名人教英文：离婚多是丈夫有外遇的结果
most divorces are caused by husbands having extra-marital affairs
离婚多是丈夫有外遇的结果
gloria﹕well, it's just as you would expect, according to this report in the newspaper.
葛萝莉雅﹕嗯，报纸这段报道，一如所料。
brian﹕what is just as you would expect? the sun coming up tomorrow?
布赖恩﹕一如所料什么？料到太阳明天会出来吗？
gloria﹕very funny. no, it's about divorce and it says that most divorces are caused by husbands having extra-marital affairs.
葛萝莉雅﹕你一定以为自己很风趣。不是，这段报道讲的是离婚，说离婚多是丈夫有外遇的结果。
brian﹕what do you mean by most?
布赖恩﹕什么叫做「多是」？
gloria﹕well it reports on a survey carried out by divorce lawyers on the divorce cases they have handled over the past year.
葛萝莉雅﹕嗯，这里报道的是一个调查，由专办离婚案件的律师举办，以他们过去一年处理的案件为根据。
brian﹕i wouldn't necessarily believe anything lawyers say.
布赖恩﹕律师说什么，我未必就信什么。
gloria﹕don't be cynical. the survey says that almost three quarters of divorces were the result of husbands having extra-marital affairs.
葛萝莉雅﹕不要事事冷嘲。调查发现，夫妇离婚，几乎有四分之三是因为丈夫有外遇。
(oh) very funny当然是「十分有趣」的意思，不过，英国人爱说反话，常用这话来表示人家所言或所为并不有趣，例如﹕(1) "it's freezing cold today. would you like to go for a swim?" "oh, very funny."（今天冷得厉害，你想不想去游泳？」「你真会开玩笑。」）(2) very funny! who has set my alarm clock for four tomorrow?（谁搞这个无聊的恶作剧，把我闹钟鸣响的时间拨到明天早上四时？）
funny除了解作「有趣」，还可解作「古怪」，例如﹕our daughter has been behaving in a funny way in the past few weeks（我们女儿最近几个星期行为古怪）。有时，不清楚人家说的 funny 是什么意思，你可以用 funny peculiar/strange or funny ha-ha这成语问清楚，例如﹕"he's a funny man." "funny peculiar or funny ha-ha?"（「他这个人很funny。」「funny是指『古怪』还是『哈哈笑』？」）
cynical 一字，出自古希腊。公元前四世纪，希腊哲学家安提西尼（antisthenes）以崇尚道德、禁制物欲为教，而他教学的地方，叫 cynosarges，意思是「白犬」。时人认为安提西尼派的人衣着等粗陋得像犬一样，就叫他们做 cynics，取希腊文cynikos（犬）字的意思。现代汉语把cynic译做「犬儒」，令不知者以为是我国儒家的一支，荒谬绝伦。
今天，安提西尼学说已经无人奉行，英文就把cynicism引伸解作「愤世嫉俗，事事冷嘲」的处世态度，例如﹕he is a cynic and never has a kind word to say for anyone（他愤世嫉俗，无论说什么人，都尖酸刻薄）。