Michael Chugani 褚简宁 - “walk and chew gum”｜又中又英

Some readers have asked me to explain unusual idioms that are seldom used in Hong Kong but sometimes used in the US. I came across one such idiom while reading a news report about US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin’s recent trip to Asia and Europe. The report was in Foreign Policy, an American news magazine. The expression was “walk and chew gum”. Austin said “we are walking and chewing gum” when he spoke to reporters in Thailand. I don’t think I have ever heard any local person use this expression when I lived in Hong Kong. Austin used the expression when referring to his efforts to deter China and to help Ukraine.

To “walk and chew gum” means to do two or more different things at the same time. It is easy to walk and chew gum at the same time. That’s why it is often used to describe stupid people who cannot do two simple things at the same time. If a person cannot boil an egg and talk on his mobile phone at the same time you can say he can’t walk and chew gum. But when Austin used the expression, he meant he had to do two very difficult things at the same time. He had to explain America’s hardened policy towards China to US allies in Asia and also to further unite the West against Russia for invading Ukraine while in Europe.

Historians believe the expression came from the late US President Lyndon Johnson who said the late Gerald Ford, who also later became US President, was so dumb (stupid) that he can't walk and chew gum at the same time. A simple word for “walk and chew gum” is “multitask”. This means to do several things at the same time. The word originated when computers were invented and were able to do several things at the same time. It is now used to describe people doing several things at the same time.
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一些读者请求我解释一些不平常的成语，是在香港很少用到，但在美国有时会见人用的。当我读到一则关于美国国防部部长劳莱‧柯士甸最近到访亚洲和欧洲的新闻报道时，就遇到一个这样的成语。该报道刊登于美国新闻杂志《外交政策》。那个习语是“walk and chew gum”。当柯士甸跟泰国的记者谈话时，他道：“we are walking and chewing gum”。我不认为我在香港居住时有听过任何一个本地人用此习语。当柯士甸说着他在威慑中国以及协助乌克兰方面所付出的努力时，就用到了这个习语。

To “walk and chew gum”意即同一时间做两件或以上不同的事情。一边走路一边嚼香口胶（walk and chew gum）是轻而易举的事，因此，它也常被用来形容一些愚蠢的人，不能同时做两件简单不过的事情。若一个人不能一边煮一只鸡蛋一边讲电话，那你便可以说he can’t walk and chew gum——他这都不能一心二用，真是笨得很。但当柯士甸用这个习语时，他的意思却是同时间去做两件非常困难的事情。他需要阐明，对于中国对垒美国的亚洲伙伴，美国采取更为强硬的政策，亦要在欧洲进一步团结西方，以对抗俄罗斯入侵乌克兰。

历史学家相信，这个习语来自已故美国总统林登‧庄臣，说已故的杰拉尔德‧福特过于愚钝（dumb）而不能边走路边嚼香口胶（can't walk and chew gum），而福特后来亦当上了美国总统。习语“walk and chew gum”用简单的一个字去说就是“multitask”，即同时处理多项事务。这个字来源于电脑被发明时，它就是能同时间处理多个任务。现在它也用来形容人们能同时做多件事情。
中译：七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁