Hello, my name is John and I work for BigAppleSchool. However I am not in Novosibirsk, I am at home in England. In fact, I am writing this in my wife’s wardrobe in our house, which is situated in a tiny village near the town of Devizes. Today I am going to continue to explain phrases which are connected with Britain’s maritime past.
The phrase “Copper-bottomed” refers to something that can be relied "upon", "trusted", and is "certain to succeed". For example:
This product comes with a copper-bottomed guarantee.
Этот продукт идёт с надёжной гарантией.
Фразу “Copper-bottomed” дословно мы можем перевести как “с медным дном” в значении “надёжный”, “платёжеспособный”, “железный” (в переносном смысле).
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The phrase “To take the wind out of someone’s sails” means ‘to deprive someone of an advantage, to make a situation unfavourable or detrimental to them. For example:
The team’s star player was injured and that really took the wind out of their sails. Ведущий игрок команды получил травму, и это действительно выбило почву у них из-под ног.
В русском выражение “To take the wind out of someone’s sails” означает “снизить эффективность”, “выбить почву из-под ног”. Дословно это можно перевести как “забрать ветер из парусов”, о чём подробнее далее нам расскажет Джон.
These phrases originate from the 18th century, a time of almost continual naval warfare between Britain and France. Wooden sailing ships by their nature are slow. If your ship was a little faster than your enemy you could outmanoeuvre them and cross their stern (the back end of a ship). This was the most vulnerable part of the vessel, there being no guns on the stern because it was where the rudder and associated steering gear was located. If this was damaged and the ship was unable to steer and it would be even more vulnerable. Furthermore a cannon ball fired into the stern from an enemy ship could travel the entire length of the ship, along the gundeck, wrecking cannons and killing the gun crews.
Any small speed advantage you had over your enemy could win you the battle. One tactic was to try to position your ship “upwind” of your opponent. So while your sails stayed full, your opponent’s would fall slack, because your ship’s sails were preventing the wind from reaching them. You were in effect taking the wind out of his sails – making the situation detrimental to him.
All ships' hulls attract creatures and plants that attach themselves. This is particularly true of wooden vessels. A buildup of seaweed on the hull of a ship can gradually reduce its speed. The 18th century solution was to cover the hulls of ships with copper plates. England was already industrialising, much more so than France so her industrial advantage meant she was able to produce sufficient copper plates to fit them to her fleet. This meant the Royal Navies’ ships were slightly faster than the French. Hence, copper-bottomed ships were certain to succeed.
Thank you for listening. Next time I will attempt to explain another nautical idiom which refers to the coldness of the weather.
VESSEL [ˈvesəl] — СУДНО:
Stern [stɜːn] — Корма
Hull [hʌl] — Корпус судна
Sails [seɪl] — Паруса
Gundeck [gʌn dek] — Пушечная палуба
Rudder [ˈrʌdər] — Руль
Steering gear [ˈstɪərɪŋ gɪə] — Рулевой механизм
NAVAL WARFARE [ˈneɪvəl ˈwɔːfeər] — БОЕВЫЕ ДЕЙСТВИЯ В МОРЕ:
Outmanoeuvre [aʊtməˈnuːvə] — Перехитрить, переиграть
Nautical [ˈnɔːtɪkəl] — Морской, навигационный
Vulnerable [ˈvʌlnərəbl] — Уязвимый
Cannon ball [ˈkænən bɔːl] — Пушечное ядро
Wrecking [ˈrekɪŋ] — Разрушительный
Gun crew [gʌn kruː] — Орудийный расчёт (группа солдат, обслуживающая артиллерийское оружие)
Upwind [ʌpˈwɪnd] — Против ветра
Detrimental [detrɪˈmentl] — Пагубный, вредный
Advantage [ədˈvɑːntɪʤ] — Преимущество
Royal Navy [ˈrɔɪəl ˈneɪvɪ] — Королевский флот Великобритании
OTHER WORDS:
Copper [ˈkɒpər] — Медь
Seaweed [ˈsiːwiːd] — Водоросли
Buildup [ˈbɪldʌp] — Отложение, скопление
Slack [slæk] — Слабый, провисать
Sufficient [səˈfɪʃnt] — Достаточно
Solution [səˈluːʃn] — Решение
После такого богатого экскурса в лексику можно смело поступать в морскую академию. Но вместо этого лучше вводить слова в активное использование, чтобы лучше их запомнить. А эффективнее всего попрактиковаться и обсудить все тонкости морской тактики вы сможете на занятиях с Джоном.
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