春节，又称农历新年，它是中国最重大的传统节 日。时间通常在一月底，二月初，象征着一年辛 劳后，冬春之交的休息和放松，也象征了喜庆。 The Spring Festival, also known as the Lunar New Year, is the greatest traditional festival. It is usually a time between late January or early February, which means rest and relaxation between winter and spring after a year’s toil, and means celebration as well.
春节前，人们打扫屋子、在大门上贴大红对联、 放鞭炮。据传说，这样做是为了驱赶一个叫“年 ”的魔鬼。除夕之夜，一大家子定会在一起会餐 ，最受欢迎的主食是饺子，人们认为它能带来好 运吉祥。 Before the Spring Festival, people clean their houses, put red couplets on their gates, and set off firecrackers, according to fairy tales, for driving a demon named Nian away. On the eve of the Spring Festival, a gettogether banquet is a must, and the most popular food is Jiaozi, which is supposed to bring good fortune.
1） 减省语气助词 汉译英时语气助词多半要省略。 真的呢，再没有比这种童子面更好看的茶花了。（杨朔，《 茶花赋》） It’s true. No flowers are lovelier than children’s faces. 我想到李白杜甫在那遥远的年代，以一叶扁舟搏浪急进，该 是多么雄伟的搏斗，会激发诗人多少瑰丽的诗思啊！（刘白 羽，《长江三日》） This makes me think of the poets Li Bai and Du Fu in those ancient days when they sailed upstream against the current and how such a magnificent struggle would stir the poets’ great imagination.
2、弥合词义差异：保证表达明确易懂
1）词义范围差异 在很多情况下，英汉词汇的语义范围往往有宽 窄之分，并非一一对应。如果英语词义比汉语 宽，英译汉时要采用增词法，使原文中隐含的 意思得以充分表达；村是艰苦的。 Everyone knows that countryside life is rather hard.
对于普通人而言，治疗妒忌的唯一办法 是快乐，然而困难在于，妒忌本身就是 快乐的巨大障碍。 The only cure for envy in the case of ordinary men and women is happiness, and the difficulty is that envy is itself a terrible obstacle to happiness.
3）介词 英译汉时很多介词可以省略，汉译英时则需根据英语 的行文需要增加适当的介词。 接到信时我高兴得跳了起来。 I jumped with joy when I received the letter. 4) 关联词 英译汉时有些关联词可以省略不译，汉译英时则需根 据具体语境增加适当的关联词语。 小孩子受了惊吓就会哭。 Little children will cry when they are frightened. 他不愿意，我们干吗强迫他干？ If he is unwilling, why should we force him to do it? 或：Why should we force him to do it since he is unwilling?
Chinese-English Translation
He went on indulging in wishful thinking. Chickens would breed more chickens. Selling them would bring him money. With this he could buy cows. The cows would breed too and selling oxen would make more money for him. With the money, he could become a money lender. Such a succession of steps for getting rich, of course, had nothing at all to do with production.
在新年的第一天，每人都穿上新衣服， 走亲访友 并且鞠躬祝福，为的是新年能有好运气。 On the first day of the new year, everybody wears new clothes and greets relatives and friends with bows and congratulations wishing each other the best during the new year.
孩子们看电视过多会大大地损坏视力。 Too much exposure to TV programs will do great harm to the eyesight of children. 她英语说得很棒，带着美国腔，却并不十分 夸张。 She spoke English well with an American accent, not, though, a very exaggerated one.
2）减省动词 参加宴会、出席音乐会、观看乒乓球表演之 后，他 ……。 After the banquets, the concerts and the table tennis exhibitions, he … 一架从昆明起飞的小飞机载着我们飞越群山 ，把我们送到了景洪。 A small plane from Kunming carried us over the mountains and sent us to Jinghong.
C. 减词
一、概念 原文中某些词语在译文中可以略去。 为了符合语法、习惯，译文可略去原文相关词 语，即“省词不省义”，译文“虽无其字但已 有其义”。 二、原因或目的 减字的目的同样也是两个：一是考虑句法需要 ，使之符合译文习惯，二是出于弥合词义差异 或者修辞上的考虑。
（一）弥合句法差异
课堂练习
1、她双手蒙住脸。 She covered her face with her hands.（加物主 代词） 2、对不起，打断一下。 Excuse me for interrupting you.（加作宾语的 代词） 姐姐在等我，得走了。 3、My sister is expecting me, so I must be off now.（加连词）

1.日服三次，每次一片 To be taken three times a day, one tablet each time. 2.你说得有道理，我服了。 What you said is reasonable. I’m convinced. 3.他不服指导。 He refused to obey directions. 4.我在那里只住了三天，因为不服水土，又回来了。 I stayed there for only three days before I returned home, because I was not accustomed to the climate there. 5.服兵役是每个青年的义务。 It’s the duty of every young man to serve in the army.
But after much hesitation he finally decided to see me off himself. With the passing of days, I become more and more homesick and more and more respectful of my old home. （张培基译） When next I looked out he was on his way back with some ruddy tangerines. The radio is on.
B. 增词
原文“虽无其字但有其义”，译文即可考虑 增词。并非可以随意增词，即“增词不增义 ”。
1 、弥合句法差异：译文符合译入语表达习惯 及语法要求 1）冠词 汉译英时则常常要根据行文需要增加适当的冠 词。 富人会说：“何不食肉？”A richman would say, … 2）代词 英译汉时很多代词都可以省略，汉译英时则需 根据具体语境增加一些代词。 小偷进去之后，马上关掉了警报。 When he got in, the thief turned off the alarm at once.
3）省略原文中重复出现的词语 汉语中为了讲究句子的平衡、气势、韵调、 常常出现排比、对仗、重复等修辞手段。英 语则不然。 我们说，长征是历史记录上的第一次，长征 是宣言书，长征是宣传队，长征是播种机。 We answer that the Long March is the first of its kind in the annals of history, that it is a manifesto, a propaganda force, a seeding machine.