遇到自己做不好還怪東怪西的人,我們會說他「不會睡覺還怪床歪」、「不會駛船,嫌溪彎」,更粗俗一點會說他「尿不準怪馬桶歪」,這些中文慣用語不存在於外國人的語言中,就算硬著頭皮直譯成"He couldn't fall asleep (睡著) and blamed (怪) the tilted bed (歪床)" ,外國人只會回一句"So what? Get a new bed! (那又怎樣?買新床不就得了)"。中文慣用語的直譯絕對是禁忌,浪費自己和對方的時間。
話說,網路上查得到有人把塞翁失馬焉知非福直譯出來:When the old man from the frontier lost his horse, how could one have known that it would not be fortuitous? (邊塞的老人丟失了馬,孰人怎知此非偶然?) 您覺得外國人聽了不會一臉問號嗎?