Out of whack: 不正常
美国俚语真是非常丰富,“out of whack”(紊乱)就是其中一个。有意思的是,whack(重击)和wacky(疯疯癫癫的)不仅长得像,而且还有一定血缘关系。Whack是个拟声词,读音仿佛激烈碰撞时那种惊天动地的声音;而wacky则是指那些因脑袋遭受重创后而变得痴傻、行为不正常的人。 18世纪时,whack被盗贼们用作“瓜分”,意思是“把盗来的东西分成许多份,以此分赃”。后来,由于盗贼们在分赃过程中会遇到各种利益冲突,whack(瓜分)就逐渐演变成“讨价还价;达成协议”的意思。 到了19世纪,whack已不再仅仅是盗贼们的行话,它的含义进一步发展为“契约;期望”,这样,out of whack便可解释成“脱离契约;出乎意料”,也就是“偏轨;不正常”了。 例如:You're acting out of whack!(你的行为真不正常!)
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