你问我答
怎么用英语说“我放心了”?

内容简介
虽然 “that's a relief”、“now I can rest easy” 和 “now, I'm relieved” 都可以表达 “放心了”,不过它们的用法却有所不同。比如,如果我们在经历了长时间的担心和痛苦,甚至身心都因此十分疲惫之后终于得到了放松,那么用 “now I can rest easy” 就更为贴切。这是为什么呢?听节目,跟主持人 Georgie 和步理学习英语中可以表达 “我终于可以放心了” 的语句。
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。)
Buli
大家好,欢迎收听 BBC 英语教学的 “你问我答” 节目。We are here to answer your questions about English language, culture and life. I'm Buli, and Georgie is supposed to be here with me, but I can't see her.
Georgie
I'm here, Buli. Don't worry!
Buli
Phew, that's a relief! I thought I'd have to record the programme all by myself…
Georgie
No, I wouldn't do that to you, Buli. Well, let's hear this week's question.
Question
使用 “That's a relief.”、“Now, I'm relieved.” 和 “Now I can rest easy.” 这三句话的语境分别是什么?
Buli
这三个句式都可以用来表达 “我放心了” 这个意思,不过它们之间适用的场景确实有所不同。接下来就让我们来学习一下它们的用法。
Let's start with the word 'relief'. 'Relief' means the feeling of relaxation or happiness after a period of stress has ended. 'Relieved' is the adjective to describe that feeling.
Georgie
Yes, well, I think it would be helpful to look at the example we used at the beginning. You were worried I wasn't in the studio and thought you might have to record by yourself. So, Buli, why did you say "That's a relief"?
Buli
Well, because I felt relieved when I saw you! 'That's a relief' is quite a common phrase to use when you've been in a state of worry and then something happens to make you feel more relaxed. It's like an exclamation.
Georgie
Right, so if I'm stressing about my exam results all week and then I receive good results, I could say 'That's a relief!'
Buli
Exactly. OK, so now let's compare that with the phrase 'Now I can rest easy'.
Georgie
Yeah, so this phrase is more specific because 'rest easy' means you can now relax or sleep well because you're no longer worried. It implies you have not been sleeping well because of the worry.
Buli
So, going back to the original example where I thought I was going to have to record the programme by myself, I wouldn't say 'Now I can rest easy' because it's not a worry that was keeping me up at night – it was more of a short-term worry that only lasted a few moments until I saw that you were here.
Georgie
Yes, but you could use it with the exams example because you often have to wait a while for exam results, so it's more plausible you could lose sleep worrying about it. So, when I found out I passed my exams, I could say 'Oof! Now I can rest easy.'
Buli
Yes, or when I spent weeks thinking I'd lost my keys – it was keeping me up at night, but then I found them – 'Now I can rest easy.'
总的来说,在问题提到的三个句式中,“that's a relief” 所表达出的的情绪最为兴奋,是一句感叹的话,意思就像是 “我总算是放心了!” 其中,名词 “relief” 的意思就是 “在恐惧、担心或痛苦得到缓解或消失时感觉到的轻松或宽慰”。
而另一个句式 “Now I can rest easy.” 和 “that's a relief” 非常类似,意思是 “现在我终于放心了”。不同的是,“Now I can rest easy.” 往往暗示 “说话者已经为某件事担心了好久,甚至都没法好好休息”,有一种 “一直悬着的心终于放下了,终于能睡个好觉了” 的感觉。
So, Georgie, what about 'Now, I'm relieved'?
Georgie
Well, this one is less of a fixed phrase than the others. It simply describes the feeling of being relieved. 'I'm relieved' is less common as an exclamation or reaction – in those cases, it's better to use 'that's a relief'.
Buli
Yes. 'I'm relieved' is better used in response to the question 'How do you feel?'. For example, Georgie, how do you feel about your exam results?
Georgie
Well, I'm very relieved. Months of studying followed by weeks of waiting for the results – very relieved. How did you feel when you found your car keys?
Buli
I felt very relieved as well. It was causing me so much stress! 和前面两个句式不同,“Now, I'm relieved.” 通常并不是一句感叹的话,而更像是在直白地描述自己 “放心了” 的这个感受和变化。其中,“relieved” 是一个形容词,意思是 “感到放心的,感到宽慰的”。
你正在收听的是 BBC 英语教学的“你问我答”节目。刚刚我和 Georgie 介绍了三个可以用来表达 “我放心了” 的句式 “that's a relief”、“now, I'm relieved” 和 “now I can rest easy”。
Georgie
Now, you can also say these to other people, rather than just as a way to describe your own relief. For example, when you told me about finding your car keys, I could react by saying 'Well, now you can rest easy' or 'You must be so relieved.' I could even say 'Wow – what a relief!'
Buli
是的。除了用来说自己 “放心了”,我们还可以用这三个句式来对他人说 “现在你可以放心了”。比如,你的朋友终于拿到了自己担心了很久的考试结果,考得还不错,你就可以对他说“You can rest easy now.(你可算能放松了。)” 在口语中,人们还会用 “Wow – what a relief!” 来感叹 “哇,真是让人松了一口气!”
Georgie
Remember, if you have a question that you'd like us to answer, you can email us too at: questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk
Buli
你也可以通过微博向我们提问。我们的微博账号是 “BBC英语教学”。Bye!
Georgie
Goodbye!