜·马特奥。
