goose /guːs/► SEE ALLcook sb’s goose(kill) the golden goosewhat’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the ganderhe, she, etc. wouldn’t say boo to a goosea wild goose chase●ˌcook sb’s ˈgoose (informal) ruin sb’s plans or chances of success破坏某人的计划；毁掉某人的前程◆He thought that the police would never find him but when he saw the officer coming towards him he realized that his goose was finally cooked.他本以为警方绝不会找到他，等他看到警察朝他走过来时，才意识到自己完了。●(kill) the golden ˈgoose ( (kill) the goose that lays the golden ˈegg/ˈeggs) (destroy) sth that makes you rich, successful, etc.杀鸡取卵；（毁掉）摇钱树；（自绝）财源；（自毁）前程◆The government is worried that a new tax might kill the golden goose by scaring away foreign investment.政府担心新税收会吓跑外国投资者，从而断了财路。◆The banks made vast profits from an energy trader that had become the golden goose of Wall Street.各大银行已从华尔街的摇钱树 － 一个能源交易商身上赚了不少钱。ORIGINThis comes from an ancient Greek story about a farmer who had a goose that laid golden eggs. The farmer thought that if he killed the goose he could get all the eggs inside. However, by killing the goose, he lost everything.这个谚语源于古希腊传说。一位农夫有一只会下金蛋的鹅，他认为把鹅杀了就能取出全部金蛋，结果落得一场空。●what’s ˌsauce for the ˌgoose is ˌsauce for the ˈgander (old-fashioned, saying) if one partner in a marriage or relationship can behave in a particular way, then the other partner should also be allowed to behave in this way（在婚姻或某种关系中）适于此者亦应适于彼，应该一视同仁◆If she can go out with her friends, why can’t I? What’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.她可以和朋友一起出去，我为什么不行呢？应该一视同仁嘛。NOTE A gander is a male goose. * gander 意为“公鹅”。●he, she, etc. wouldn’t say ˌboo to a ˈgoose (informal) sb is very shy and afraid of upsetting or annoying people为人羞怯（或胆小）◆How could he ever succeed in politics? He wouldn’t say boo to a goose.他怎么能在政治上取得成功？他连只蚂蚁都不敢踩。NOTE People shout Boo! when they want to surprise or frighten somebody. * boo 指人们用以惊吓别人而喊出的声音。●a ˌwild ˈgoose chasea (long) search for sth that you cannot find because you have been given the wrong information（因信息错误而长途／长时）徒劳追寻；白费力气的追逐；徒劳之举◆He gave us the wrong directions to the station and that led us off on a wild goose chase.他给我们指错了方向，我们白费力气，根本找不到火车站。◆Peter’s story sent the police on a wild goose chase. They soon realized he’d been lying.彼得的鬼话误导了警方的侦查工作。他们很快意识到他在撒谎。ORIGINIn the past, this was a sport in which horse riders had to follow the exact course taken by the first rider, like the way that geese fly by following a leader. Later it referred to any unplanned or irregular course taken by one person and followed by another, and then came to mean something that was like trying to find a wild goose: that is, a difficult or hopeless task.这是旧时的一项运动，骑手们必须严格按照第一个骑手的路线走，就像天鹅群跟随领飞的天鹅一样。后来这用来表示众人跟随某人毫无规划、杂乱无章的行动方针；之后又指试图寻找野天鹅之类的事，由此产生出“艰难而毫无希望的任务”之意。