Jo: Hello, I'm Jo, and you're listening to Real English from BBC Learning¹ English.

Lily: 大家好，我是杨莉。 BBC 的两分种地道英语能为大家带来最时髦的流行词语， Jo, 今天你要介绍的是?

Jo: The expression is – to get the wrong end of the stick. To get the wrong end of the stick.

Lily: 字面上看，这个短语就是错误的一头，那含义是什么呢?

Jo: Well, if you get the wrong end of the stick it means you don't understand a situation correctly.

Lily: 明白了 to get the wrong end of the stick 就是错误地理解了某事。

Jo: So, for example, maybe you go to a party and you see one of your close friends talking a lot to a man – and you think he's her boyfriend. Really he's not and they are just friends so basically² you have got the wrong end of the stick.

Lily: 好， Jo 举例说，假设你在一次聚会上看到你的一个女朋友和一名男子交谈，于是你以为她俩是情侣，其时呢，两人就是一般朋友而已，你误解了真相，这句话就是。 You got the wrong end of the stick.

Jo: You didn't understand the situation in the right way. Listen to another example.

Example

A: So why didn't you meet us on Saturday then?

B: I'm sorry about that – I got the wrong end of the stick – I thought you were meeting next Saturday.

Jo: So when are you going on holiday then Lily?

Lily: Er... I'm not going on holiday.

Jo: Oh I thought you said you were going to Spain?

Lily: No, no, that's my son – he's moving there for a few months for work.

Jo: Oh sorry, I totally got the wrong end of the stick there.

Lily: 没有关系了！不要忘了我们的网页上还有更多的新词新语。我们的网址是： www.bbcchina.com.cn. 下次再会。

Jo: Bye!