Now, the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES. 现在是美国之音慢速英语词汇掌故节目。 People use their mouths for many things. They eat, talk, shout and sing. They smile and they kiss. In the English language, there are many expressions using the word mouth. But some of them are not so nice. 嘴巴的用途很多，人们用嘴吃饭、谈话、呐喊 、唱歌、微笑和亲吻。在英语中，有很多包含 嘴这个单词的短语。但其中一些可不太友好。nFor example, if you say bad things about a person, the person might protest and say “Do not bad mouth me.“ 比如，如果你说某人不好的方面，这个人可能会 抗议，说“不要说我坏话”nSometimes, people say something to a friend or family member that they later regret because it hurts that persons feelings. Or they tell the person something they were not supposed to tell. 有时，人们对朋友和家人说了什么过后他们觉得 后悔，因为这伤害了他人的感情。或者，他告诉 了某人一些不该告诉的东西。nThe speaker might say: “I really put my foot in my mouth this time.“ If this should happen, the speaker might feel down in the mouth. In other words, he might feel sad for saying the wrong thing. 这个发言者可能会说：“这次我真的说错话了 ”。如果发生这种情况，这个发言者可能会感 到沮丧。换句话说，他可能为说错话觉得悲 伤。nAnother situation is when someone falsely claims another person said something. The other person might protest: “I did not say that. Do not put words in my mouth.“ 另一种情况是，当有人谎称别人说了什么时。别 人可能会抗议：“我没有这样说。不要把这个话强 加于我。”nInformation is often spread through word of mouth. This is general communication between people, like friends talking to each other. “How did you hear about that new movie?“ someone might ask. “Oh, by word of mouth.“? A more official way of getting information is through a company or government mouthpiece. This is an official spokesperson. Government-run media could also be called a mouthpiece.n信息往往是通过口耳相传传播，这是人们之间的日常沟 通方式。例如朋友之间互相交谈， “你是怎么听说那部 新电影的？”有人可能会问。 “哦，通过口耳相传。”更 正式的获取信息的方式是通过公司或政府的喉舌，这个 喉舌是指官方发言人。政府开办的媒体也可以被称为喉 舌。nSometimes when one person is speaking, he says the same thing that his friend was going to say. When this happens, the friend might say: “You took the words right out of my mouth!“ Sometimes a person has a bad or unpleasant experience with another person. He might say that experience “left a bad taste in my mouth.“ Or the person might have had a very frightening experience, like being chased by an angry dog. He might say: “I had my heart in my mouth.“n有时某人说出了他朋友正要说的话。发生这种情况时， 他的朋友可能会说：“我也正想这么说。”有时某人跟另 一人之间有不愉快的经历，他可能说那种经历“给我留 下了一个坏印象”。或者某人有一段非常可怕的经历， 例如被一只疯狗追赶，他可能会说，“我的心都快跳到 嗓子眼了。”nSome people have lots of money because they were born into a very rich family. There is an expression for this, too. You might say such a person, “was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.“ 有些人出生在一个非常富有的家庭而有很 多钱。有句短语正好形容这种情况。你可 能会说这个人“含着金汤匙出生。”nThis rich person is the opposite of a person who lives from hand to mouth. This person is very poor and only has enough money for the most important things in life, like food. 与富人相反的则是仅能糊口的人，这类人非常贫 穷，他的钱刚够购买生活最需要东西，例如食物 。nParents might sometimes withhold sweet food from a child as a form of punishment for saying bad things. For example, if a child says things she should not say to her parents, she might be described as a mouthy child. The parents might even tell the child to stop mouthing off. n家长有时会扣押孩子的甜食作为孩子说坏话的一 种惩罚。例如，如果一个孩子对他的父母说了不 该说的东西，他可能会被视为多嘴的孩子。孩子 的家长甚至可能会告诉孩子“不要再胡说了”nBut enough of all this talk. I have been running my mouth long enough. 这次节目说得够多的了，我说起来没完没 了。