汉英句子翻译

汉英句子翻译基本原理及主要方法

一. 句子处理：

刚接触汉英翻译的人，最担心的往往是哪个字不会说，于是查汉英词典成为翻译的不二法门。 而在难词查询完毕之后，便依据原文语序进行翻译。实际情况是，即使一个生字也没有，如果句子组织不好，也无法达到翻译的目的。有经验的汉英译者往往对句子处理的基本原则和方法一般都能做到心中有数，即从宏观上把握翻译的方向，对宏观图景有一定的预见。

汉英句子的基本原理

1. 结构差异：连接方式不同，汉语隐形，即连接词很少出现或不出现，这体现为意合; 英语显性，即连接词出现，体现为形合.

组句方式：

汉语：动词多，短句多，常按时间顺序或前因后果的逻辑关系排列，呈链状；

英语：常按句内主次从属关系排列，在句子主体上添加修饰语以及限定语，形成严谨的树状结构。

结构差异带来的启示：

（1）. 正确判断句子之间的关系，补充连接手段，实现显性连接。

例句 „„在这一年半中，她抄写、背写英语单词的纸，累起来可达桌子高。„„ 思路：SVO=纸+达到+桌子高。

问题：累起来怎么处理？

In that year and a half, the paper on which she had copied English words or written them down from memory, if stacked up,could reach the table from the floor.

（2）. 掌握内在联系正确断句

我们的班主任姓王，五十开外，方脸，一脸的胡子。

Mr. Wang, the head teacher responsible for our class, was over fifty. He had a square-shaped face with a full beard.

（3）. 正确安排句子基本框架，主次清楚，符合原意。

原文：大家都记得1979年秋天，当这个总共只念过八年书、连英文字母也认不全，而且已有三个孩子的女工，竟然报名上电大英语班时，

招来了多少惊讶的目光。

They remember how many astonished looks were cast at her in the autumn of 1979, when this woman worker with only 8 year‟s schooling, little acquaintance with the English alphabet and three children to look after, actually enrolled in the English class offered by the local TV university.

二. 语篇意识：语篇意识是指把整个语篇视为一个整体，注重其内在连贯性(coherence)，也就是注重文章思路和逻辑，注意上下文联系。连贯性是通过Cohesion 来实现的，就是把上下文联系起来的那些词汇和语法手段，如连词、代词、指示词以及起连接作用的短语和句式等。如果缺乏整体观，翻译中只会盯住一个个孤立的句子，译出来的句子语法正确，但上下文无法串联或明显累赘，头绪混乱，看不出来龙去脉。

举例1：外高桥保税区是中国大陆第一个自由贸易区，她是以出口加工和自由贸易相结合的一个综合型对外开放区域。位于浦东新区东北端，濒临长江口，距市中心20公里。

直译：Waigaoqiao Bonded Area, situated at the northeast end of Pudong New Area, bordering on

the estuary of the Changjiang River, and from the Bonded Area, city proper being 20km., is the first free trade area in the Mainland of China,which is a comprehensive open area combining export processing with free trade.

改译：Shanghai Waigaoqiao Free Trade Zone is the first of its kind on China’s mainland, or rather a comprehensive free trade zone open to the outside world characterized by free trade along with export processing. Overlooking the Yangtze River estuary, the zone is located in the northeast end of the Pudong New Area of Shanghai, 20 kilometers from the downtown district of the city proper. 举例2：离开道路数十丈处有座大屋，屋檐下站着一个中年文士，一个十一二岁的小孩。那文士见到这等情景，不禁长叹一声，眼眶也红了，说道：“可怜，可怜！”

Under the eaves of a large house, some hundred yards from the road, a middle-aged scholar was standing with a ten- or eleven-year-old boy at his side. He was evidently affected by this little scene, for a groan escaped his lips and he appeared to be very close to tears.„Poor creatures!‟ he murmured to himself.

举例3：我常常遗憾我家门前的那块丑石呢:它黑黝黝地卧在那里，牛似的模样; 谁也不知道是什么时候留在这里的，谁也不去理会它。只是麦收时节，门前摊了麦子，奶奶总是要说:这块丑石，多碍地面哟，多时把它搬走吧。

直译：I used to be sorry for the ugly stone in front of our door. It is black and looks like an ox. Nobody knew when it was left there and paid any attention to it. Only when the season for harvesting wheat arrived and the grains of the wheat were spread over the ground beyond the door, would my grandma always say: “look at this ugly stone! It takes so much space. And someday it will be moved away.”

改译：I used to feel sorry for that ugly black piece of stone lying like an ox in front of our door; none knew when it was left there and none paid any attention to it，except at the time when wheat was harvested and my grandma，seeing the grains of wheat spread all over the ground in the front yard of the house ，would grumble: “This ugly stone takes so much space. Move it away someday.”

三. 信息焦点：找准主语 英语主谓宾的基本结构

英语主语的构成：名词；动名词；不定式；形式主语

例一：看到这惨状，大家立即陷入了恐慌。

1. On seeing this miserable scene, people got panic-stricken very soon.

2. At the sight of this miserable scene, people was seized with panic/overwhelmed by panic/great terror, or people were thrown in panic.

3. The sight of this miserable scene threw people in panic.

例2：1953年，英美两国计划对中国援朝部队使用原子弹，并准备用核武器进攻中国。当这个消息由第三国外交官转告北京时，新中国的领导人深感忧虑，立即作出了建立和发展原子弹和导弹事业的决定。

In 1953, America and England planned to use atomic bombs against Chinese aiding troops in Korea and to attack China with nuclear weapons. When the news was transferred to Beijing from diplomatic sources of a third country, the leaders of new China felt deeply worried and immediately decided to set up and develop atomic bomb and missile cause.

顺句推动法：In 1953, America and England planned to use atomic bombs against

Chinese aiding troops in Korea and to attack China with nuclear weapons. When the news was transferred to Beijing from diplomatic sources of a third country, the leaders of new China felt deeply worried and immediately decided to set up and develop atomic bomb and missile cause.

活译法：In 1953， when they learned from diplomatic sources of a third country that the United States and Britain were prepared to attack mainland China and the Chinese troops in Korea with nuclear weapons, the leaders of new China, deeply concerned, decided that China must develop its own atomic bombs and missiles.

四. 句子平衡：分清主次 . 吃透下面几种结构，英语句子结构就不会乱了。

独立主格结构

1. n. + present participle phrase

到处都可以看见人们穿着节日服装，满脸笑容。

Everywhere you can see people in their holiday dresses, their faces shining with smiles. 天气要是合适的话，我们明天要到西山去玩。

Weathe r permitting, we‟ll go on an excursion to the Western Hill tomorrow.

2. n. + past participle phrase

他脸朝天，头枕着手躺着。

He lay on his back, his face up and his hands crossed under his head.

他做完作业后回家去了。

His work done, he went home.

After his work had been done, he went home.

3. n. + adjective phrase

他鼻子冻得通红地走进房来。

He came into my room, his nose red with cold.

老头坐了下来，由于痛苦脸色发白，两颊上还带有泪痕。

The old man sat down, his face pale with pain and traces of tears on his cheeks.

4. n. + adverbial phrase

她伸出双手，掌心向上。

She put out her hands, palms up.

他袜子穿反了。

He put on his socks, wrong side out.

5. n. + n.

数以千计的船民被淹死，其中许多是小孩。

Thousands of boat people were drowned, many of them children.

他的第一个剧本成功后，又写了另一个剧本。

His first play a success, he wrote another.

6. n. + infinitive

来客也不少，有送行的，有拿东西的，有送行兼拿东西的。

We also had quite a host of visitors, some to see us off, some to fetch things, and some to do both. 他为这家杂志写了两篇稿子，一篇即将本期发表，另一篇将在下期刊载。

He has contributed two articles to the journal, one to be published in this issue, the other to come out in the next.

7. n. + prepositional phrase

他们欢快地一手拿着鞭子，一手扯着缰绳，催马向前。

In jolly spirits, they urged the horses on, whip in one hand and reins in the other.

他端着枪，走进那间黑屋子。

He entered the dark room, gun in hand.

过去分词短语

错误与挫折教训了我们，使我们变得聪明起来，我们的事情就办得好一些。

Taught by mistakes and setbacks, we have become wiser and handle our problems better. 我一直坐到十一点多钟，全神贯注地看着一本小说。

I sat until eleven, absorbed/immersed in a fiction.

形容词短语

周总理是那样谦逊、随和、易于接近，使大家很快就不紧张了。

Modest, unassuming, easy to approach, Premier Zhou soon put everyone there completely at ease. 这些艺术品丰富多彩，栩栩如生，而且别出心裁，具有鲜明的民族特色和地方色彩。

Colorful, lifelike and original, these works of art had/assumed distinctive national and local characteristics.

名词短语

他是一位天才的语言学家，同样精通法、德、英等多种语言。

A gifted linguist, he was equally at home in French, German and English.

中国是个发展中国家，属于第三世界。

A developing country, China belongs to the Third World.

不定式

如果听到他讲英语，人们会以为他是英国人。

To hear him speak English, one would take him for an Englishman.

有一天内孙先生在城里不见了，以后再没有人看到他。

One day Mr. Nelson disappeared from the town, never to be seen again.

Co-operative Phrase（相当于一个条件状语从句）

运动会风雨无阻，照常进行。

The sports meeting will be held, rain or shine.

不管成功与否，我要试一下。

Sink or swim, I‟ll try it.

解释性或描述性短语

他的妻子料理一切大大小小的事务。

His wife manages all affairs, big and small.

他光头赤脚，气喘吁吁地冲进房来。

He dashed into my room, hatless, barefooted and out of breath.

延续否定

周围没有村庄，甚至连一颗可供遮蔽的大树也没有。

There are no villages around, nor even a big tree to take shelter under. 中国不做超级大国，现在不做，将来也不做。

China will not be a superpower, not either today or even in the future.