又中又英——“cut no ice”
Michael Chugani 褚简宁
2020-09-22 04:17 HKT
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A Hong Kong friend heard an expression on TV he could not understand. He asked me to explain. I decided to explain it in a column for readers to share. The expression my friend heard was “make the cut”. There are many English expressions that use the word “cut”. The most common meaning is to use a knife or scissors to divide things into pieces, like cutting meat into small pieces. But the expression “make the cut” has a totally different meaning. It means to succeed at something, to pass from one round of a competition to the next, or to be one of those chosen from many applicants.
If 50 people apply for 5 available jobs and you are one of those chosen, you have “made the cut”. If you win the first round in a tennis tournament and proceed to the second round, you have “made the cut”. When I was in school, my friends and I sometimes did not attend classes and played poker instead. This is called “cutting classes”. I don’t advise students to do that! Another expression with the word “cut” is “cut no ice”. This means words or excuses that fail to convince, persuade, or impress others to change their minds. If the government tells you the new national security law is good for Hong Kong but you oppose the law, you can say what the government tells you “cuts no ice” with you.
This means you don’t believe the government or don’t buy what the government tells you. If you are with a group of people who don’t say anything because they don’t know each other very well, you can tell a joke to make people more comfortable with each other. This is called “cutting the ice” or “breaking the ice”. It is natural for people to feel nervous when they meet the parents of their girlfriends or boyfriends for the first time. Parents can “cut the ice”, or make everyone relax, by talking about their favourite restaurant.
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我一位香港朋友从电视上听到一个他不太明白的习语，希望我解释一下。我决定在专栏里解释，好让各位读者可以一同了解。我朋友听到的习语是“make the cut”。有许多英文习语都用到“cut”这个字，它最常见的意思是用刀或剪刀切割某物，例如将肉切成小件。但习语“make the cut”却有截然不同的意思，是解作成功过关、晋级或入围下一轮比赛，又或通过甄选，从芸芸申请人中脱颖而出。
若有五十个人应征五个职位，而你是其中一位成功获选的，那你就是“made the cut”。若你在第一轮网球锦标赛中胜出，得以进入下一轮比赛，那你亦是“made the cut”。我以前在学校读书时，有时会和朋友「走堂」去玩啤牌，这样子旷课便叫“cutting classes”。我可不会鼓励学生这样做啦！“Cut”还有另一个习语“cut no ice”，它是指一些说话或借口起不了作用，未能说服他人，或令对方改变主意。若政府跟你说，新的《国安法》对香港有利，而你却是反对这条法律的，你便可以说，what the government tells you “cuts no ice” with you。
这句话的意思是，你不相信政府，又或政府的说话对你并不管用。若你跟一班人在一起，他们却不怎样谈话，因为互相不大熟络，你便可以说个笑话令他们感到较为自在，这样的「破冰」就叫“cutting the ice”或“breaking the ice”。人们与女友或男友的父母首次见面时难免紧张，父母便可“cut the ice”，谈谈他们最喜欢的餐厅，借此缓和紧张的气氛。
[email protected]
中译：七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁
If 50 people apply for 5 available jobs and you are one of those chosen, you have “made the cut”. If you win the first round in a tennis tournament and proceed to the second round, you have “made the cut”. When I was in school, my friends and I sometimes did not attend classes and played poker instead. This is called “cutting classes”. I don’t advise students to do that! Another expression with the word “cut” is “cut no ice”. This means words or excuses that fail to convince, persuade, or impress others to change their minds. If the government tells you the new national security law is good for Hong Kong but you oppose the law, you can say what the government tells you “cuts no ice” with you.
This means you don’t believe the government or don’t buy what the government tells you. If you are with a group of people who don’t say anything because they don’t know each other very well, you can tell a joke to make people more comfortable with each other. This is called “cutting the ice” or “breaking the ice”. It is natural for people to feel nervous when they meet the parents of their girlfriends or boyfriends for the first time. Parents can “cut the ice”, or make everyone relax, by talking about their favourite restaurant.
＊＊＊
我一位香港朋友从电视上听到一个他不太明白的习语，希望我解释一下。我决定在专栏里解释，好让各位读者可以一同了解。我朋友听到的习语是“make the cut”。有许多英文习语都用到“cut”这个字，它最常见的意思是用刀或剪刀切割某物，例如将肉切成小件。但习语“make the cut”却有截然不同的意思，是解作成功过关、晋级或入围下一轮比赛，又或通过甄选，从芸芸申请人中脱颖而出。
若有五十个人应征五个职位，而你是其中一位成功获选的，那你就是“made the cut”。若你在第一轮网球锦标赛中胜出，得以进入下一轮比赛，那你亦是“made the cut”。我以前在学校读书时，有时会和朋友「走堂」去玩啤牌，这样子旷课便叫“cutting classes”。我可不会鼓励学生这样做啦！“Cut”还有另一个习语“cut no ice”，它是指一些说话或借口起不了作用，未能说服他人，或令对方改变主意。若政府跟你说，新的《国安法》对香港有利，而你却是反对这条法律的，你便可以说，what the government tells you “cuts no ice” with you。
这句话的意思是，你不相信政府，又或政府的说话对你并不管用。若你跟一班人在一起，他们却不怎样谈话，因为互相不大熟络，你便可以说个笑话令他们感到较为自在，这样的「破冰」就叫“cutting the ice”或“breaking the ice”。人们与女友或男友的父母首次见面时难免紧张，父母便可“cut the ice”，谈谈他们最喜欢的餐厅，借此缓和紧张的气氛。
[email protected]
中译：七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁
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