英语短语"take a roundabout way"的核心含义是“走迂回路线;绕远路;(说话/做事)拐弯抹角”,可分为字面义和引申义两种用法:
指因某种原因(如道路封闭、交通拥堵)不选择最直接的路径,而是走更曲折、更长的路线。
结构:`take a roundabout way + 介词短语(to/through...)` 例句:We had to take a roundabout way to the airport because the highway was blocked by an accident.(因为高速公路因事故封闭,我们不得不绕路去机场。)
The hiker took a roundabout way through the forest to avoid the steep hill.(徒步者绕经森林,避开陡峭的山坡。)
指不直截了当地表达想法或完成任务,而是通过间接、绕圈的方式进行(类似“beat around the bush”)。
结构:`take a roundabout way + to do sth. / of doing sth.` 例句:She took a roundabout way to tell me she didn’t want to go to the party.(她拐弯抹角地告诉我她不想去派对。)
Instead of asking for a raise directly, he took a roundabout way of mentioning his heavy workload.(他没有直接要求加薪,而是拐弯抹角地提自己工作量很大。)
修饰词:可加形容词表示“绕路的程度”,如`take a slight/long roundabout way`(稍微/大幅绕路);
同义表达:字面义可替换为`go the long way around`;引申义可替换为`beat around the bush`(更口语)。
该短语的关键是“不直接”——既可以指物理上的路线绕弯,也可以指抽象的表达/行动绕弯。使用时需结合语境判断是“实际绕路”还是“拐弯抹角”。