内容简介

有时，我们虽然会感觉到某件事情 “不对劲”，却说不出具体原因。再遇到这种情况时，我们就可以用 “I can't put my finger on something” 来表达 “我说不清某事或某种感觉的原因”。听节目，跟主持人 Georgie 和菲菲学习表达 “can't put my finger on something”。

文字稿

（关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。）

Feifei
Hello and welcome to Authentic Real English, where we explain expressions used by fluent English speakers so that you can use them, too! I'm Feifei, and I'm joined by Georgie. How are you?

Georgie
I'm fine, thank you. But Feifei, you look quite different today. Is it the hair? The makeup? New skincare routine? I can't quite put my finger on it.

Feifei
Yes, Georgie. I got a haircut at the weekend. Thanks for noticing!

Georgie
Ah, yes. Well, it looks great – really suits you. Anyway, I said, "I can't put my finger on it", and that is the phrase we're looking at in this programme.

Feifei
Yes, we are. If you can't put your finger on something, it means you can't identify the cause of something. So, you knew I looked different, but you didn't know why – you couldn't put your finger on it.

Georgie
It can also be used when you can't remember something or someone. For example, I walked past a man in the street this morning and I knew I recognised him, but I just couldn't put my finger on where I knew him from. I'm still thinking about it!

Feifei
Right. So, both meanings are about not being able to recall information from your brain – either you can't remember something, or you can't work out the cause of something.

Georgie
Right, and because of that, it's mostly used in the negative – I can't put my finger on something. It can be used in the affirmative form, but it's rarer. For example, I was finally able to put my finger on why I don't like nuts – it's the texture!

Feifei
Let's hear some more examples.

Examples
There's a really strange smell in the studio. I can't quite put my finger on what it is.

This cake tastes weird. I can't really put my finger on why, but I think I followed the recipe wrong – put the wrong ingredient in.

I really feel like I've left something behind at home today, but I can't put my finger on what it is.

Feifei
你正在收听的是 BBC 英语教学的 “地道英语” 节目。刚刚我们一起学习了表达 “can't put my finger on something” 的用法。这个表达通常用来表达我们自己的感觉，所以通常搭配第一人称，“I can't put my finger on it”，意思就是 “我说不出来某件事或某种感觉的原因”。这个表达通常暗示 “说话的人认为某件事情很奇怪、不合常理，但找不到具体的缘由”。

Georgie
One last thing to say about it is that we often say it with the word 'quite' – 'I can't quite put my finger on it'. It means you feel like you're close to knowing or remembering that thing, but not yet.

Feifei
是的。在使用过程中我们通常会搭配副词 “quite”，“I can't quite put my finger on it”，意思就是 “我可能快要想明白了，但是还没有”。

Georgie
OK. Let's recap. We learnt the phrase 'can't put my finger on something' which means you can't figure out the reason for something, or you can't remember something. Thanks for joining us.

Feifei
Goodbye.

Georgie
Bye!