【原】“Deer in （the）Headlights”是什么意思？

昨天读外刊，学到一句习语（idiom）——“deer in headlights”。根据字面表达，大概能猜出是什么意思。

deer是“鹿”，headlight是汽车前大灯（a light with a reflector and special lens mounted on the front of a vehicle to illuminate the road ahead）。“一只站在汽车前大灯灯光里的鹿”，猜意思也能猜得沾点边。

而“猜”也是理解陌生习语最基本的操作，但要彻底搞清楚习语的意思，还需要查词典，做全面考证，彻底搞清楚这个习语的来龙去脉。只有这样，以后才敢放心大胆地使用。

thefreedictionary.com给的解释是：

“In a state or manner of paralyzing surprise, fear, or bewilderment. Likened to the tendency of deer to freeze in place in front of an oncoming vehicle.”

“以一种震惊、恐惧或困惑的麻痹状态或方式。类比于鹿在面对迎面驶来的车辆时倾向于僵硬不动。” （ChatGPT 译文）

借用我们当下很流行的词来解释，可以用“懵逼”、“蒙圈”、“懵圈”，或者“惊呆”，甚至“石化”。

例如：

原文：我当时一下子就懵逼了。

可以译为：I was like a deer in headlights at that moment. 

（年轻人喜欢挂在嘴上的“be like”也用上了，^_^）

（剑桥词典的解释）

查词典，我向来会“货比三家”，研究一下不同词典对同一词条的解释存在什么异同，并研究一下不同词典给出的例句，这样更有助于我们全面掌握这个词条的使用。

这种做法虽然很耗费时间，但却真的很有效，我自以为受益匪浅，让我在语言使用方面更加自信。感兴趣的朋友不妨尝试一下。

而对于习语，我则会做更多的功课，去了解一下这种表达的由来，以及现有词义背后的逻辑。不能“得其意，而忘其形”，而是要“既知其然，更知其所以然。”

于是，动用搜索能力，找到了一篇关于“deer in （the）headlights”这个习语比较全面的解释。研究一番之后，彻底搞清楚了关于这个习语的“真相”。

独乐乐不如众乐乐，我把原文附上，供其他学友参考。

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原文如下：

Deer in Headlights Meaning

Written By: Ian @ World Deer

Pretty much everyone has heard the expression “deer in headlights, “deer in the headlights,” or “deer caught in the headlights.” But what if you haven’t heard this phrase, or are wondering about the meaning of deer in headlights after hearing someone use the phrase?

Deer in headlights means that someone looks surprised and unable to react. It is a turn of phrase used to liken someone looking stunned or surprised to how a deer looks when frozen by the headlights of an oncoming car.

But why do deer freeze when they look in headlights? Why don’t they run for safety? Let’s learn about that and some related questions in this article.

Why Do Deer Freeze in the Headlights of an Oncoming Car?

To understand why deer freeze in a car’s headlights, you need to know about their vision. Deer are crepuscular, which means they see best and are most active in low light and in the dark.

Deer’s eyes include excellent night vision, and their high proportion of rods mean that they’re extremely light sensitive.

When deer are active in the dark, their pupils are completely dilated. This is important, as it means the eyes can bring in the maximum amount of light.

This is why deer are blinded by car headlights. It takes as long as a couple of minutes for it to become accustomed to the bright light and able to see. The deer doesn’t move because it is alarmed, disoriented, and not sure whether it is safe to run out of the way.

What Does a Deer in Headlights Mean?

We might say someone looks like a deer in headlights if they appear extremely surprised and confused. Another context in which you might use this expression is if somebody is having severe anxiety or stage fright.

For instance, a novice speaker may be about to deliver a speech when he or she freezes, staring at the audience, like a deer in headlights.

If you’re in the United Kingdom, you’ve probably heard the expression, a rabbit in headlights. That is the British version of the deer in headlights idiom. Like deer, rabbits tend to freeze when a car’s headlights appear.

List of Deer in Headlights Synonyms

There are several synonyms for the deer in headlights expression. Let’s take a look at some of them below:

• Mind-blown or mindblown

• Awestruck or awe-struck

• Confused

• Stunned

Where Did the Phrase Deer in the Headlights Come From?

For obvious reasons, the idiom deer in headlights was only invented after modern automobiles were invented. In fact, it took until the 1980s for deer in the headlights to become a common idiom.

At first, drivers were confused why deer never moved out of the way when they saw a car coming at night. Why would deer just stand there, watching danger quickly approach and not run from the road?

The first time the idiom deer in the headlights became widely used in the United States was in 1988. It was used in the presidential contest between George H.W. Bush and Michael Dukakis.

Dan Quayle was George H.W. Bush’s running mate. Many people assumed Quayle was incompetent and easily confused, and a newspaper article accused him of looking like “a deer in the headlights” during a debate.

Why Do Deer Run into the Road?

If you ever travel in wooded areas with deer populations, there’s a chance one of these animals will suddenly appear in front of your car in the dark. Be prepared and understand that the deer isn’t going to move, stopping safely as quickly as you can.

Deer may run across the road to stay with its companions. If you see one deer crossing the road, there’s a strong chance that others will follow, so keep this in mind.

Deer are especially likely to suddenly run into the road during mating season. Bucks are always in pursuit of fawns during the rut.

If the male deer thinks receptive female deer are to be found on the other side of a road, they’ll run across without hesitation.

Deer also cross roads to reach water and food sources. If food and water are in short supply, deer are more likely to suddenly run into the road to find what they can on the other side.

The deer may take a couple of minutes to move, so be patient. As touched on earlier, deer will generally refuse to move until it can see and it will take a couple of minutes for the animal’s eyes to adjust.

As cautious animals, deer won’t move if they don’t know what is happening. They will generally freeze until they can see and ascertain their surroundings.

What Happens if You Hit a Deer?

Hitting a deer with your car isn’t just dangerous for the animal. It could end up in severe injury or even death for you as the driver. This is because of a deer’s size.

If you hit a deer, the first thing you should do is get your car to the safest spot possible. For example, pull over and activate your hazard lights.

Immediately call 911 for help, letting authorities know about the collision and your injuries. Never attempt to approach the deer. The animal will be extremely frightened and might attack.

How to Avoid Hitting a Deer

The spring and fall have the highest number of collisions involving deer. There are around 1.6 million collisions between vehicles and deer every year in the United States.

On average, 200 people die in these crashes. Injuries are extremely common, and they’re often serious. On top of all that is the vehicle damage, which amounts to at least $3.6 billion each year all over the country.

Always limit your speed as much as possible when driving in areas where they may be deer, especially if it’s near dusk or dawn or at night.

A lower speed makes you better able to stop suddenly if necessary. Also, if you do have a collision with a deer, it will cut down on the severity of impact.

Be a defensive driver and stay alert at all times. Stay aware of everything around you, and be especially careful if you notice any wildlife near the road. For example, you may see deer eyes shining.

原文链接：https:///deer-in-headlights-meaning/

结语：原文略微有点长，但读起来其实没什么难度。不过说到了鹿，我想到了多年前读到的一个关于“deer”的英文带颜色段子，段子的最后一句就是“No, deer runs too fast.”

如果你也知道这个段子，赶紧去面壁2秒钟；如果你不知道，欢迎去搜一搜。

好的，今天的科普和搬运工作就到这了。

下次再见~ See you then.