Jason和國外同事在電話中起了爭執,講到雙方都有點情緒了,同事嘆了一口氣說:Your remarks were a bit too close to home.「離家很近?」

Jason心裡想,是吵架吵不過,就叫人滾回家嗎?Close to home和家沒有關係,別會錯意。

1.Your remarks were a bit too close to home.

(X)你的話是叫我滾回家嗎。

(O)你的話戳到我的痛處了。

Close to home的"home”,指的是the heart of something,可以理解成最讓人上心的事情。如果有人說你的話close to home,就是指你的話剛好打到他的痛處,可能是「太直接、太露骨、太真實」,讓人感到受傷害、不舒服。這個片語也常和hit這個動詞搭配"hit close to home":

Her comment hit me close to home.(她的批評真的戳到我痛處。)

也可以用來形容電影、小說等作品,特別指因為有類似經歷而有切身感受的那種痛。

That movie about the war hit too close to home.(那部戰爭片太扎心了。)

2.See you home.

(X)看著你回家。

(O)送你回家。

老外說I will see you home,不是「目送你回家」,而是要送人回家。相當於:

I will take you home.(我帶你回去。)

I will walk you home.(我陪你走回去。)

要送人回到門口,就用see you to the door:

My secretary will see you to the door.(我的秘書會送你到門口。)

3.come home to me

(X)回到我家裡

(O)我突然明白

Come home to指突然間明白,有點像中文「豁然開朗」一樣,是個好用的片語。

A solution finally came home to me as I was falling asleep last night.(昨晚睡前我突然想到怎麼解決這件事。)

The danger really came home to me when I saw the pictures on TV.(當看到電視上的畫面時,我才真正知道有多危險。)

4.till the cows come home

(X)直到牛回家

(O)永無止盡/沒完沒了

英文有很多和動物有關,很有趣的表達。牛體型大,走路很慢,等到牛回家,意思就是「很長時間」,永無止盡。

I could sit here and argue with you till the cows come home, but it wouldn't solve anything. (我可以坐在這兒和你一直爭論下去,但這解決不了任何問題。)

責任編輯:易佳蓉
核稿編輯:鍾守沂