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当你在和朋友聊天时，对方语气冷淡，话少得可怜，还带着点不爽的感觉，特别尴尬！这个时候，你就需要一个这样的表达——“be short with someone”。这个表达在日常对话中超常见，意思是对某人说话简短，但语气中透着点不耐烦或恼火。学会这个表达，就能在聊天中精准get到别人的情绪，甚至自己也能用它来表达小情绪！
先来搞清楚“be short with someone”到底啥意思吧！在美语中，这个俗语指的是对某人说话时用词很少，但语气中透露出轻微的不耐烦或恼怒。中文里可以翻译成“对某人不耐烦”或者“态度简短冷淡”。这个表达非常口语化，用在日常对话中特别贴切。
比如，你问同事一个问题，他回答得特别简短，还带着点不爽的语气，你就可以说他“was short with me”。下面咱们来看个经典例句：
例句：If I’m being short with you, forgive me.
翻译：如果我对你有什么不耐烦，请原谅我。
impatient（不耐烦的）
例句：He sounded impatient when I asked him for help again.
翻译：当我再次向他求助时，他听起来很不耐烦。
annoyed（恼怒的）
例句：She looked annoyed when I interrupted her conversation.
翻译：当我打断她的谈话时，她看起来很恼火。
curt（简短无礼的）
例句：His curt reply made me feel unwelcome.
翻译：他简短无礼的回答让我觉得不受欢迎。
brusque（唐突的；无礼的）
例句：The manager was brusque when I asked about my schedule.
翻译：当我询问我的日程时，经理态度很唐突。
snappy（急躁的；易怒的）
例句：Don’t be so snappy; I’m just asking a simple question.
翻译：别这么急躁，我只是问个简单的问题。
irritated（恼怒的；不耐烦的）
例句：She got irritated when the meeting ran overtime.
翻译：会议超时了，她变得很恼火。
abrupt（突然的；唐突的）
例句：His abrupt tone surprised everyone in the room.
翻译：他唐突的语气让房间里的每个人都感到惊讶。
terse（简短的；生硬的）
例句：Her terse email left me wondering if I had upset her.
翻译：她生硬的邮件让我怀疑是否惹她不高兴了。
形容因忙碌而态度简短
例句：Sorry if I was short with you earlier; I was really stressed.
翻译：如果我刚才对你态度不好，对不起，我真的压力很大。
形容因情绪不好而冷淡
例句：She was short with me after the argument, and I felt bad.
翻译：争吵后她对我态度很冷淡，我觉得很不好受。
形容因不耐烦而简短回答
例句：He was short with everyone today; I think he’s upset.
翻译：他今天对每个人都态度简短，我觉得他心情不好。
形容因时间紧迫而语气急促
例句：I didn’t mean to be short with you; I’m just in a hurry.
翻译：我不是故意对你不耐烦，我只是赶时间。
I’m sorry if I was short with you...（如果我对你不耐烦，对不起……）
例句：I’m sorry if I was short with you earlier; I had a bad day.
翻译：如果我刚才对你不耐烦，对不起，我今天心情不好。
He/She was short with me when...（他/她当时对我态度冷淡……）
例句：She was short with me when I asked about her plans.
翻译：当我问她的计划时，她对我态度很冷淡。
Don’t be short with me just because...（别因为……就对我不耐烦）
例句：Don’t be short with me just because you’re tired.
翻译：别因为你累了就对我不耐烦。
I didn’t mean to be short with you...（我不是故意对你不耐烦……）
例句：I didn’t mean to be short with you; I’m just really busy.
翻译：我不是故意对你不耐烦，我只是真的很忙。
snap at someone（对某人急躁地说话）
例句：He snapped at me when I asked a simple question.
翻译：我问了一个简单的问题，他就对我急躁地说话。
be curt with someone（对某人态度简短无礼）
例句：She was curt with the waiter, which made us uncomfortable.
翻译：她对服务员态度简短无礼，让我们觉得很不舒服。
brush someone off（敷衍某人；不理会某人）
例句：He brushed me off when I tried to talk about the issue.
翻译：当我试图谈论这个问题时，他敷衍了我。
错误：误用为“be short to someone”
错误例句：I was short to you because I was tired.
正确例句：I was short with you because I was tired.
翻译：我对你不耐烦是因为我太累了。
错误：时态不一致
错误例句：She is short with me yesterday.
正确例句：She was short with me yesterday.
翻译：她昨天对我态度很冷淡。
错误：语境不合适
错误例句：He was short with me because he wrote a short email.
正确例句：He was short with me because he was in a bad mood.
翻译：他对我态度冷淡是因为他心情不好。
为啥英语里会用“be short”来表示不耐烦呢？
在英语中，“short”除了表示“短”的字面意思外，还常用来形容态度或行为的简略、不足。
比如“short-tempered”就是“脾气急躁”的意思。而“be short with someone”则是通过“short”来暗示说话时语言简短，态度不够友好。
这种表达在美语中特别常见，尤其是在快节奏的生活环境中，人们有时候会因为压力或情绪而表现得不够耐心。
- A: Hey, can you explain this report to me?
- B: Look, I’m really busy right now. Figure it out yourself.
- A: Sorry, I didn’t mean to bother you. You seemed short with me just now.
- B: My bad, I’m just stressed. Let’s go over it later.
翻译：
- A：嘿，你能给我解释一下这份报告吗？
- B：听着，我现在真的很忙。你自己搞定吧。
- A：对不起，我不是故意打扰你。你刚才对我好像有点不耐烦。
- B：我的错，我只是压力大。咱们晚点再讨论吧。
- A: Why were you so short with me on the phone earlier?
- B: Oh, I didn’t mean to be. I was just in a rush to catch the bus.
- A: Okay, I thought you were upset with me.
- B: Not at all, sorry if it came across that way.
翻译：
- A：你刚才在电话里为什么对我那么不耐烦？
- B：哦，我不是故意的。我只是赶着去赶公交车。
- A：好吧，我还以为你生我气了。
- B：完全没有，如果让你误会了，对不起。
词汇填空
用括号中的单词填空，注意形式：
1. I’m sorry if I was _____ (short) with you earlier.
2. He sounded very _____ (impatient) when I asked for directions.
3. Her _____ (curt) reply made everyone uncomfortable.
句型转换
将下列句子改为过去时：
1. She is short with me whenever I ask too many questions.
2. I don’t mean to be short with you right now.
小作文写作
根据提示，写一篇50-80字的小作文：
提示：Describe a situation where someone was short with you or you were short with someone. What happened and how did you feel?
