Reader question: He's off the rails. Could you explain “off the rails”? My comments: Picture a train crash! Rails are the two metal tracks fixed to the ground on which trains move along. Imagine you’re on a train to Shanghai and the thing goes off the rails during the dead of the night…. Sorry for stirring your imagination this way but you get the idea. Hence, if someone’s off the rails, they’re off the right track. Something’s wrong with them. Or they might do something wrong. Related stories:Year-round residents & summer people 本文僅代表作者本人觀點,與本網(wǎng)立場無關(guān)。歡迎大家討論學(xué)術(shù)問題,尊重他人,禁止人身攻擊和發(fā)布一切違反國家現(xiàn)行法律法規(guī)的內(nèi)容。 About the author: Zhang Xin has been with China Daily since 1988, when he graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Write him at: zhangxin@chinadaily.com.cn, or raise a question for potential use in a future column. |
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