別犯傻，a fat cat的意思竟是……

寧波市鄞州高級中學 金 琳

人類和貓共同生活了至少9，000年，貓這種生物有超級柔軟的肉墊、水汪汪的大眼，以及摸起來超舒服的皮毛，“吸起來”簡直讓人欲罷不能。作為美國最受歡迎的寵物，cat在英語語言文化中也占有一席之地。它們到底摻和進了哪些短語里呢?一起來學習這些含有cat的表達吧。

聽力掃障

1.canaryn.金絲雀

2.pajamasn.睡衣褲

3.herdv.牧放（牲畜、獸群）

掃碼聽測

信息匹配

一邊聽錄音一邊把下文所提供的有關內容進行匹配。需要匹配的內容是錄音材料中的關鍵信息。

In this section， you will hear some idioms and their meanings.After hearing the text， decide which meaning would be most suitable for each idiom appearing in the text.You will hear the material twice.

1.look like the cat that ate the canary A.something in bad condition 2.play cat and mouse B.a child who is easily frightened 3.look like something the cat dragged in C.someone looking very proud or satisfied with himself 4.a scaredy-cat D.a difficult or impossible job 5.a fat cat E.change between different kinds of behavior when dealing with another person 6.herding cats F.a person with a lot of money

文本解說

本文是一篇關于語言學習的說明文，文章主要介紹了關于貓的一些英語習語和俚語。文章信息量較大，且較為繁雜，但趣味性較強。文章的首段為導入部分，介紹的是關于貓的表達十分豐富的原因，其余部分為關于貓的英語習語及俚語的含義和用法介紹。聽讀時，要注意對文章中提到的相關表達進行梳理。

題材文章詞數文化385 難度 ★★體裁建議用時說明文7′

Cats are the most popular pets among Americans.So it is not surprising that there are many expressions about cats.

Some cats like to catch small birds，likecanaries.If someone looks very proud or satisfied with himself， we say he “looks like the cat that ate the canary”.Sometimes， a cat likes to play with a small animal it catches.So if you “play cat and mouse” with someone，you change between different kinds of behavior when dealing with another person.For example，a child might offer something sweet to her little brother and then take it away when he reaches for it.

A cat will often catch a small animal and present it to its owner.The saying“look like something the cat dragged in”describes something in bad condition.

Two old and funny expressions describe something that is the best or finest.Americans might say that something is “the cat's meow” and “the cat'spajamas”.Children might call a child who is easily frightened a “fraidy-cat” or a “scaredy-cat”.A “copycat” is someone who acts just like someone else or copies another person's work.A “fat cat” is a person with a lot of money.

You may have known that cats spend most of their time sleeping.Sometimes people sleep for a short time during the day.This is called a “catnap”.If you tell about something that was supposed to be a secret， we say you “let the cat out of the bag”.If you are not able to speak or answer a question someone might ask if “the cat has got your tongue”.Have you ever watched children in a classroom when their teacher leaves for a few minutes?“When the cat's away， the mice will play” means people sometimes misbehave when there is no supervision （監督）.You may have heard this expression： “Curiosity killed the cat”.This means being too concerned about things that are not your business might cause problems.If your home is very small， you might say “there is not enough room to swing a cat”.But you probably should not try this at home!

If you ever had cats as pets，you know it is difficult to train them or to get them to do something.Cats are not like sheep or cows that can be moved in a group.So we say a difficult or impossible job is like “herdingcats”.

Language Study

Sentence for writing

“it be not surprising that...”……不足為奇

So it is not surprising that there are many expressions about cats.因此，有許多關于貓的表達也就不足為奇了。

句中it充當的是形式主語，真正的主語是that引導的主語從句，即“There are many expressions about cats.”。

【仿寫】上周的英語考試Tom過關了一點也不足為奇。