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And now Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English.
欢迎收听VOA慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。
In life, things can get tough.
在生活中，事情可能会变得艰难。
Sometimes, it is good not to let things bother us.
有时候，不让事情困扰我们是件好事。
Letting things roll off our backs is a good life skill.
不让事情烦我们是一种很好的生活技能。
When things roll off our backs, they are out of our minds.
roll off our backs的意思是事情从我们的头脑中消失。
They no longer bother us.
它们不再打扰我们。
But, let’s face it … sometimes, things do bother us.
但是，我们面对现实吧……有时候，事情确实会困扰我们。
Sometimes in life, we are pushed to our limit.
有时候，在生活中，我们会被逼到极限。
So, on today’s program, we talk about those times when we have had enough!
所以，在今天的节目中，我们来谈谈那些我们已经受够了的时刻！
We have a couple of expressions that help us describe that state of mind.
我们有几个短语可以帮助我们描述这种心态。
They involve the word straw.
它们涉及straw（稻草）这个词。
First, let’s define straw. Straw is the dry stem of plants like wheat or other grains.
首先，让我们给straw下定义。稻草是小麦等谷物植株的干茎。
TheHayManager.com says, “Straw is yellow or golden colored and is a byproduct of the grain harvest.”
TheHayManager.com上给出的定义是：“稻草是黄色或金色的，是谷物收获的副产品。”
In other words, it is a waste product of wheat. But it has many uses.
换句话说，它是小麦的废料。但它有很多用途。
In a garden, you can use straw on top of soil to keep it from drying out.
在花园里，你可以用稻草覆盖在土壤上，以防止土壤变干。
Straw can also keep weeds from growing.
稻草还可以防止杂草生长。
Straw, especially dry straw, is not very nutritious.
稻草，尤其是干稻草，没有什么营养。
But because it is hollow, straw makes excellent bedding for animals.
但因为稻草是中空的，所以它是动物的绝佳垫草。
Horses, cows, goats, and camels may enjoy a good night’s sleep on a straw bed.
马、牛、山羊和骆驼可以在稻草床上睡个好觉。
Animals not only sleep on straw.
动物不仅睡在稻草上。
Some may also have to carry bales of straw on their backs.
有些动物可能还得背上成捆的稻草。
And that brings us to this expression: the straw that broke the camel’s back.
这就引出了这个短语：the straw that broke the camel’s back（压垮骆驼的最后一根稻草）。
Merriam-Webster dictionary says the expression means “the last in a series of bad things that happen to make someone very upset, angry, …” or some other bad feeling.
韦氏词典解释说，这个短语的意思是“一系列让人感到非常不安、生气（或者其他一些不好的感觉）……的坏事中的最后一件”。
The straw that broke the camel’s back was one straw too many.
the straw that broke the camel’s back就是（骆驼背了）太多稻草。
With that piece added to the camel’s back, the load became too heavy to bear.
把那根稻草放在骆驼背上后，担子变得太重了。
In other words, it is the last thing to happen that makes you give up on something.
换句话说，这是最后一件会让你放弃某事的事情。
Here is an example: Let’s say I have a friend who constantly lets me down.
下面有一个例子：假设我有一个经常让我失望的朋友。
When he says he is going to do something, he never does it.
当他说他要做某事时，他从来没有做过。
And he always promises next time will be different.
他总是承诺下一次会有所不同。
Well, one day I told him I was going out of town for two days and needed someone to feed my cat.
有一天我告诉他我要出城两天，需要有人帮我喂猫。
He offered to help. I was not so sure.
他主动提出要帮忙。我不是很确定。
But he promised that he would take care of my cat Meepers.
但他承诺他会照顾我的猫咪米珀斯。
I believed him and left my cat in his care.
我相信了他的话，把我的猫交给他照顾。
Well, guess what? He forgot to feed her!
你猜怎么着？他忘了喂她！
She went two whole days without food!
她整整两天没吃东西！
Luckily, Meepers is a very fat cat.
幸运的是，米珀斯是一只非常胖的猫。
But still, that was unforgivable.
但尽管如此，这仍然是不可原谅的。
It was the straw that broke the camel’s back.
这是压垮骆驼的最后一根稻草。
I am never trusting him again.
我再也不会相信他了。
We have a similar straw expression but without the camel.
我们有一个类似的有关“straw”的表达，但没有“camel”。
The last straw is the last thing that pushes you to some sort of limit.
The last straw指的是把你推到某种极限的最后一件事情。
You cannot take a situation anymore because of that last straw.
你不能再因为最后一根稻草而忍受这种情况了。
Here’s another example: Earlier this year, I joined a local yoga studio.
下面还有一个例子：今年早些时候，我加入了当地的一家瑜伽馆。
It was very close to my home.
它离我家很近。
So, that was good. But other things about the studio were not.
这很好。但瑜伽馆的其他方面却并非如此。
It was very small. So, when I did yoga positions, I would often get hit by other people.
它非常小。所以，当我做瑜伽姿势的时候，我经常会被其他人打。
That bothered me. Also, the teacher talked too much about modern philosophy during the class.
这让我觉得很烦。此外，老师在课堂上讲了太多关于现代哲学的话题。
That got on my nerves. But then she raised the cost of her classes. The price almost doubled!
这让我心烦。但后来她提高了课程费用。价格几乎翻了一番！
That was the last straw.
那是最后一根稻草（真是忍无可忍了）。
I decided just to do yoga at home with a YouTube instructor.
我决定在家跟随YouTube上的一个教练做瑜伽。
I save money. And if the instructor talks too much, I can just turn down the sound.
我省钱。如果教练说得太多，我可以把音量关小一点。
And that’s all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories.
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。
Don't forget to practice using last straw or the straw that broke the camel's back.
别忘了练习使用last straw（最后一根稻草）或the straw that broke the camel's back（压垮骆驼的最后一根稻草）。
Until next time … I’m Anna Matteo.
下次见……我是安娜·马特奥！
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
