Butter Wouldn't Melt in Someone's Mouth——裝老實相
** someone who looks cool, dispassionate, innocent, benign, mild-mannered, calm, harmless, sincere, demure, or overly coy, but is probably untrustworthy, disagreeable, or mean-spirited(看起來很酷、沉着的、天真、和藹、溫文爾雅、冷靜、無害、真誠、端莊或過於靦腆,但可能是不值得信任、令人討厭或心胸狹窄的人。)
~~看來十分老實:事實全非,且很虛偽;裝老實相;裝天真無邪;裝得一本正經的樣子;看來道貌岸然;假裝極嫻靜
~~ butter wouldn’t melt under one’s armpit; sugar wouldn’t melt in that one’s mouth; double-faced; double-dealing; deceitful; disingenuous; duplicitous; hypocritical; fraudulent
!! This metaphor expresses that a person is so cool that butter inside the mouth would not melt. It refers to someone who appears gentle or innocent while usually being the opposite. The word cool to mean nonchalant ease that is unaffected by passion or emotion went back at least a century before the first recorded use of the “butter”.
這個比喻表示一個人酷到嘴裡的牛油都不會融化。它指的是看起來很溫柔或天真而通常相反的人。“酷”這個詞的意思是不受激情或情緒影響地漫不經心的輕鬆,至少可以追溯到第一次使用“牛油”之前的一個世紀。
>> The demeanor of our competitor's negotiator seems as though butter wouldn't melt in his mouth, but we know better from our partners.
我們競爭對手的談判代表舉止看來十分老實,但我們從合作夥伴裡更了解他。
>> The applicant appeared to be professional, friendly, and honest, but it turned out butter wouldn't melt in his mouth.
申請人看起來很專業、友善、誠實,但原來事實全非,且很虛偽。
學勤進修教育中心英語專科導師
李啓文 教授