Small Beer

小啤酒，small beer，英國人指淡啤酒，美語則作“少量的啤酒”。夏天有客來訪，問：Anything to drink？答曰：I‘ll have a small beer（給我一點兒啤酒）。

但是，比喻用法中說的small beer，是指規(guī)模不大的東西。例如快餐店店主說自己的店規(guī)模不大：Ours is really small beer beside McDonald.（我的店和麥當勞比起來真是小店）。Be small beer常用作與人比較的表現(xiàn)：He thinks no small beer of himself（他自以為是了不起的人物）；The boy is very smart， but small beer compared to his scholar father（這孩子十分聰明，但是比起他那位學者父親來還差得遠）。[阿五]

Parachute

Parachute意為降落傘，千真萬確。如果有人讓你去把parachute拿來，你會怎么辦？

一個周末我在英國餐館里打工，老板娘叫我到庫房把Parachute拿來。庫房里萬件物品，雜七亂八，Parachute在哪兒，翻來尋去也沒見到，正要轉身去問，庫房工來了，我便抓住他問：Where is the parachute.他指了指一堆比一般傘的尺寸大許多的傘?！癟hat‘s big umbrella or the umbrella for couple.”我有些忿忿不平地說。他十分果斷：\"That‘s the parachute\". 我這才把Parachute拿給老板娘。（華英）

adult business district :紅燈區(qū)

為開設色情書店、影院、脫衣舞場等色情場所劃定的街區(qū)(a neighborhood zoned for pornographic bookstores and movie theaters ， striptease bars ，etc.)即是紅燈區(qū)。Police are constantly arresting people over in the adult business district.警察常常在紅燈區(qū)拘捕人犯。

love child :私生子。

報紙上用語，非夫妻關系的男女所生的子女(a word used especially in newspapers meaning a child whose parents are not married; bastard.)。 Jeff is a love child.杰夫是個私生子。

Dear John (letter):斷交信，要求離婚的信。

由妻子、情人等女方給男方寫的斷交信(a letter to a man from his wife or girlfriend ，saying that she no longer loves him.) 。Merry broke off her relationship by writing her boyfriend a Dear John.瑪麗給男友寫了封斷交信，與其斷絕了關系。

air-weather friend :酒肉朋友。

fair-weather，晴天的，只適用于好天氣的；只能同歡樂不能共患難的。fair-weather friend酒肉朋友，不能共患難的朋友(someone who only wants to be your friend when you are successful.)。Everyone knows that John‘s only a fair-weather friend .大家知道，約翰是個酒肉朋友。

Christmas Cards

A young man approached the counter at which Christmas cards were sold.

\"Have you anything sentimental(充滿柔情的)?\" he asked.

\"Here‘s a lovely one，\" replied salesgirl. \"To The Only Girl I Ever Loved.\"

\"That‘s fine， I‘ll take four--no--six of those， please.\"

Desirable Job

A salesman was dismissed because of a lack of courtesy(禮貌) to customers. A month later the sales manager spotted(發(fā)現(xiàn)) him walking about in a police uniform(警察制服)。

\"I see you‘ve joined the force， Jones，\" said the sales manager.

\"Yes，\" replied Jones. \"This is the job I‘ve been looking for all my life. On this job the customer is always wrong.\"