美国习惯用语 | not know beans about

大家肯定都听过鸟叫,英语里形容鸟叫的相声词是tweet。你知道吗,现在有个网站叫twitter,可以用电脑或是手机在上面发送字数不超过140个字的短信。我也是最近才从年轻同事那里知道这个网站的,但还是不知道具体怎么操作。今天我们要学的习惯用语恰恰可以用来形容这种情况。那就是:not know beans about。

说一个not know beans about的一件事情,意思就是“对一件事情一无所知,毫无概念”。就拿我来说吧,如果你让我上网tweet你,那我简直就是丈二和尚摸不着头脑,因为:

  • I do not know beans about it.

奥巴马夫妇入主白宫后,第一夫人米歇尔多次成为头版新闻。就在前不久,她在白宫开垦了一个菜园子。让我们看看下面这篇报道是怎么说的。

  • First Lady Michelle Obama recently started a vegetable garden at the White House. It's a reflection of the many gardens that are sprouting up in backyards across the county. Even Americans who don't know beans about farming are trying it. Soon enough these absolute beginners are enjoying their own delicious and healthy produce.
    第一夫人米歇尔•奥巴马最近在白宫开了个菜园。眼下,这样的菜园子在全美各地象雨后春笋一样纷纷出现。就连对种植一窍不通的美国人也跃跃欲试。没过多久,这些初次“务农”的人就能尝到自己种出来的可口健康的水果和蔬菜了。

我和老公就是从去年开始种菜的。去年第一次尝试,we did not know beans about it,所以只种了西红柿、黄瓜和韭菜,结果大丰收。你别说,自己种的菜味道就是不一样,又有利环保,绝对是一举两得。

常听人说,爱情可以战胜一切。真是这样吗?看看下面这个例子,你就会得出答案。

  • When Brenda was first introduced to Jack, she was intimidated by his knowledge. When it came to his field, astrophysics, she frankly did not know beans. But over several dates, she fell in love with his enthusiasm for galaxies and electromagnetism. It's amazing how much she understands now.
    布兰达第一次经人介绍跟杰克认识的时候,杰克的博学多才让她有些无地自容。对于杰克研究的天文物理学,布兰达可以说是一无所知。但是几次约会下来,她就被杰克对宇宙和电磁的热情折服了。现在她懂得越来越多,简直不可思议。

有趣的是,not know beans的另外一种说法是not know Jack.,因此,在上面这个例子里,我们可以说,对于天文物理学,Branda doesn't know Jack,这里的Jack指的就不Jack这个人了。

大家也许会问,为什么要说beans,豆子呢?或许恰恰是因为豆子小,微不足道吧。这个习惯用语早在十九世纪早期就已经出现了,一直沿用到今天。