内容简介

主持人 Georgie 的一位朋友试图退回一件已经穿过并弄脏的裙子，还说 “裙子有质量问题，要退货”，这时 Georgie 说 “My friend has no leg to stand on”。这是什么意思呢？听节目，跟主持人菲菲和 Georgie 一起学习表达 “no leg to stand on” 的意思和用法。

文字稿

（关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。）

Feifei
Hello and welcome to Authentic Real English, where we explain expressions used by fluent English speakers so that you can use them, too! I'm Feifei, and I'm joined by Georgie. How are you?

Georgie
Well, I was a bit ill earlier this week, but I'm feeling much better now. How about you?

Feifei
I'm very well, thank you. And I'm glad to hear you're better. So, Georgie, what are we learning in this programme?

Georgie
We are going to learn the idiom 'no leg to stand on'. So, I'm going to give an example, and our listeners can try to guess what it means.

So, my friend recently bought a dress, and she wore it to a party and spilt food all over it. She then tried to return it at the shop. The shop assistant said, "Absolutely no, you can't do that". And really, my friend had no leg to stand on.

Feifei
No, she didn't. So, if someone has no leg to stand on, it means they don't have a good argument or support for what they're doing or saying.

Georgie
Exactly. It's often used in discussions or arguments when someone's explanation falls apart. I think we should hear some examples from our BBC Learning English colleagues.

Examples
I'm sorry I forgot your birthday, even though it's in my diary. I have no leg to stand on.

I was complaining to my husband about the mess in the house, and then I realised most of it was my fault. I haven't really got a leg to stand on.

I said I'd done the work, but I hadn't. And if they check, I haven't got a leg to stand on.

Feifei
你正在收听的是 BBC 英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。刚刚我们一起学习了惯用语 “no leg to stand on” 的用法。它的实际含义是 “某人的观点或行为‘站不住脚’”，也就是说，“没有正当的或充分的理由足以支撑自己的观点或行为”。

Georgie
Yes, and a related expression that you can use is that an argument 'has no legs'. And that just means that the argument is weak.

Feifei
是的，当我们说某个论点 “has no legs” 的时候，意思就是 “这个观点缺乏有力的证据来支撑它”。比如，一个人试图退回一件已经穿过并弄脏的裙子，还说 “裙子有质量问题，要退货”，这时我们就可以说 “Her argument has no legs”，因为她的退货理由 “站不住脚”。

另外，这期节目中我们学习的惯用语 “no leg to stand on” 通常可以与 “have” 或者 “have got” 搭配使用。比如，“They have no leg to stand on” 或者 “We've got no leg to stand on”。

Georgie
OK. Time to recap. We learnt the idiom 'no leg to stand on'. If you've got no leg to stand on, it means what you are doing or saying can't be supported.

Feifei
Thanks for joining us. Goodbye.

Georgie
Bye-bye.