English 中文网 漫画网 爱新闻iNews 翻译论坛
中国网站品牌栏目(频道)
当前位置: Language Tips> 译通四海> 翻译服务

Sacred cow

[ 2009-12-08 11:32]     字号 [] [] []  
免费订阅30天China Daily双语新闻手机报:移动用户编辑短信CD至106580009009

Sacred cow

Nancy Matos

Reader Question: “One of our biggest sacred cows is the national social security program which pays many older Americans a pension. This program costs more money every year. But politicians are afraid to touch it because older folks have a lot of votes.”

Could you explain “sacred cow”?

My comments: Something that is immune from criticism because it is highly regarded is called a “sacred cow”. You would not want to tamper with something considered a “sacred cow” because you could be faced with public outcry. In the example provided, that would be the American national social security program.

The term “sacred cow” comes from the high regard for cows in the Hindu religion. Hindus do not eat cows as they are considered sacred. Whereas in other parts of the world the cow can be found on many people’s dinner plates, Hindus would never dream of eating a hamburger. In India, cows are believed to be symbols of the earth because they give so much yet ask for nothing in return. When you consider that cows are vegetarians and don’t rely on other species to survive, you can see why they are held as sacred and why some people refuse to eat them.

本文仅代表作者本人观点,与本网立场无关。欢迎大家讨论学术问题,尊重他人,禁止人身攻击和发布一切违反国家现行法律法规的内容。

Related stories

Peaches and cream

Miss the boat

Fancy coffee

Odd-hour work shift

Bedroom eyes

A welcome shot in the arm

Hit the books

Bring the house down

Go belly up

Hybrid car

Fan mail

Opening number 开场

Three hanky

Have a method to your madness

Common-law marriage

Under my skin

Drunk sexcapades

Seasonal Affective Disorder

Burst one’s bubble

See eye to eye

 

About the author:

Nancy Matos is a foreign expert at China Daily Website. Born and raised in Vancouver, Canada, Nancy is a graduate of the Broadcast Journalism and Media program at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. Her journalism career in broadcast and print has taken her around the world from New York to Portugal and now Beijing. Nancy is happy to make the move to China and join the China Daily team.

 

 
中国日报网英语点津版权说明:凡注明来源为“中国日报网英语点津:XXX(署名)”的原创作品,除与中国日报网签署英语点津内容授权协议的网站外,其他任何网站或单位未经允许不得非法盗链、转载和使用,违者必究。如需使用,请与010-84883631联系;凡本网注明“来源:XXX(非英语点津)”的作品,均转载自其它媒体,目的在于传播更多信息,其他媒体如需转载,请与稿件来源方联系,如产生任何问题与本网无关;本网所发布的歌曲、电影片段,版权归原作者所有,仅供学习与研究,如果侵权,请提供版权证明,以便尽快删除。
 

关注和订阅

人气排行

翻译服务

中国日报网翻译工作室

我们提供:媒体、文化、财经法律等专业领域的中英互译服务
电话:010-84883468
邮件:translate@chinadaily.com.cn