你问我答:Cheers 表示“谢谢”的用法

编辑:给力BBC英语 更新:2023年4月14日 来源:BBC Learning English

Cheers 是我们大家都很熟悉的一个单词。在喜庆的场合大家举杯庆祝的时候,都会齐声说“Cheers! 干杯!”。不过,在英国,如果你帮了别人忙,别人回你一句“Cheers!”,这里“cheers”的意思可不是“请你喝酒”,而是被用来表达“谢谢”的 意思,这个说法给人一种亲切感。那什么时候可以用cheers 来替代thanks 或者thank you 呢?来听听节目,让你的英语更地道!

如果你有英语疑问请和我们联系@BBC英语教学 或者发邮件到:questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk.

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(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。)

Helen
大家好,欢迎收听 BBC 英语教学的《你问我答》节目。我是Helen。 这次我邀请了我的同事 Rob 参加这次的节目制作,他也是英语教学专家,我们一起为大家解答英语问题 。

Rob
Hello, I am Rob.

Helen
今天的问题来自香港的 Lucy 同学。由我代读:

Question
Hi, this is Lucy, a student from Hong Kong. I was in the UK for an exchange programme. May I ask a question about the way people say 'thank you'? 

I usually hear people say 'cheers' instead of 'thank you' or 'thanks'. Are there any differences between 'cheers' and 'thanks'? Is 'cheers' less formal? And when do we use 'cheers' and when do we use 'thanks'? I am confused. 

Thank you very much!

Helen
谢谢 Lucy 同学的提问,Lucy 在英国生活了一段时间,她发现在英国人说“谢谢”的时候往往说 cheers 而不是说 thank you 或 thanks。那 cheers 和 thanks 有什么不同呢?Cheers 是不是更口语化?什么时候用 cheers,什么时候用 thanks ?What do you think of Lucy’s question Rob?

Rob
I think this is not just about the English language, it’s also about culture.

Helen
Culture 文化,这的确是和文化有关。Cheers 这个词大家可能都不陌生,在我们在庆祝的场合下,一起举起酒杯庆祝的时候,我们都会说 “cheers”,意思就是“干杯”。不过用“cheers”来表示“谢谢”应该怎么理解呢?

Rob
Well, In Britain, we use ‘cheers’ a lot to mean ‘thank you’. Just as Lucy has already pointed out, the word ‘cheers’ is less formal compared with ‘thank you’. It is a colloquial and British way of saying ‘thank you’, but in an informal situation.

Helen
Cheers 被当作 thank you 来使用时是一个使用频率非常高的英式口语表达。在日常生活中我感觉听到人们说 cheers 的频率比 thanks 还要多。Rob,给大家举几个例子吧。

Rob
Sure, can you pass my phone to me please?

Helen
你能把我手机给我吗?Here you are.

Rob
Cheers.

Helen
我帮你拿过来了你的手机,你说 cheers 谢谢我。这里既可以说 thanks 也可以说 cheers。

Rob
I can also say - Can you pass my phone to me please? Cheers.

Helen
你能把我手机给我吗?谢谢了! 这里你提前就把“谢谢”说了。

Rob
Here is another example.

Example
A: Oh no, I left my wallet at home, I haven’t got any money for lunch! 我把钱包忘家里了,我没钱买午餐了。

B: I can lend you some money. Here is five pounds. 我可以借给你点钱。这有五镑。

A: Cheers! 谢了!

Helen
有时候我也听到人们说“cheers mate”,不过这个表达大多数时候都是男孩们用的,对吗?

Rob
Yes, ‘mate’ is used as a friendly form of address between men or boys, like ‘friend or pal’. Sometimes girls say it too, but it’s less common.

Helen
有的时候,女孩子也这么说,是吧?但是并不常见。让我们听听这段对话吧,在酒吧里,cheers 非常适用:

Example
A: Would you like another drink? I am buying a round. 你想喝一杯吗?我请客。

B: Thanks, I’d love another pint of bitter. 谢谢,我再要一杯苦啤酒。

A: Here you go. 这杯是你的。

B: Cheers mate! 谢了!

Helen
那么我想问陌生人之间能用 cheers 吗? 

Rob
Yes, you can. For example, if someone held the door for me at a shopping centre, I could say “Cheers!”.

Helen
你说如果有人帮你在购物中心开门,就算是陌生人也可以回答“Cheers!”。由此看来,cheers 可以在所有语境里代替 thanks 吗?

Rob
Most of the time, ‘cheers’ and ‘thanks' are interchangeable, they are the same. There are some occasions where it is more natural to say ‘thanks’ rather than ‘cheers’.

Helen
那你来说说哪些情况下用 thanks 比用 cheers 更合适呢?

Rob
‘Cheers’ usually ends a conversation on its own, whereas ‘thanks’ or ‘thank you’ allow a sentence to expand. So “Thanks for coming to my party” sounds more natural than “Cheers for coming to my party”.

Helen
如果仅仅是简单的回复“谢谢”或者“多谢”,我们可以用 cheers 或者 thanks 来结束一段对话。

可是当我们需要多说一点,比如“谢谢您来参加了我的派对”,这里说“Thanks for coming to my party.”听起来则更自然。如果说 “Cheers for coming to my party。”感觉就有些过于不正式、有些奇怪。

Rob
As we explained before ‘cheers’ is an informal way of saying ‘thanks’ or ‘thank you’. So in formal situations, it is much safer to use ‘thanks’ or ‘thank you’.

Helen
是的,在正式场合下,还是说 thanks 或者 thank you 更保险些。另外,大家要注意,在北美,人们不用 cheers 来表示“谢谢”的意思。

Rob
That’s right, the Americans or Canadians don't really use ‘cheers’ as a way of saying ‘thank you’. However, they probably would understand what you mean if you did use it.

Helen
好了,希望大家对 cheers 在英式英语中作为“谢谢”的用法有了更深的理解。期待更多朋友们和我们联系。我们的邮箱是 questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk, 谢谢收听。

Helen & Rob
Cheers!