英语故事奋不顾身（单词故事-防患于未然）

And now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories. Sometimes in life, you need to act quickly. Thinking too much about a problem does not always help. It can hold us back.We have expressions that describe this way of thinking. "No time like the present". "A rolling stone gathers no moss". "Just do it"! But sometimes slower is better.

现在是美国之音《词汇掌故》节目时间。有时在生活中，你需要迅速行动。对一个问题想得太多并不总是有帮助的。它会阻碍到我们。我们有形容这种思维方式的表达。"机不可失。""滚石不生苔。""说干就干！"但是有时候放缓一些更好。

Many things in life require careful thought and preparation.Sometimes we need to be cautious and take precautions. A great expression for that kind of behavior is, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". This saying comes to us from Benjamin Franklin. In addition to being a writer, Franklin was a printer, political thinker, politician, scientist, inventor and diplomat. He was also one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. So, he was a busy man. But Franklin still found time to write and offer his advice to others. If he were alive today, he could probably make a good living as a life coach. "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," is one of his most famous sayings. Now, Franklin lived during the 1700s, before the metric system took effect in Europe. The word ounce means something really small – just two-one-hundredths of a kilogram to be exact. So, his expression meant that, when dealing with a problem, spending a small amount of time and effort early on is a good investment. It can save you more trouble in the end.

生活中有许多事情需要仔细思考与准备。有时我们需要谨慎并采取预防措施。这种行为的一个不错表达是，"防患于未然。"这句名言出自本杰明·富兰克林。除了作家之外，富兰克林还是一名印刷商、政治思想家、政治家、科学家、发明家和外交家。他也是美国的开国元勋之一。所以他是个大忙人。但富兰克林仍有时间写作并为他人提供建议。如果他今天还活着，他可能会作为一名人生导师过得很好。"防患于未然"是他最有名的名言之一。富兰克林生活在18世纪，那时候欧洲还没有实行公制。"盎司"这个词意味着东西非常少——准确地说只有一千克的百分之一、二。因此，他的这个表达是指，当处理一个问题时，早期花费少量的时间和精力是一种很好的投资。在最后关头它会为你省去更多的麻烦。

For example, if a country announces strong measures for containing a virus, we could say, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". It is better to take severe precautions than to suffer severe consequences later. Word historians say that when Franklin first used this expression, he was not talking about disease but rather fire prevention. During a visit to Boston in 1733, Franklin was impressed with the city's fire prevention methods. He tried to bring some of these practices to the city of Philadelphia, where he lived.Supposedly, Franklin sent an unsigned letter to his own newspaper The Pennsylvania Gazette. Published on February 4, 1735, his letter -- "Protection of Towns from Fire" -- began with the expression "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Then he wrote about how a city should prepare itself for a fire. From protecting yourself against sickness to preventing a house fire, this expression can be used in serious situations. It is a fixed expression, meaning we don't change the wording when we use it. We simply repeat it as is. Let's listen to this example: How is the deal going with your real estate agent? Are you ready to buy your new house? Just about. I have a few more questions about home insurance. So, I'm meeting with a financial advisor and an insurance agent this week. They are sure to give you a lot of information. Do you really think it's necessary? An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. If I get anything wrong, it will be difficult to fix later on. And it will cost more, too!

例如，如果一个国家宣布采取强有力的措施来控制病毒，我们可以说，"防患于未然。"采取严厉的预防措施总比以后遭受严重的后果要强。文字历史学家说，当富兰克林第一次使用这个表达时，他不是在谈论疾病，而是在谈论防火。在1733年访问波士顿期间，富兰克林对这座城市的防火方法印象深刻。他试图将其中一些做法带到他生活的地方——费城。据说，富兰克林给自家报纸《宾夕法尼亚公报》寄了一封未署名的信。他的这封信于1735年2月4日发表，题为《保护城镇免遭火灾》。信的开头是"防患于未然"这个表达。然后他写了一个城市应该如何为火灾做准备。从保护自己不生病到防止房子着火，这个表达可以用于严峻的形式下。这是一个固定表达，意思是我们在使用它时不会改变措辞。我们只是按原样复述。让我们来听听这个例子：你和你房地产经纪人的交易怎么样了？你准备好买新房子了吗？差不多了。关于房屋保险我还有几个疑问。所以，这周我将和一位财务顾问以及一位保险代理人碰面。他们肯定会告诉你很多信息。你真的认为有必要吗？防患于未然。如果有任何出错的地方，以后就很难解决了。而且花的钱会更多！

Didn't you lose a lot of money on repairs to your house because it was under-insured? Um … Good point. Let's change the subject! Now, another way to say this expression is "Better safe than sorry". We use this one for many different situations – serious and not so serious. Let's listen to this dialogue. What a great day to be at the park! Thanks for the invite! Sure thing. The weather is great! So, why did you bring an umbrella? Well, the weather forecast said it could rain later today. I heard that too. But look -- there's not a cloud in the sky! Oh, no! You cannot be serious! Quick! Come under my umbrella! See. Better safe than sorry. Okay, okay! Good point. Now, let's get out of this rain. Here it is better to say "better safe than sorry". Benjamin Franklin's advice would have sounded a little too serious. And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories! The next time you want to take care and avoid problems down the road … use the expressions you heard here. Until next time … I'm Anna Matteo!

你难道没有因为保额不足而在维修房屋上损失很多钱吗？呃……说得好。我们换个话题吧！现在，这个表达的另一种说法是"小心驶得万年船"。我们在很多不同的情况下都会用到这个表达——严重的情况和不那么严重的情况。让我们听听这个对话。在公园度过的美好一天！谢谢你的邀请！没错。天气真好！你为什么要带伞？好吧，天气预报说今天晚些时候可能会下雨。我也听说了。可是你看，天上没有一片乌云！哦，不！你不是认真的吧！快！到我的伞下来！看到没？小心驶得万年船。好，好！说得好。我们去避雨吧。在这里，说"小心驶得万年船"会更好些。本杰明·富兰克林的建议听起来有点太严肃了。以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。下次你想要保持警惕以及避免一段时间之后的问题时，就使用你在这里听到的表达吧。下次见……安娜·马特奥为您播报！