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And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English.
欢迎收听VOA慢速英语《词汇掌故》节目。
On this program, we explore words and expressions in the English language.
在本节目中，我们探讨英语中的单词和短语。
We give definitions, notes on usage, and use them in conversations.
我们给出释义，对用法进行解释说明，并在对话中使用它们。
Today we talk about a piece of clothing – gloves.
今天我们谈论一件衣物——手套。
We wear gloves to protect our hands.
我们戴手套是为了保护双手。
When the weather is cold, we wear gloves to keep our hands warm.
天气冷的时候，我们戴手套保暖。
When we do difficult outdoor work, we might wear work gloves.
当我们做艰苦的户外工作时，我们可能会戴上工作手套。
And when we clean indoors, we might wear rubber gloves to protect our hands from chemicals.
当我们在室内清洁时，我们可能会戴橡胶手套来保护我们的手免受化学物质的伤害。
But when do we wear "kid gloves"?
但我们什么时候戴“羔皮手套”呢？
Kid gloves are made from the skin of a young goat, also called a kid.
羔皮手套是用小山羊的皮制成的。
Kid leather is very soft.
小山羊皮非常柔软。
So, kid gloves are perfect for holding objects such as silverware and art without leaving fingerprints.
因此，戴羔皮手套非常适合拿银器和艺术品等物品，而不会留下指纹。
Years ago, many servants would wear kid gloves.
多年前，许多仆人都会戴羔皮手套。
But today, we use the expression kid gloves to describe a way of dealing with certain people or situations.
但在今天，我们用短语kid gloves来形容应付某些人或情况的方式。
People who are sensitive require kid gloves.
敏感的人需要小心应付。
And situations that are complex and delicate often need the kid-glove treatment.
复杂而微妙的情况往往需要谨慎处理。
However, when we use kid gloves to talk about people, it is a little different than when we talk about situations.
然而，我们用kid gloves来谈论人与我们谈论情况的情形略有不同。
To treat something with kid gloves is to handle a situation carefully and with tact.
To treat something with kid gloves指的是谨慎而机智地处理情况。
When we do something tactfully, we do it in a thoughtful way.
当我们机智地做某事时，我们会以一种深思熟虑的方式来做。
Tactful people deal with people and situations very well.
机智的人能很好地应付人和情况。
They are diplomatic.
他们很圆滑。
Handling a situation with kid gloves is the opposite of being a bull in a china shop.
小心翼翼地应付局面与笨手笨脚的是相反的。
If you are a bull in a china shop, you handle a situation very carelessly. (We talked about this idiom on another Words and Their Stories.)
a bull in a china shop指的是非常粗心地应付局面。（我们在另一期《词汇掌故》节目中讨论过这个习语）
Kid-glove treatment shows special skill and sensitivity.
极有礼貌地对待显示出特殊的技巧和敏感度。
People who need kid-glove treatment might be very sensitive, meaning their feelings are easily hurt.
需要极有礼貌地对待的人可能非常敏感，意思是他们的感情很容易受到伤害。
Or they might be fussy and demanding.
或者，他们可能很挑剔和苛刻。
For example, really famous actors or pop stars might need the kid-glove treatment.
例如，真正著名的演员或流行歌星可能需要极有礼貌地对待。
Now, let's hear the idiom used in a conversation between two friends.
现在，让我们来听一听两个朋友是如何在对话中使用这个习语的。
What are you doing this weekend?
这个周末你打算做什么？
An old friend is visiting me. We were best friends all through middle school and high school.
一位老朋友要来看我。我们在初中和高中都是最好的朋友。
That sounds fun!
听起来很有趣！
Well, I hope it will be.
我希望是这样的。
Why do say 'hope'?
为什么要说“希望”？
Well, she just went through a very nasty divorce from her high school sweetheart.
她刚刚和高中恋人不愉快地离婚了。
She's still very sensitive about it.
她对这件事仍然很敏感。
So I have to handle her with kid gloves and not talk about our high school days.
所以我不得不小心翼翼地对待她，不能提我们的高中时光。
Sounds like a little kid-glove treatment is just what she needs.
听起来她确实需要被非常小心地对待。
And you can talk about the future instead.
你可以谈论未来。
And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. Until next time … I'm Anna Matteo.
以上就是本期《词汇掌故》节目的全部内容。下次见……我是安娜·马特奥。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
