(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories.
Each week we teach expressions often used in American English. We explain how to use them and sometimes where they come from. But do not take my word for it. Go to our website: 51voa.com! You will soon see for yourself that our teaching methods work!
Or as we like to say: The proof is in the pudding.
This expression means that the best way to find out if something is good or successful is to test it yourself.
The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations claims this expression was first used in early 14th century. As with many expressions, this one has changed over the years. People back then said it this way: the proof of the pudding is in the eating.
Knowing the full original version is important when explaining this expression. Also important is understanding the two main words in the sentence: pudding and proof.
First, pudding. You may ask, "What is that?"
Well, the answer depends on whether you are using American English or British English.
In the United States, Canada and many countries in South America, "pudding" is a treat made with milk, eggs, sugar and flavoring like vanilla or chocolate.
However, if you order pudding at a restaurant in London and expect a soft, sweet dessert, you could be in for a big surprise. In Britain, pudding is a savory meat dish. In fact, the British would call our sweet dessert pudding a custard.
Now, the British do have sweet puddings such as their sticky toffee pudding and Christmas pudding. But they are solid puddings made with a lot of dried fruits. Again, nothing like an American milk-based pudding.
And their savory puddings are even more different.
Centuries ago in Britain, people combined different meats, placed them into an animal membrane, or tissue, and then made a kind of sausage. They covered the meat-filling with a soft shell made from flour and meat fat. Then they would cook the pudding by boiling or steaming it.
Like I said, the two puddings are very different.
But it is this traditional English "pudding," that gives us the expression: "The proof is in the pudding."
And that brings us to the second word: proof.
Today "proof" means something that shows that something else is true. A similar word is evidence. But centuries ago "proof" meant to test something. So we could say the expression this way: "The test of the pudding is in the eating."
And now, another question. Why is testing the pudding important?
Well, to answer this we need to go back to the main ingredient in the British pudding: sausage.
Centuries ago, there was no refrigeration to keep food cool and fresh. So meat would often go bad.
If you weren't careful, you could get "botulism," a food-borne sickness. And the root word of botulism, botulus, is the Latin word for – you guessed it – sausage.
So, testing the pudding was the only way to really know if the meat was still good to eat.
So, that is the story of this expression. Now, let's talk about when and how to use it.
The proof is in the pudding is very common. I would feel at home using it with an office supervisor, strangers or people much older than me. Other ways to say this expression are: "I'll believe that when I see it" and "I'll be the judge of that!" These are both a little more casual.
To best explain how to use it, I'll give you a few examples.
In this first one, a woman's car won't start. So, her friend is helping to fix it. Or is he?
And then after I connect this wire here ... your car will be fixed.
Are you sure? That doesn't look right.
Yes, I'm sure!
Well the proof is in the pudding. Let's start it up!
Yeah, I didn't think that was right. Here, give me the tools.
In this next example, a team leader is talking to a group of computer programmers. They have been working hard on a new product and are preparing to test it.
All right, team. This is it. We have written the program and designed the website. Tomorrow we run our first live test.
We have worked so hard! I'm sure it will work!
I know you've all worked really hard. But the proof is in the pudding. If it doesn't work, be prepared to work over the weekend to fix it.
And that is all the time we have for Words and Their Stories. Until next time, I'm Anna Matteo.
重点解析
1.depend on 取决于；视……而定
It would depend on the circumstances.
这要视情况而定。。
2.a lot of 大量；很多
You used to see a lot of her, didn't you?
你过去常见她吧？
3.be prepared for 准备着；准备做……事
You must be prepared to give the job your undivided attention.
你必须准备好全心全意地投入工作。
参考译文
欢迎收听VOA慢速英语《词汇掌故》。
每周我们教授美式英语中常用的表达方式，解释它们的用法，有时也会说一下它们的来源。但别只听我说，可以登录一下我们的网站，你很快就会看到我们的教学方法很有效！
或者我们喜欢说：The proof is in the pudding（事实就摆在眼前）。
这个表达的意思是，要知道某件事是好的还是成功的，最好的办法就是自己去检验。
《牛津名言辞典》称，这种表达最早出现在14世纪初。与许多表达方式一样，它多年来也发生了变化。过去人们这样表述：the proof of the pudding is in the eating（事实胜于雄辩）。
在解释这个表达方式时，了解完整的原始版本很重要。同样重要的是，要理解句子中的两个主要词汇：pudding（布丁）和proof（证明）。
首先是布丁，你可能会问，“这是什么？”
嗯，答案取决于你用的是美式英语还是英式英语。
在美国、加拿大和南美洲的许多国家，“布丁”是用牛奶、鸡蛋、糖、香草或巧克力等调味品做成的美食。
然而，如果在伦敦的餐厅点布丁，你想要一份软软的甜点，可能就会大吃一惊。在英国，布丁是一道美味的肉菜。事实上，英国人会把我们的甜点布丁叫做蛋奶沙司。
现在，英国人确实有甜布丁，比如黏黏的太妃糖布丁和圣诞布丁。但这些是用很多干果做成的固体布丁。再说一次，一点也不像美式的牛奶布丁。
他们的咸味布丁更是与众不同。
几个世纪前，在英国，人们把不同的肉混合在一起，放入动物膜或组织中制成香肠。他们用面粉和肉脂制成的软壳覆盖肉馅，然后煮布丁或蒸布丁。
就像我说的，这两种布丁完全不同。
但正是这种传统的英式“布丁”，给了我们这样的表达：“事实就摆在眼前。”
这就引出了第二个词：证明。
今天，“proof（证明）”意味着证明其他事情是真实的。类似的词是evidence（证据）。但几个世纪前，“proof”意味着检验某种东西。所以我们可以这样说：“检验布丁的方法就是吃掉它。”
现在，另一个问题，为什么检验布丁很重要？
为了回答这个问题，我们需要回到英式布丁的主要成分：香肠。
几个世纪以前，没有冷藏方式来保持让食物冷冻和新鲜，所以肉经常变质。
如果一不小心，可能出现“肉毒中毒”，这是一种食源性疾病。肉毒杆菌的词根——botulus，在拉丁语中是香肠的意思。
所以，检验布丁是唯一能知道肉是否还能吃的方法。
这就是这个表达的故事。现在，我们来谈谈何时以及如何使用它。
人们经常会用到The proof is in the pudding。与办公室主管、陌生人或比我大很多的人一起时使用它，我感觉很自在。其他的表达方式是：“I'll believe that when I see it（眼见为实）”，以及“I'll be the judge of that!（我自己心里有数！）”。这两种表达都比较随意。
为了更好地解释如何使用它，我来举几个例子。
在第一个例子中，一位女士的车发动不了，她的朋友正在帮忙修理，也许是吧？
我把这根线接好后，你的车就好了。
你确定？看起来不太对劲。
是的，我肯定！
事实就摆在眼前，启动一下吧！
好，我觉得不对，把工具给我。
在下面这个例子中，团队领导正在和一群计算机程序员交谈。他们一直在努力研制一种新产品，并准备进行试验。
好的，就这样。我们已经编写完程序并设计了网站。明天我们进行第一次现场测试。
我们工作很努力！我肯定会成功的！
我知道你们都很努力，但事实就摆在眼前，如果它不起作用，要准备好周末加班来修复它。
这就今天的节目，下次见，我是安娜·马特奥。
