又中又英 - Break a leg | 褚簡寧

　　Some English words can mean one thing but also the opposite of it, as I explained in my previous column. Some English phrases can also have one meaning and the opposite of it. I came across one in a newspaper article. The expression I saw was "break a leg". I have not used this expression in a long time. It is an expression that can easily confuse people whose first language is not English. Athletes who play contact sports or collision sports can sometimes break a leg part, such as fracturing a bone. A contact sport involves physical contact between players, such as football and basketball.

　　A collision sport involves players who purposely collide with players from the other team, such as rugby and American football. But the expression "break a leg" has a completely different meaning from the literal meaning of breaking a leg. If you say "break a leg" to someone, such as a collision sport player, you are not telling the player to fracture a leg bone. You are saying "good luck" to the player. The idiom was originally used for theater performers or musicians before they got on the stage.

　　In the old days, superstitious directors of plays and musical managers believed that if they said "good luck" to performers before a show, it would bring bad luck. They said "break a leg" instead to wish the performers good luck even though "break a leg" sounds negative. Nowadays, the expression is used to wish people good luck before they take a difficult exam or go for a job interview with a big company that pays high salaries. Say it to wish your friend good luck.

＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊

　　正如我上一次在專欄中解釋過的，一些英語字詞可以同時解作兩個相反的意思。一些英文短語亦同時含有兩個相反的意思。我在一則報章報道中就遇到了這麼一個短語。我看到的那個習語就是「break a leg」。我已經很久沒有用過這個習語了，它是一個很容易令那些母語非英語的人困惑的習語。那些玩contact sports或collision sports的運動員，有時會斷了腿（break a leg）的某部位，例如骨折。Contact sport是接觸性運動，球員間會有肢體觸碰，例如足球和籃球。

　　Collision sport則是衝撞型運動，例如欖球和美式足球，球員需要有目的地衝撞攔截對方球員。但習語「break a leg」有着跟字面意思「斷腳」截然不同的意思。若你跟某人如衝撞型運動（collision sport）的運動員說「break a leg」，你可不是叫那人弄斷一根腳骨啊。你是在祝那名球員好運。這個習語原初是劇場表演者或音樂家上台表演前所用的。

　　在舊時，迷信的戲劇導演與音樂劇經理相信，若他們在演出前祝表演者「好運」，那就會帶來衰運。反之他們會說「break a leg」來祝表演者好運，即使「break a leg」聽來很負面。今天，這個習語是在人們要應考一個很難的試，又或到一間付高薪的大公司面試前，用來祝他們好運的。試試跟你朋友說，來祝他們好運吧。

[email protected]
Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻

又中又英