血濃于水是什么意思（血濃于水的本意）
Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories.
On this program we explore expressions often heard in American English.
現在是VOA學英語《詞匯掌故》節目時間。
在本節目中，我們會探討美式英語里經常會聽到的表達。
And sometimes we get it wrong -- very wrong!
But to be fair, there are simply some expressions that most native English speakers understand and use incorrectly.
有時候，人們會理解錯這些表達，而且是大錯特錯！
但公平地說，就是有一些表達絕大部分以英語為母語的人能理解，用法卻是錯誤的。
The problem with these terms is that, over the years, they have been shortened and important words are missing.
Today, we will talk about an idiom that people not only use the wrong way,
下面這些表達就是這個問題，很多年過去了，這些表達被簡化了，一些重要的單詞消失了。
今天，我們將要談論一個人們不僅用法錯誤，
but the original meaning -- the very first usage -- is actually opposite from how we use it today. That idiom is -- Blood is thicker than water.
且本義，也就是最原始的意義，也和人們現在使用的意義完全相反的習語。
這個習語就是：Blood is thicker than water（血濃于水）。
If I ask 100 people what the idiom means, most, if not all, will say that it means family relationships are the most important.
如果我問一百個人這個習語的意思，絕大多數人，即使不是全部的人會說它的意思是家庭關系是最重要的。
The blood you share with your relatives represents a strong relationship.
We call these family ties. "Water" here seemingly represents the connection you have with people with whom you do not share blood ties.
你和你的親人流著同樣的血，這代表一種很親近的關系。
我們稱之為家庭關系，這里的“water”似乎是指你和那些沒有血緣關系的人之間的聯系，
And those links simply are not as strong. First, let's look at the word "thick."
In this idiom, it does not mean the physical size of something, as in the walls on the house are very thick.
Here, the word "thick" means to have a very close relationship with someone.
且這種聯系沒有那么親密。首先，讓我們來看看單詞“thick”。
在這個習語中，它指的不是某個物體的物理尺寸，如墻壁很厚這種。這里的單詞“thick”意思是和某人有著非常親密的關系。
If you are thick with your best friend, you trust him.
You could even say you guys are 'tight. ' When used this way, "thick" gives us a few other idioms.
如果你和你的好朋友關系好，那你很信任他。
你甚至可以說你們關系很“鐵”。這種用法的“thick”還有其他幾個習語。
If two friends are thick as thieves, they are very close and trust each other a lot.
When you steal from others and get caught, you will probably go to jail.
如果兩個朋友親密無間（thick as thieves），他們非常親密且彼此十分信任。
當你偷別人東西被抓時，你很可能要坐牢。
So, it is important to trust the people you steal with.
If one rats out the others, you could all end up in jail!
因此，信任你的偷盜同伙很重要。如果那個人出賣（rat out）了你，你們就都要坐牢。
The bond between thieves goes beyond a normal friendship.
But for us non-thieving people, it's also important to be there for our friends.
竊賊間的關系超出了正常的友誼。
但對于我們這些不是竊賊的人來說，支持朋友也是很重要的。
If you are a supportive friend, you see your friends through good times and bad.
Another way to say this is to see them through thick and thin or be with them through thick and thin.
如果你是一個支持型的朋友，你會見證你朋友美好的時光和低谷的時段。
這個換個說法就是“見證他們起起伏伏”或者“同甘共苦（be with them through thick and thin）”。
So, the idiom blood is thicker than water means family ties are the strongest.
That makes sense, right? Well, it makes sense until you hear the whole idiom as it was first written in the Bible.
因此，習語“ blood is thicker than water”意思是家族間的血緣關系是最親密的。
這言之有理，對嗎？好吧，你得聽過它最開始被寫進《圣經》時完整的句子，你才能懂得它的意義。
The original saying is "Blood of the covenant is thicker than water of the womb."
The important words in the original version are the ones dropped over the centuries: "covenant" and "womb."
它的原話是“歃盟之血濃于胞衣之水”。
原版中最重要的且隨著世紀的變遷而被丟棄的單詞是“covenant（契約）”和“womb（子宮）”。
A "covenant" is a serious, official agreement or promise.
Usually, we only use the word "covenant" when the agreement is important,
“covenant”是一份嚴肅的、正式的協議或是承諾。
通常，只有協議很重要的時候，我們才用到單詞“covenant”，
such as a "covenant with God" or "the covenant of marriage."
Covenants often involve legal requirements, such as an "international covenant on human rights."
如“與上主的盟約”或“婚姻契約”。“covenant”往往涉及法律要求，如《國際人權公約》。
In our Bible-based idiom, the covenant is between soldiers on the battlefield.
So, we don't use the term lightly.
圣經中的“covenant”指的是戰場上士兵之間的契約。所以，我們使用這個表達的時候不能輕率。
Now, the other important word is "womb." A womb is the uterus, an organ where a woman carries an unborn baby.
現在，另一個重要的單詞是“womb（子宮）”。子宮是女人孕育胎兒的器官。
The water in the womb protects the fetus as it grows during pregnancy.
And when a pregnant woman's water breaks, she will soon give birth.
羊水能保護胎兒在子宮中生長發育。當孕婦羊水破了的時候，那她很快就要生產了。
The English language has other idioms with the word "womb."
For example, womb-to-tomb means from birth to death.
英語中還有其他含有單詞“womb”的習語。例如，“womb-to-tomb”意思是從生到死。
A tomb is a building above or below the ground where we keep dead bodies.
We often use "womb-to-tomb" when talking about government policies that protect a person for their entire life.
墳墓是存放尸體的，位于地上或者地下的建筑。
我們經常在談論保障一個人一生的政策時，會用到“womb-to-tomb”。
Another way we say this is "from cradle to the grave."
A cradle is a bed for a baby. And a grave is a hole in the ground for burying a dead body.
“從生到死”的另一種說法是“from cradle to the grave（從搖籃到墓穴）”。
搖籃是嬰兒的床。墓穴是埋葬尸體的地上的一個洞。
So, womb-to-tomb or cradle-to-grave are both ways to refer to a person's entire life but in a more dramatic way. And drama is probably what the rock band U2 was going for in their song "All I Want Is You."
因此，“womb-to-tomb”或者“cradle-to-grave”都是指代一個人的一生，只是更戲劇化了，而這種戲劇可能正是U2搖滾樂隊在他們的歌曲《我只想要你》中所要追求的。
But all the promises we make From the cradle to the grave
但是我們所有的誓言呢 由生到死
When all I want is you . . .
So, "blood is thicker than water" actually means that bloodshed on the battlefield
你是我所要的全部。
那么，“blood is thicker than water”的意思實際上是戰友們在戰場上的共存亡
creates stronger ties than the water of the womb does, or family ties.
Not only are we using "blood is thicker than water" incorrectly,
創造了比血緣關系或者家庭關系更親密的連結。
我們不僅沒有正確運用這個表達，
the current usage is opposite from the original meaning.
But here's the thing, we ALL use this idiom incorrectly.
目前的用法和其原意完全相反。
但事情是這樣的，我們全部都沒有用對這個表達。
So, if you want people to understand your actual meaning, you may want to use it the way everyone else does.
You mean, incorrectly?
因此，如果你想讓人們明白你的實際意義，你也許想和其他人一樣使用這個表達。
你意思是，錯誤地使用？
Yes, I do. And then you can impress them with your knowledge of the original meaning of the idiom. Yes. That would be a great dinner party story.
是的。然后你就可以用你對這個習語本義的了解來給他們留下深刻的印象。
是的，那將是一個很棒的晚宴故事。
That's a great idea. And that's our program for this week. But it is not the end of the expressions that we use incorrectly.
這主意不錯。
這就是我們本周的節目，但這不是我們錯誤使用的那些表達的結束。
There are several of those.
So, don't forget to listen next week for another Words and Their Stories to learn more.
I'm Bryan Lynn.
還會有幾期這樣的節目。
所以，不要忘記收聽我們下周的節目，學習更多的知識哦！我是布萊恩·林恩。
And I'm Anna Matteo.
我是安娜·馬特奧。
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