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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。
On today's show, we talk about colors.
在今天的节目中，我们将讨论颜色。
Sometimes we talk about our feelings with words describing colors.
有时，我们会用描述颜色的词语来表达自己的感受。
For example, if I am feeling down or a bit sad, I can say I am "blue."
例如，如果我情绪低落或有点悲伤，我可以说我是“蓝色的”。
If I'm angry, I might say that I see "red."
如果我很生气，我可以说我看到了“红色”。
If I'm out of sorts or really unhappy, I can say I'm in a "black" mood.
如果我状态不佳或非常不开心，我可以说我的心情是“黑色的”。
If I want something that someone else has, I can say I'm "green" with envy.
如果我想要别人拥有的东西，我可以说我嫉妒得脸都“绿了”。
All these different feelings can be represented with colors.
所有这些不同的感受都可以用颜色来表示。
But what about your "true colors?"
但你“真正的颜色”呢？
What does it mean to show your true colors?
“show your true colors”意味着什么？
If we show our "true colors," we are true to ourselves.
如果我们展现自己的“true colors”，就是我们忠于自己。
We show what we are really like.
我们展现出自己真实的面貌。
We reveal our true nature, character, or personality.
我们展示自己真实的本性、品格或个性。
For example, I have a friend who loves the sun and sea.
例如，我有一个朋友，她热爱阳光和大海。
When she is at the beach, she shows her "true colors."
当她在海边时，她会展现出自己的“true colors”。
She's very active -- swimming in the sea, walking along the beach, and enjoying other outdoor activities.
她非常活跃——在海里游泳，在沙滩上散步，享受其他户外活动。
When she is away from the beach, she doesn't seem herself.
当她离开海滩时，她就不像自己了。
She is often inside and not very active.
她经常呆在屋里，不爱活动。
However, showing one's true colors does not always mean something good.
然而，展示真实的自己并不意味着总是好事。
Some people may present themselves in a way other than how they really are.
有些人可能会以一种虚假的方式展现自己。
They might seem to have positive characteristics.
他们可能看起来性格积极。
They act kind, pleasant, generous, or helpful.
他们表现得善良、讨人喜欢、慷慨或乐于助人。
But in fact, they are really the opposite.
但事实上，真实的他们恰恰与之相反。
They are not showing their "true colors."
他们没有表现出自己的“true colors”。
They keep their "true nature" hidden.
他们把自己的“true nature”隐藏了起来。
Let's listen to this example:
让我们听听下面这个例子：
A: You know, I thought Mack was easygoing.
A：你知道吗，我原以为麦克很随和。
But then I worked with him on a big project.
但后来我和他一起做了一个大项目。
B: I know exactly what you mean.
B：我完全明白你的意思。
He's easygoing and fun to work with when he gets his way.
按他的心意来时，他很随和，和他一起工作也很有趣。
But if you question any of his ideas, he shows his true colors.
但如果你质疑他的任何想法，他就会露出真面目。
A: That is exactly what happened!
A：事实正是如此！
I suggested an alternative to his idea, and he became really rude ... and mean.
我对他的想法提出了一个替代方案，他就变得非常粗鲁……而且很刻薄。
Some word experts say the expression "true colors" dates back to the 1700s and comes from the world of sailing ships.
一些词语专家说，“true colors”这一表达可以追溯到18世纪，来自航海世界。
Colored flags were, and still are, used to show what country a ship was registered to and to communicate with other ships at a distance.
过去和现在，人们都用彩色旗帜来显示船只注册的国家，并与其他船只进行远距离通信。
The ship's colors were its flags.
旗帜的颜色就代表了船的颜色。
Pirates' ships would sail under "false colors," meaning under a friendly flag.
海盗船会悬挂“虚假颜色”的旗帜，即友好国家的旗帜。
They would do this to get close to other ships without raising concern.
他们这样做是为了靠近其他船只而不引起担忧。
Then, when the pirates were close enough and ready to attack, they would raise their "true colors."
然后，当海盗靠近并准备攻击时，他们就会升起“真正颜色”的旗帜。
Another expression with a similar meaning is to show your stripes.
另一个意思相近的说法是“show your stripes”。
Stripes can be your true nature and something you cannot hide or remove.
条纹可以是你的本色和你无法隐藏或去除的东西。
However, this expression is less common.
不过，这种表达方式并不常见。
Here is an example:
下面是一个例子：
Marisa showed her true stripes when her back was against the wall.
玛丽莎在无路可退的时候露出了她的本色。
When she had no way out of the problems that she had created, she blamed everyone ... everyone but herself, that is.
当她无法摆脱自己造成的问题时，她责怪所有人……所有人，除了她自己。
And that's this week's Words and Their Stories. Until next time...
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》的全部内容。下期再见……
I'm Anna Matteo.
安娜·马特奥为您播报。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
