"Brand spanking1） new"， "clear as a bell"， "raining cats and dogs"—we all use these common sayings from time to time. Even though they don"t make much sense when taken literally， we understand what someone means when they say， "strike while the iron is hot" or "I"ve been saved by the bell！" But what did these sayings really mean when they were first used？ How did they come to be so popular？ It can"t be as different as their meanings today， can they？ Well， read on. You might be surprised.
“Brand spanking new （崭新的）”“clear as a bell （非常清楚的）”“raining cats and dogs （下倾盆大雨）”，这些常见短语我们时不时都会用到。尽管从字面上来看，这些短语不大能说得通，但如果有人说“strike while the iron is hot （趁热打铁）”或“I"ve been saved by the bell！ （铃声帮我解围了！）”，我们却知道他们想要表达什么意思。不过话说回来，这些短语在最初出现时是什么意思呢？它们如何会变得如此常见？它们当初的含义不可能会与现在的含义相差太远，对吧？嗯，继续读下去吧，你也许会大吃一惊哦。
Brand spanking new
Used today to mean something new （and probably shiny2））， "spanking new" originated from the hospital. Yes， you read that right， the hospital. In the past， when babies were born， doctors used to spank3） them to help clear their lungs so they could breath. This was also a way of finding out whether the baby was healthy. "Brand-new" goes back to the Middle Ages， when it referred to pottery or metalwork that had just been pulled from the fire in which it had been hardened.
Clear as a bell
Now， it"s used to mean something that"s understood or easy to understand. Back then？ Before the time of loudspeakers and electric sirens4）， church bells were used to alert a village or town to danger， death or a wedding. These church bells were gigantic and their sound carried long distances so that they could be heard from faraway farms. The sound was loud and clear—clear as a bell.
Raining cats and dogs
This is just plain silly. How can cats and dogs rain from the sky？ Okay， they can"t rain from the sky， but they can fall off of slippery roofs， which is where this phrase came from. In Medieval England， these animals used to live on the roofs of houses. When it rained， as was （and still is） common in England， the roofs would become slippery and these animals would fall onto the street below. During heavy storms， it would seem as if these animals were raining from the sky.
Saved by the bell
No， not the television show， this saying is a lot freakier than that！ This phrase， often used in school settings where students are "saved" from answering difficult questions by the school bell， originated in England. Decades and decades ago in England， there was an actual fear of being buried alive. Maybe because medicine wasn"t as advanced as it is today so it was difficult to tell if someone was really gone forever. To make sure someone who was buried alive could be saved， a little bell was attached to the person"s hand. This way， if they woke up underground， the grave keepers would hear the bell and save them. Scary！ Pulling someone"s leg
Now， it"s used to talk about making fun of someone or playfully misleading him or her. But this saying had a more sinister5） origin. In older days， pulling someone"s leg was an efficient way to rob them. One person would trip6） the victim （or "pull his leg"） while the other would steal his money. Frightening， but at least the meaning is more playful now.
As mad as a hatter
The Mad Hatter. Have you heard of him， from Lewis Carroll"s Alice in Wonderland？ Sure you have， but where did this name and the saying that came before it， come from？ Hats used to be made by hand （by "hatters"） using a substance called mercury7）， which is known to be poisonous to humans now. Unfortunately， hatters didn"t know that. They would come into contact with it frequently and therefore it would drive them， literally， mad！
Goodnight， sleep tight！
You might think this comes from being tucked in8） snugly9） and having a tight cocoon10） of blankets all around you. But there"s more to it than that！ Way back when， before the kind of mattress technology and materials we have now， mattresses would loosen over the course of the day， often becoming very uncomfortable by night time. In order to keep the beds together and comfortable， ropes were used to secure the mattresses to the bed frame and these ropes were tightened every night before bed. Who knew "sleeping tight" actually meant sleeping tight！
崭新的
Spanking new现在指某物非常新（或许还新得闪闪发亮），它起源于医院。是的，你没看错，就是医院。在过去，婴儿刚降生时，医生常常会通过拍打他们的屁股使他们肺部通畅，让他们可以呼吸（编注：医生一般是倒提着婴儿的双脚拍打，使婴儿口鼻中残留的羊水排出）。这也是过去医生判断婴儿是否健康的一种方法。而brand-new则起源于中世纪，指刚刚从火中取出的烧制好的陶器或锻造好的金属制品。
非常清楚的
如今，这一短语指事情为人所明白或易于理解。那它在过去是什么意思呢？在扬声器和电子警报器诞生之前，人们用教堂的钟向全村或全镇的人发出危险警报、讣告或是举办婚礼的通知。教堂里的这些钟巨大无比，声音可以传得很远，即使在遥远的农场也能够听到。声音洪亮而清晰——就像教堂的钟声一样。
下倾盆大雨
这种说法简直是愚蠢之极。猫和狗怎么会像雨水一样从天而降呢？好吧，它们的确不能，不过它们却可以从湿滑的屋顶上坠落，而这一短语正是由此而来的。在中世纪的英格兰，这些动物常常住在屋顶上。下雨时（过去和现在的英格兰都常常下雨），屋顶会变得很滑，这些动物就会滑落到下面的街上去。暴风雨来临时，它们看上去就好像雨水那样从天而降。
得以解围
不，不是电视节目中那样，这一短语的来历比电视上的情况可怕多了！该短语现在常在学校中使用，意指铃声一响，学生就能逃过一劫，不必回答难题。这个短语起源于英格兰。在几十年甚至上百年前的英格兰，人们特别害怕会被活埋，这是真事。也许这是由于当时的医疗技术并不像今天这样发达，所以很难断定某个人是否真的与世长辞的缘故吧。为了确保被活埋的人能够获救，人们便会在那个人的手上系一只小铃铛。这样一来，如果被活埋的人在地下苏醒过来，守墓人就会听到铃声赶来解救他们。多恐怖呀！
嘲笑某人
现在，这一短语用来指嘲笑某人或以玩笑的方式误导某人。殊不知，它的起源更为邪恶。过去，拉扯某人的腿是抢劫的有效方式。一个人负责将受害人绊倒（或“拉扯他的腿”），另一个人就会趁机抢走受害人的钱财。这个短语的起源听起来怪吓人的，不过还好它现在的含义更倾向于闹着玩了。
精神错乱的
有没有听说过刘易斯·卡罗尔创作的《爱丽丝奇境漫游记》中的“疯帽子先生”？你肯定听说过，可是，这个名字和早于这个名字就出现的短语又都出自何处呢？过去，制帽人手工制作帽子的时候需要用到一种叫“汞”的材料。现在的人们都知道汞对神经系统有伤害，可惜过去的制帽人却并不知道这一点。与这种材料频繁接触把他们弄得——正如字面上所描述的那样——疯疯癫癫的！
晚安，睡个好觉！
你可能会认为这个短语源自这种场景：你被贴身的毛毯紧紧裹住，感觉暖和而又舒适。其实，这个短语的起源并不只是这样。很久以前，制作床垫的技术尚未成熟，材料也不像今天这样丰富，一天下来床垫就会变得松散，到了晚上就会变得非常不舒适。为了让床榻不致走形，也为了保持床的舒适度，人们便用绳子将床垫系在床架上，并在每天晚上睡觉前把那些绳子再紧一紧。谁之前知道“sleeping tight”原意真的就是指系紧点再睡觉啊！
1. spanking [?sp??k??] adv. 十足，非常
2. shiny [??a?ni] adj. 有光泽的
3. spank [sp??k] vt. （用手掌、拖鞋等）掴，拍打（尤指打屁股）
4. siren [?sa?r?n] n. 警报器
5. sinister
[?s?n?st?（r）] adj. 恶意的，邪恶的
6. trip [tr?p] vt. 将……绊倒
7. mercury
[?m??kj?ri] n. 【化】汞，水银
8. tuck sb. in： 用被子把某人裹住
9. snugly [?sn?ɡli] adv. 暖和舒适地
10. cocoon [k??ku?n] n. 茧状物