测一测
When he graduated and entered the difficult society, he felt like _____.
A. a dog out of kennel
B. a fish out of water
C. a cat out of home
知识点解析
大家通常都养什么宠物呢？喵星人, 汪星人, 咕嘟星人(？ 是鱼啦)……在今天的知识点中，小编就讲讲和这些宠物们有关的英文表达。
(当然不排除其他类型的宠物, 例如snake, lizard(蜥蜴), wolf 等, 但小编今天就先不涉及它们了= =)。
首先, 大家知道汪星人们的叫声应该用哪一个英文嘛？没错! Dogs bark! 所以 bark就是它们的汪汪声。
说到汪汪声,这里有一个实用又好玩的短语: bark up the wrong tree。看上去字面意思就是冲着错误的树汪汪叫。
是不是都可以感受到狗狗们很执着的样子？只可惜力气用错了地方。所以, 这句习语的隐喻意义就是用错了解决办法或找错了目标。
这里给大家看一个很有场景感的例句:
"You always blame me for not paying enough attention to you. Well, you've been barking up the wrong tree because it's you who never return my calls!"
一眼就可以看出来这是一对情侣的吵架片段。("你总是怪我不够注意你。你找错责怪对象了，因为从来不回电话的是你!")
下面视线转移到叫声为 meow (喵喵叫)的猫咪们。小编最爱它们舔自己身上的毛的样子。认真地很可爱。
这里就有一个关于lick 的习语: lick one's own wounds, 也就是 舔舐伤口或自我疗伤。
于是，小编又打算抒情一下:
You might find yourself licking your own wounds after getting hurt, but that is the price of growing up.
你也许会发现受伤后要自己舔舐伤口，但这就是成长要付出的代价。
(补充下, 如果你想知道猫咪脚底的肉垫垫怎么讲: paw pad。paw表示爪爪, pad 是垫子)。
下面,虽然大家家中时有猫狗和谐相处的情况, 但是在英文习语中, 他们是一对敌人哦。
fight like cats and dogs 就表示打得不可开交的样子。大家可以参考这个例句:
"She can't understand her two sons. They were born twins but they fight like cats and dogs."
(她不能理解两个孪生儿子打架打得像猫狗一样。)
最后要提一下咕噜星人咯。也就是fish。之所以小编叫它们咕噜星人，是因为它们在水里发出babble(咕噜)的声音。
作为水生动物, a fish out of water(一只离开水的鱼)肯定很难受。
所以, a fish out of water也可以指离开了舒适区的人。
例如: As a child who doesn't like sports but is forced to play soccer, he feels like a fish out of water.
作为一个不喜欢运动却被强制踢足球的孩子，他觉得自己像脱了水的鱼。
小练习
She realizes that the reason why she can't solve the problem is that she is _____.
A. fighting like cats and dogs
B. licking her own wounds
C. barking up the wrong tree
Once in a while they ______ even though they are close friends most of the time. That's just how kids are.
A. fight like cats and dogs
B. lick their own wounds
C. bark up the wrong tree
He came back home to _____ after he was fired by his boss.
A. lick his own paws
B. lick his own wounds
C. lick his own furs