一个在美剧、电影里经常出现的地道表达——close shave,直译是“紧急剃刀”,其实它的意思是“千钧一发、差一点儿就出事”。在日常对话里,如果你刚刚躲过一次大灾难、险些被撞、或者差点儿迟到,都可以用它来形容那种惊险又松了口气的感觉。
close shave (n. phrase):a situation where one just manages to escape something unpleasant.
中文解释:勉强脱离危险,形容差一点儿就会出大事的情形。
通常作单数可数名词使用,前面需要冠词 a。
常见句型:
• It was a close shave.
• We had a close shave with a car.
• That was a close shave!
也可以用作动词短语的宾语:
• We narrowly escaped – it was a close shave.
同义表达(口语/书面)
narrow escape(稍微正式)
close call(美国口语)
by the skin of one's teeth(更夸张)
常见搭配词汇
have / get / suffer a close shave
with death / with a car / with a falling object
just / barely / narrowly(常与副词连用)
1. I almost slipped on the icy sidewalk, but I caught myself just in time – that was a close shave.
中文:我差点在结冰的人行道上滑倒,但及时抓住了自己——真是千钧一发。
2. The driver braked hard and the car missed the pedestrian by a hair; it was a close shave.
中文:司机猛踩刹车,车子只差一点儿就撞到行人,真是险些出事。
3. We had a close shave with the deadline; the report was submitted two minutes late.
中文:我们差点赶不上截止日期,报告迟了两分钟才提交。
4. During the hike, a sudden rockslide forced us to duck; it turned out to be a close shave.
中文:徒步时,突如其来的落石迫使我们低头躲避,结果是一场惊险的“剃刀”逃脱。
5. He laughed and said, “That was a close shave! I thought the plane would crash.”
中文:他笑着说:“真是千钧一发!我还以为飞机要坠毁了。”
口语化程度高——在正式书面语(如学术论文)中建议用 narrow escape。
不要和“shave”本义混淆,不要说 “I need a close shave” 来表达理发。
加具体对象会更生动:a close shave with a speeding bike、a close shave from a fire。
使用副词加强语气:just a close shave、barely a close shave。
错误:*I had a close shaveed.*
正确:*I had a close shave.*(shave本身已经是名词短语,无需加-ed)
错误:*It was close shave.*
正确:*It was a close shave.*(必须加冠词)
错误:*We escaped a close shave.*
正确:*We had a close shave.*(escape 与 close shave 结构不匹配)
请完成下列练习,检验自己对 close shave 的掌握程度。
填空(在空格处填入适当的词或短语)
a. _________ a close shave, I almost missed the train.
b. The cyclist had _________ with a car on the highway.
c. That was _________ close shave!(感叹句)
翻译(把中文译成英文,尽量使用 close shave)
a. 我们差点被大雨淋湿,幸好及时找到了避雨的地方。
b. 那次登山时,岩石突然掉下来,真是千钧一发。
改错(把句子中的错误改正)
a. It was close shave when the fire alarm went off.
b. He had a close shaveed with death during the storm.
造句(用 close shave 写两句话,情境自选)