VOA慢速英語(yǔ): 微不足道的錢(qián)

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[00:11.35]I'm Susan Clark with WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, a program in Special English on the Voice of America. [00:20.95]Almost every language in the world has a saying that a person can never be too rich. [00:28.53]Americans, like people in other countries, always want more money. [00:34.76]One way they express this is by protesting that their jobs do not pay enough. [00:42.00]A common expression is, "I am working for chickenfeed." It means working for very little money. [00:51.47]The expression probably began because seeds fed to chickens made people think of small change. [00:59.98] Small change means metal coins of not much value, like nickels which are worth five cents. [01:08.92]An early use of the word chickenfeed appeared in an American publication in nineteen thirty. [01:17.32]It told about a rich man and his son. [01:20.55]Word expert Mitford Mathews says it read, "I'll bet neither the kid nor his father ever saw a nickel or a dime. [01:31.25]They would not have been interested in such chickenfeed." [01:35.24]Chickenfeed also has another interesting meaning known to history experts and World War Two spies and soldiers. [01:44.90]Spy expert Henry S. A. Becket writes that some German spies working in London during the war also worked for the British. [01:56.77]The British government had to make the Germans believe their spies were working. [02:02.80] So, British officials gave them mostly false information. It was called chickenfeed. [02:09.92]The same person who protests that he is working for chickenfeed may also say, "I am working for peanuts." She means she is working for a small amount of money. [02:26.62]It is a very different meaning from the main one in the dictionary. That meaning is small nuts that grow on a plant. [02:36.13]No one knows for sure how a word for something to eat also came to mean something very small. [02:45.31]But, a peanut is a very small food.The expression is an old one. [02:52.53]Word expert Mitford Mathews says that as early as eighteen fifty-four, an American publication used the words peanut agitators. [03:03.44]That meant political troublemakers who did not have a lot of support. [03:08.99]Another reason for the saying about working for peanuts may be linked to elephants. [03:15.84]Think of how elephants are paid for their work in the circus. They receive food, not money. One of the foods they like best is peanuts. [03:29.45]When you add the word gallery to the word peanut you have the name of an area in an American theater. [03:38.22] A gallery is a high seating area or balcony above the main floor. [03:45.47]The peanut gallery got its name because it is the part of the theater most distant from where the show takes place. [03:54.62] So, peanut gallery tickets usually cost less than other tickets. People pay a small amount of money for them. (MUSIC) [04:22.63]This Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, was written by Jeri Watson. This is Susan Clark.

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Hey, I'm Workin' for Chickenfeed Here!
我掙的錢(qián)微不足道！
I'm Susan Clark with WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, a program in Special English on the Voice of America.
我是蘇珊·克拉克，這里是美國(guó)之音慢速英語(yǔ)詞匯掌故。
Almost every language in the world has a saying that a person can never be too rich.
世界上幾乎每一種語(yǔ)言都有個(gè)說(shuō)法：一個(gè)人不可能永遠(yuǎn)富有。
Americans, like people in other countries, always want more money. One way they express this is by protesting that their jobs do not pay enough. A common expression is, "I am working for chickenfeed." It means working for very little money. The expression probably began because seeds fed to chickens made people think of small change. Small change means metal coins of not much value, like nickels which are worth five cents.
跟世界上其它國(guó)家的人一樣，美國(guó)人也想要更多的錢(qián)。其中一種表現(xiàn)就是抗議他們工作掙的太少。一個(gè)常見(jiàn)的說(shuō)法是：“我為了雞食工作。”意思是我掙的錢(qián)太少。這個(gè)表達(dá)開(kāi)始使用時(shí)因?yàn)槲闺u時(shí)讓人想到小零錢(qián)。小零錢(qián)就是面值不大的金屬硬幣，鎳只是五分鎳幣。
An early use of the word chickenfeed appeared in an American publication in nineteen thirty. It told about a rich man and his son. Word expert Mitford Mathews says it read, "I'll bet neither the kid nor his father ever saw a nickel or a dime. They would not have been interested in such chickenfeed."
這個(gè)單詞chickenfeed最早出現(xiàn)在公眾視野里是在19世紀(jì)。講的是一個(gè)富商和他的兒子。詞匯專(zhuān)家米特福德•馬修斯說(shuō)，上面寫(xiě)著：“我敢打賭這個(gè)孩子或者他爸爸一定從沒(méi)有見(jiàn)過(guò)五分鎳幣或者一角硬幣。他們不會(huì)對(duì)這樣微不足道的小錢(qián)感興趣的。”
Chickenfeed also has another interesting meaning known to history experts and World War Two spies and soldiers.
對(duì)歷史學(xué)家以及第二次世界大戰(zhàn)的間諜和士兵來(lái)說(shuō)，Chickenfeed還有另一個(gè)有趣的意思。

Spy expert Henry S. A. Becket writes that some German spies working in London during the war also worked for the British. The British government had to make the Germans believe their spies were working. So, British officials gave them mostly false information. It was called chickenfeed.
間諜專(zhuān)家亨利·貝克特寫(xiě)到戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)期間在英國(guó)工作的德國(guó)間諜同樣為英國(guó)政府工作。英國(guó)政府需要讓德國(guó)人相信他們的間諜仍然在運(yùn)作中，所以，英國(guó)官員給他們的信息大部分都是假的，這就叫“情報(bào)喂養(yǎng)（chickenfeed）”。
The same person who protests that he is working for chickenfeed may also say, "I am working for peanuts." She means she is working for a small amount of money.
抗議工資掙的少的人也可以說(shuō)：“我為了堅(jiān)果工作”。她的意思是只能掙少量的錢(qián)。
It is a very different meaning from the main one in the dictionary. That meaning is small nuts that grow on a plant.
這個(gè)詞義與字典上主要的意思不同。字典上的意思是生長(zhǎng)在一株植物上得小堅(jiān)果。
No one knows for sure how a word for something to eat also came to mean something very small. But, a peanut is a very small food.
沒(méi)有人知道一種人們吃的東西怎么開(kāi)始有小東西的意思了。但是，堅(jiān)果確實(shí)是一種小的食物。
The expression is an old one. Word expert Mitford Mathews says that as early as eighteen fifty-four, an American publication used the words peanut agitators. That meant political troublemakers who did not have a lot of support.
這種表達(dá)是一種老的說(shuō)法。詞匯專(zhuān)家米特福德•馬修斯說(shuō)早在1854年，一份美國(guó)出版刊物使用堅(jiān)果來(lái)形容煽動(dòng)講話的人，意思是制造麻煩的政客沒(méi)有很多支持。
Another reason for the saying about working for peanuts may be linked to elephants. Think of how elephants are paid for their work in the circus. They receive food, not money. One of the foods they like best is peanuts.
另一個(gè)原因說(shuō)“為堅(jiān)果而工作”也許是跟大象有關(guān)系。想一下大象在馬戲團(tuán)里工作才能得到多少犒賞。它們得到的是食物，而不是錢(qián)。它們最喜歡的一種食物就是堅(jiān)果。
When you add the word gallery to the word peanut you have the name of an area in an American theater. A gallery is a high seating area or balcony above the main floor.
當(dāng)你把畫(huà)廊跟堅(jiān)果結(jié)合在一起的時(shí)候，就會(huì)得到一個(gè)美國(guó)劇院里一個(gè)地方的名字：頂層樓座
The peanut gallery got its name because it is the part of the theater most distant from where the show takes place. So, peanut gallery tickets usually cost less than other tickets. People pay a small amount of money for them.
劇場(chǎng)頂層樓座這個(gè)名字的由來(lái)是因?yàn)檫@一部分是距離演出最遠(yuǎn)的地方。因此這類(lèi)的門(mén)票通常比其他門(mén)票便宜。人們只需要付一少部分錢(qián)就可以。
(MUSIC)
This Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, was written by Jeri Watson. This is Susan Clark.
這是慢速英語(yǔ)詞匯掌故。杰瑞·瓦特森撰寫(xiě)。我是蘇珊·克拉克。

Hey, I'm Workin' for Chickenfeed Here!

I'm Susan Clark with WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, a program in Special English on the Voice of America.

Almost every language in the world has a saying that a person can never be too rich.

Americans, like people in other countries, always want more money. One way they express this is by protesting that their jobs do not pay enough. A common expression is, "I am working for chickenfeed." It means working for very little money. The expression probably began because seeds fed to chickens made people think of small change. Small change means metal coins of not much value, like nickels which are worth five cents.

An early use of the word chickenfeed appeared in an American publication in nineteen thirty. It told about a rich man and his son. Word expert Mitford Mathews says it read, "I'll bet neither the kid nor his father ever saw a nickel or a dime. They would not have been interested in such chickenfeed."

Chickenfeed also has another interesting meaning known to history experts and World War Two spies and soldiers.

Spy expert Henry S. A. Becket writes that some German spies working in London during the war also worked for the British. The British government had to make the Germans believe their spies were working. So, British officials gave them mostly false information. It was called chickenfeed.

The same person who protests that he is working for chickenfeed may also say, "I am working for peanuts." She means she is working for a small amount of money.

It is a very different meaning from the main one in the dictionary. That meaning is small nuts that grow on a plant.

No one knows for sure how a word for something to eat also came to mean something very small. But, a peanut is a very small food.

The expression is an old one. Word expert Mitford Mathews says that as early as eighteen fifty-four, an American publication used the words peanut agitators. That meant political troublemakers who did not have a lot of support.

Another reason for the saying about working for peanuts may be linked to elephants. Think of how elephants are paid for their work in the circus. They receive food, not money. One of the foods they like best is peanuts.

When you add the word gallery to the word peanut you have the name of an area in an American theater. A gallery is a high seating area or balcony above the main floor.

The peanut gallery got its name because it is the part of the theater most distant from where the show takes place. So, peanut gallery tickets usually cost less than other tickets. People pay a small amount of money for them.

(MUSIC)

This Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, was written by Jeri Watson. This is Susan Clark.

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