她是天王巨星阿汤哥的妻子,她是好莱坞最受瞩目的明星宝宝小苏瑞的妈妈。尽管凯蒂·赫尔姆斯(Katie Holmes)一直竭力打造自己作为演员的形象,然而事实证明那并不成功。比起婚前几乎年年有口碑不错的新作问世,如今的凯蒂见诸报端的缘由不是丈夫,便是女儿。要大家不认为她婚后就变成“壁花”小姐,说服力显然不够。
Wallflower是一种植物—桂竹香,它也经常用来指那些不喜交际、在社交场合呆坐一边、无人理会的女孩。在台湾,wallflower被译为“壁花小姐”,无论取字面解释还是延伸意义,都十分符合英文的原意。
Wallflower“壁花”小姐
“A lot of people think that I just became this wallflower, this woman who doesn’t have any control of her life. And that’s pretty wrong.”
—Katie Holmes, on how people think she’s changed since marrying Tom Cruise.
Definition
A shy person who doesn’t like to participate in social activities.
Usage
Wallflower is the name of a plant with delicate orange or yellow blossoms that often grows along old walls or cliffs. It’s also what we call a quiet, antisocial person who is shy at parties. Katie Holmes says that the public thinks she’s turned into a wallflower because of her relationship with Tom Cruise. People say that he doesn’t let her go out very much or have many friends, but Katie says that isn’t true.
Being a wallflower isn’t all bad. Girls who get called wallflowers are often pretty and mysterious. They might seem really quiet at first, but once you notice them and talk to them, they’re actually really interesting. The singer Bob Dylan even has a love song called “Wallflower.” He sings, “Wallflower, wallflower, won’t you dance with me? I’m fallin’ in love with you.”
Examples
► At first, I didn’t notice Jane because she’s really a wallflower. But the minute I met her, I was in love!
一开始我并没有注意到简,因为她一言不发地坐在一边。但当我与她见面的那一刻,我便陷入了爱河!
► I tried not to be a wallflower at the party because I wanted to meet people, but it’s so hard for me to talk to people I don’t know.
我尝试过不要当舞会上的“壁花”小姐,因为我想结交多一些人,但是对我来说,和不认识的人交谈真是比登天还难。