今日短語

在中世紀的英國，如果一個人沒有繳稅，那么他的鼻子就會被用刀刺穿一個洞以示懲罰。這正是 pay through the nose for something “通過鼻子支付”這個說法最初的含義，之后被引申成“為某事物花大價錢，支付高出合理的費用”。

例句

We went on vacation during the school holidays. Of course we had to pay through the nose for our tickets as they always put the prices up then.

If you order a good bottle of wine in a restaurant you really pay through the nose for it.

Some people don’t mind paying through the nose for brands they like.

請注意

另一個可以用來表示“花一大筆錢”的說法是 an arm and a leg “一只胳膊和一條腿”，有時我們也說 pay an arm and a leg for something。如果我們需要“付出”一只胳膊或一條腿才能得到某物，那么“代價”顯然是極其高昂的。

例句

Fuel is so expensive these days. It costs an arm and a leg to fill up the car.

Never order water in a restaurant; it costs an arm and a leg.