除了拼写和发音，美式英语和英式英语许多词语词组的用法也大相径庭。有时不小心用错，会让你非常尴尬。就连我们的美籍编辑Anne在少不经事的年纪也曾闹过不少误会……下面就让我们学习这些"血"的教训:
At 20, I spent a semester at a British university inLondon. A host once told me one evening that he'd be sure to knock me up by 6am, when I had to get up early the next morning. I was shocked – I interpretedhim as saying he was going to get me pregnant the next day! He meant he'd besure to wake me up. (So embarrassed!)
我20岁的时候，曾在英国伦敦一所大学上过一学期的课。有一次，我第二天早上要早起，前一天晚上，男主人对我说他早上6点钟叫我起床。当时我就震惊了！我把他的话理解成了他第二天要让我怀孕！实际上他的意思是他保证会叫醒我。(大囧啊！)
微信君：Knock sb up美语表示"让某人怀孕"，英语则指"叫醒某人"。
Another time, I wore a skirt and jacket to class,something different for me, as I preferred jeans. A young man complimented me.I thanked him and said it was nice sometimes to not wear pants. He blushed –actually I was saying I don't like wearing jeans, but he was thinking I'd said Iwasn't wearing any underwear. I always keep these language differences in mindwhen interacting with British people.
还有一次，我穿着裙子和夹克去上课。因为我喜欢牛仔裤，所以这身打扮和我平常的风格不太一样。有个小伙子恭维了我，我谢过他，对他说有时候不穿裤子也挺好。他脸一下就红了。实际上我说的是我不喜欢穿牛仔裤，但他以为我说自己没穿内裤。如今，我和英国人打交道时，总是记着这些语言表达上的差异。
注意：Pants一词在美语中表示"裤子"，但在英语中是"内裤"的意思。
其他英式/美式英语用错可能很囧的表达有:
1)What Brits say: "Sorry"
英国人说:对不起。
What Americans hear: "I sincerely apologize."
美国人听成：深表歉意。
Saying sorry is like a national tic of the UK, whichmeans Brits rarely use the word to convey a heartfelt apology. This is bafflingto Americans who will, on occasion, reply with something like, "Why,exactly, are you sorry?" "I'm not," Brits will say, confused."Sorry."
说对不起就像是英国的一种国民口头禅，换句话说，英国人很少用这个词来表达发自内心的歉意。这令美国人很困惑，有时他们会回答"你究竟为什么觉得抱歉啊？"英国人会困惑地说"没有啊"然后继续说"对不起"。
2)What Brits say: "It's a bit dear."
英国人说:这东西有点贵。
What Americans hear: "It's slightly adorable."
美国人听成：这东西还挺可爱的。
When Brits want to politely say something is tooexpensive, they might roll out this quaint old expression. Not a good idea ifyou're trying to haggle with an American: they'll take it as a compliment.
当英国人想要委婉的说某物品太贵的时候，他们可能会用"It's a bit dear"这种陈旧而古朴的方式来表达。如果你正想和一个美国人讨价还价，说这话可就不太明智啦，他们会把这当成一种称赞。
3)What Brits say: "I'm easy."
英国人说:我不介意。
What Americans hear: "I always have sex on the firstdate."
美国人听成：我常常第一次约会就和人发生关系。
Even the ultra laidback Brits who use this expressionmight still take issue with the American translation. To avoidmisinterpretation, plump for something more on the nose like, "I don'tmind."
就算是极其漫不经心的英国人也对美国人的这种解释不敢苟同。为了避免误解，你还是在深思熟虑后用"Idon't mind"(我不介意)来的靠谱。
4)What Brits say: "May I borrow your rubber?"
英国人说:能把你的橡皮借我吗？
What Americans hear: "May I borrow yourcondom?"
美国人听成：能把你的避孕套借我吗？(微信君喷血ing)
Americans call rubbers "erasers" and rubber is slangfor "condom" in American English......
美国人用"erasers"表示橡皮，在美式英语中，rubber是避孕套的俚语……
大家在学英语或与外国朋友交流时是否也有过上述鸡同鸭讲、尴尬吐血的经历?欢迎与微信君分享哦~
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