说“孪生”
文/王逢鑫
“孪生儿”“双胞胎”或“双棒儿”，英语可以译为twins。例如：
多达40%的双胞胎都有自己的私密语言，其他家庭成员都听不懂。
As many as 40 per cent of twins have a private language that excludes the rest of the family.
“一对双胞胎”，英语可以译为a pair of twins、a set of twins。例如：
当医生告诉这对年轻夫妇他们将有一对双胞胎时，他们欣喜若狂。
The young couple were thrilled when the doctor told them they were going to have a pair of twins.
“同卵双胞胎”或“单卵双胞胎”，英语可以译为monozygotic twins、identical twins。例如：
某一特定基因特征只表现在一对同卵双胞胎中的一个人身上。
The presence of a given genetic trait is in only one member of a pair of identical twins.
“镜像双胞胎”指身体特征和行为习惯都相反的同卵双胞胎，英语可以译为mirror-image twins、mirror twins。例如：
镜像双胞胎可能分别是右利手和左利手，胎记各在身体相对的一侧，或者头旋的方向相反。
Mirror twins may be right-handed and left-handed, have birthmarks on opposite sides of their bodies, or have hair whorls that swirl in opposite directions.
“异卵双胞胎” 或“ 双卵双胞胎”， 英语可以译为non-identical twins、fraternal twins。例如：
异卵双胞胎是两个受精卵同时植入子宫的结果。
Non-identical twins are the result of two fertilized eggs implanting in the uterus at the same time.
“连体双胞胎”，英语可以译为conjoined twins、Siamese twins。例如：
这位外科医生决定给/为这对普遍认为无法分离的连体双胞胎做分离手术。
The surgeon decided to perform a separation operation on the Siamese twins who were generally considered inseparable.
“头部连体双胞胎”，英语的说法很多，包括craniopagus twins、head-to-head twins、twins joined at the head、twins joined at the top of their heads、twins with the tops of their heads fused together。例如：
这对头部连体的双胞胎在伦敦一家医院经历一系列罕见而有风险的手术后被分离开来。
The conjoined twins born with the tops of their heads fused together were separated in a rare and risky series of operations at a hospital in London.
“同性双胞胎”，英语可以译为same-sex twins。“孪生兄弟”和“孪生姐妹”，英语分别译为 twin brothers和twin sisters。例如：
这对同性双胞胎小时候通常穿式样相同但颜色不同的服装。
When the same-sex twins were young, they were usually dressed in same outfits of different colours.
“异性双胞胎”，俗称“龙凤胎”。英语可以译为opposite-sex twins、mixed-sex twins、male-and-female twins、boy and girl twins、boy-girl twins、pigeon twins、pigeon pairs、heterosexual twins。例如：
北京双胞胎文化节的一位组织者说，已有616对双胞胎（包括93对龙凤胎）报名参加这次活动。
An organizer of Beijing Twins Cultural Festival said that a total of 616 sets of twins had registered for the event, including 93 pigeon twins.
Irish twins译为“爱尔兰双胞胎”，但实际上与“孪生儿”无关，而指出生时间相差不超过12个月的兄弟姐妹。换句话说，“爱尔兰双胞胎”是在一年之内相继出生的。这个词具有讽刺意味。例如：
“爱尔兰双胞胎”这个词是对爱尔兰天主教家庭典型生育方式的挖苦，传统上这些家庭不采取节育措施。此外，这个词还暗讽爱尔兰人缺乏提前计划或自制的能力，生孩子很快，一个紧接一个，而不是负责任地错开生育时间。
The term “Irish twins” pokes fun at the stereotypical fertility of Irish Catholic families, which traditionally do not use birth control. In addition, it implies that the Irish lack the ability to plan ahead or control themselves, having children in quick succession rather than responsibly spacing them.
“三胞胎”译为triplets，“四胞胎”译为quadruplets、quads，“五胞胎”译为quintuplets、quins、quint，“六胞胎”译为sextuplets，“七胞胎”译为septuplets，“八胞胎”译为octuplets。例如：
通常一个女人一次只生一个宝宝，不过偶尔也生双胞胎、三胞胎、四胞胎，甚至更多！
Usually a woman has only one baby at a time, but occasionally she has twins, triplets, quadruplets, or even more!
twins的特点是相同（sameness），主要表现在相貌（appearance）相同。
英语有不同的方法表达twins的“相同”。例如：
这对双胞胎兄弟长得非常像。
1）The twin brothers are very much alike.
2）The twin brothers are like two peas in a pod.
3）The twin brothers are the splitting image of each other.
有时，twins也会有相异之处，表现在性格（character）、天资（aptitude）、性情（disposition）、气质（temperament）等方面。例如：
那两个孪生兄弟在性格方面相差很远。
The twin brothers are far apart in character.
这对孪生兄弟外表相似，但性情却大不相同。
The twin brothers are alike in appearance, but differ greatly in disposition.
twin可以用来表示成双成对（doubleness）的事物。例如：
纽约市世贸中心110层高的双子塔在2001年9月11日毁于恐怖主义袭击。
The 110-story twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City was destroyed by a terrorist attack on September 11, 2001.
twin还可以用来比喻两种事物的亲密（closeness）关系。例如：
真实与坦率密切相关。
Truth and frankness are twin brothers.
英国英语twin town、twin city和美国英语sister town、sister city的意思是“姐妹城市”或“友好城市”。例如：
伦敦是北京在英国的友好城市。
London is Beijing’s twin city in the United Kingdom.