英语四级翻译真题:清明节

　　3.第4句是典型的汉语句式：散句多、按照横排式表达。汉译英时应采用“断句”译法。根据动作先后关系，将整句话断为两个句子，“人们携带……到墓地”为一个句子。“将食物……吃掉酒食回家”为一连串动作的描述。采用并列排序方式合为另一句。句末的“吃掉酒食”如译为eat up the food and the wine则不符合英文的动宾搭配。和wine搭配的动调应为drink，故应表达为eat up the food and drink the wine。

　　4.最后一句的“参与”与后面的“活动”搭配。故译成attend或take part in等。

　　参考译文

　　The Tomb Sweeping Day is one of the mostimportant traditional festivals in China. It startedfrom the Zhou Dynasty with a history of more than2,600 years. The Tomb Sweeping Day is animportant occasion for people to sweep the tombsand offer sacrifices to their ancestors. When visitingtombs, people carry wine, food, fruits and paper money. They put the food in front of thetombs, add some fresh soil to the tombs, bum paper money, kneel down in prayer andworship their ancestors, and finally eat up the food and drink the wine before going backhome. Apart from sweeping the tombs, people also take part in a variety of activities, such asplaying on a swing, flying kites, etc.