眾所周知，諺語乃是一種語言的精華，寓意深刻，表達(dá)雋永。在考研寫作中如能適當(dāng)?shù)匾�用一些諺語，可以為文章增輝添彩。一些同學(xué)在平時的學(xué)習(xí)中積累了一些諺語，但在寫作時不知道該如何將它們恰當(dāng)?shù)匾�用到文章中去，本文擬根據(jù)近年來《紐約時報》引用諺語的情況，總結(jié)出英語中常見的引用諺語的地道表達(dá)法，供同學(xué)們寫作時模仿使用。

　　諺語在英語中叫proverb，引用時經(jīng)常會在其前面酌情加上old, Chinese, English, Russian之類的形容詞;動詞一般用go, say, state, has it, put it等，在這些動詞后面用逗號或冒號皆可。諺語可加雙引號(這時諺語的第一個字母要大寫)，也可不加雙引號(這時第一個字母一般不大寫)。引用諺語的表達(dá)方式常見的有如下十種：

　　1) A proverb goes / says, ---

　　2) As a / the proverb goes / says, ---

　　A Yiddish proverb goes, “Better to lose with a wise man than win with a fool.”

　　有一句依地語諺語說得好，“寧輸智者，不贏傻子�！�(August 14, 2000)

　　A proverb says, “Medicine cures the man who is fated not to die.

　　有一句諺語說，“命不該死有藥救�！�(July 16, 2009)

　　As a Chinese proverb goes, “Don’t climb a tree to look for fish.”

　　正如中國的一句諺語所說，“不要緣木求魚。”(April 24, 2000)

　　As the old Chinese proverb says, “If you do not enter a tiger’s den, you cannot get her cubs.”

　　正如中國的一句諺語所說，“不入虎穴，焉得虎子。”(November 15, 1993)

　　3) As a / the proverb has it / puts it,

　　4) A proverb has it that ---

　　As a Spanish proverb has it, “Flies don’t enter a closed mouth.”

　　正如一句西班牙諺語所說，“禍從口入�！�(July 26, 1992)

　　As a Navajo proverb puts it, “What comes around goes around.”

　　正如納瓦霍族的一句諺語所說，“一報還一報�！�(May 28, 1987)

　　As a local proverb here in Chad puts it: A woman who is pregnant has one foot in the grave.

　　正如乍得當(dāng)?shù)氐囊痪渲V語所說：女人懷寶寶，鬼門關(guān)上走一遭。(March 20, 2004)

　　An old proverb has it that “if the thorn doesn’t scratch when it first emerge, it will never scratch.”

　　有一句古老的諺語說，“如果荊棘剛長出時不扎手，那么它就永遠(yuǎn)不扎手。”(March 26, 2006)

　　5) There is a proverb: ---

　　6) There is a / the proverb that goes / states, ---

　　There’s an African proverb: “Educate a boy, and educate an individual. Educate a girl, and you educate a community.”

　　有一句非洲的諺語說：“教育好一個男孩，僅教育好一人。教育好一個女孩，則教育好一群人�！�(August 19, 2009)

　　There’s a Russian proverb that goes: you must support the most talented people because untalented people will support themselves.

　　有一句俄羅斯諺語說，你須擁戴賢人，庸者僅會自顧。(December 31, 1995)

　　There is an old Jewish proverb that states: “A Shekel is always better in my pocket than in yours. “

　　有一句古老的猶太諺語說：“金幣在我口袋里總比在你口袋里強。”(August 10, 2009)

　　7) ---, a / the proverb goes, ---

　　8) ---, goes a / the proverb, ---

　　“A river is deep,” an old African proverb goes, “because of its source.”

　　有一句古老的非洲諺語說，河有源泉水才深。(September 24, 2008)

　　To kill a snake, goes an old African proverb, you must first crush the head.

　　有一句古老的非洲諺語說，打蛇先打頭。(September 22, 1985)

　　9) --- have a proverb that goes, ---

　　10) There exists a proverb. It goes, ---

　　The Arabs have a proverb that goes, “When the sultan’s dog died, everyone marched in his funeral. But when the sultan himself died, no one marched at all. “

　　阿拉伯人有一句諺語是這樣說的，“當(dāng)蘇丹的狗死了，人人都為之送葬。而當(dāng)蘇丹死了，卻無人為之送葬�！�(November 27, 1983)

　　諺語作為群眾集體智慧的結(jié)晶，多具有鮮明的民族性和地域特色。由于中西文化的差異，一些在漢語中人們耳熟能詳?shù)闹V語卻未必為西方人所理解。所以在引用漢語諺語時，如果中國特色過于濃厚，則可舍其形而取其意，寫成英語中與之意思對等的西方諺語。例如，有的同學(xué)想表達(dá)這個意思：本性難移，于是寫道：As a Chinese proverb goes, a dog cannot change its habit of eating shit. 這樣寫不但失之粗鄙，還會讓愛犬的西方人大惑不解。所以，這個意思宜寫成A leopard cannot change its spots. 或者A fox may grow gray, but never good.