有的人一开始就给人一个坏印象是怎么说的呢？ You should say ： to get
off on the wrong foot. To get off on the wrong foot ，这是指某人一开始
就没给人一个好印象，或一开始由于某种行为而把事情弄糟了。下面这句话里说
的这个人就是一个例子：

    例句-1： When Joe went to his new job ， he got off on the wrong foot.
On the first morning he upset his new boss by arriving at the store two
hours late. And right now he's out looking for a job again. 这个人说：
“乔找到了一份新的工作，可是他刚开始到那家店里去上班时就给人一个坏印象。

    第一天上班他就晚到两个小时，让他的老板好不高兴。现在他又在找工作了。
“

    To get off on the wrong foot这个俗语实际上可以适用于任何情况。下面
一个例子是一个男学生在说他交女朋友的情况：

    例句-2： I finally got a date with that new girl in class but I sure
got off on the wrong foot with her： I had car trouble and got to her
place almost two hours late.他说：“那天我终于和班上新来的那个女同学约
好了出去玩。可是，当天我的车出了问题，晚了两个小时才去接她，所以我一开
头就把事弄糟了。”

    ******

    有意无意做错事、说错话的情况是很经常的。下面我们要讲的一个俗语就是
无意中说错了话而伤害了别人，或者叫自己很不好意思。这个俗语就是：to put
your foot in your mouth.

    我们来举个例子看看什么样的情况才 to put your foot in your mouth ：

    例句-3： When Sally told that silly joke about the sailor with one
leg she really put her foot in her mouth. She didn't know the man across
the dinner table had a brother at home in a wheelchair. 这句话翻成中文
就是：“沙莉吃晚饭时说了一个笑话，拿一个只有一条腿的水手开玩笑。她可不
知道坐在饭桌对面那个人的哥哥就是个残废，行动都得靠轮椅。”Sally 如果事
后了解情况的话，她肯定会说： "Well， I certainly have put my foot in my
mouth."

    下面我们再来举一个例子：

    例句-4： I certainly put my foot in my mouth at the party last night
when I asked Mister Brown to say hello to his wife for me. Somehow I'd
forgotten that his wife died six months ago.这人说：“我昨晚在那个聚会
上无意中说错了话。我让布朗先生替我向他的太太问好。不知怎么回事，我忘了
他太太已经在半年前去世了。”