We Love the City

Don’t count your chickens before they hatch. (小心功敗垂成)

賺上一筆之前先籌劃如何使用叫做to count one’s chickens before they are hatched.

小雞還未孵出，先計算有多少，太樂觀了。

Hatch是「孵化」。

The hens have already hatched five chicks/eggs. 即「母雞已孵出五隻小雞」，

Five chicks/eggs have already hatched (out).即「已有五隻小雞破殼而出」。

由此可見。eggs 或 chicks 作hatch的受詞(object)、主詞(Subject)都可以。

所以上述成語before they are hatched 四字

可以改成before they hatch 或before they have hatched.

一般而言，這成語會用於否定句，而且往往略去後面半截，例如：

Don’t count your chickens. Your investment may not fetch you a 50 percent profit every years. (先不要太樂觀，你的投資未必每年都有百分之五十利潤)。

和Don’t count your chickens.意思相近的成語還有

There’s many a slip between the cup and the lip.

(杯子到口之前常會失手)

Never spend your money before you have it.

(錢到手前，切勿使用)

Do not halloo till you are out of the wood.

(走出森林之前，不要歡呼)

第三句是說在森林中迷路的人，假如看見前面有一片空地就以為已經脫困，那就是高興得太早了。英語常用out of the wood來說擺脫困厄，一般也是用於否定句，例如：Though we have done quite well, we are not out of the wood yet.

(我們雖然做得不錯，但還未擺脫困難)。

Don’t make assumptions. (別下定論)

Anything could happen. (任何事都會發生)

Don’t jump the gun. (別太早預測事情、太早行動)