Animals are friends of human beings, so the languages of all nations contain a lot of words about animals. Certain words for animals do carry similar denotative and connotative meanings in both languages. In English, for instance, “dove” is often related to “peace”, and in Chinese we have a similar term “和平鸽”. Another example is that “fox” and “狐狸” both imply the quality of “being sly”, as is obvious in the idioms of “as sly as a fox” and “像狐狸一样狡猾”.
However, there are many words with the same denotative meanings but different connotative meanings. For instance, “bat” is an evil animal in European folk legends. The English idioms like “as blind as a bat” and “as crazy as a bat” give explanation by themselves. But many Chinese people believe that “bat” is the symbol of good luck, health and happiness. This is mainly because in “蝙蝠” “蝠” is pronounced the same with “福” (good fortune) in “幸福” (happiness) and “洪福” (limitless blessing).
Still, there are many other words whose denotative and connotative meanings are both different in English and Chinese. For example, in the western world, “dragon” is a fire-spitting mythical animal, signifying violence, as in “He is a bit of dragon here.” By contrast, most Chinese people regard “龙” (Long) as a symbol of dignity and power, as in the idiom “望子成龙” (hold high hopes for one’s child).
1. Some English words about animals carry both denotative and connotative meanings.()
A.True
B.False
2. Many words from Chinese and English are the same in both the denotational meanings and connotational meanings, such as “fox” and “狐狸”.()
A.True
B.False
3. The Chinese word “蝙蝠” carries the same connotative meanings with the English word “bat”.()
A.True
B.False
4. The Chinese word “龙” carries the same denotative meaning with the English word “dragon”.()
A.True
B.False
5.“He is a bit of dragon here.” The equivalent Chinese version of this sentence is: 他在这一带为非作歹。()
A.True
B.False