No strings attached

　　沒有附帶條件

　　Chris: Hi Helen. Wow, whats that?

　　Helen: This is a present for you, Chris. 一個小禮物。

　　Chris: A present for me? Oh, thats very kind of you!

　　Helen: Here you go.

　　Chris: A new dictionary - how nice! Thats such a lovely present, and its not even my birthday. But hang on, why have you stuck all these pieces of string onto the book?

　　Helen: There are strings to your present. 我把好幾根繩子夾在字典里。

　　Chris: Erm, I see. Do you mean there are certain conditions that come with this present?

　　Helen: Yes, strings to your present!

　　Chris: Ah, you mean there are strings attached

　　Helen: I see so its an expression in English?

　　Chris: Thats right. Having strings attached doesnt actually mean you need to stick pieces of string to the book. You can just tell me what the conditions are.

　　Helen: Oh, OK. Well, the conditions are that I can borrow your dictionary whenever I need to use it. 我的附加條件是我可以隨時隨地的用你的字典。怎么樣?

　　Chris: Thats absolutely fine. You can borrow it anytime.

　　Helen: Great! Do you have any headphones I can use too? I want to listen to my mp3 player. 能借借你的耳機嗎?

　　Chris: Yes, here you go.

　　Helen: Thanks. Are there any strings attached?

　　Chris: No, you can use the headphones for as long as you like - no strings attached.

　　Helen: Wonderful, thanks very much.

　　Chris: Lets take a listen to some examples of how strings attached or no strings attached can be used:

　　Make sure you read all of the contract before you sign it, there could be strings attached.

　　Were giving away our brand new toy to the first fifty customers who visit our shop - no strings attached.

　　Helen: So it can be a warning about whether there are restrictions to something or not.這個短語就是警告別人這里有附加條件。

　　Chris: Thats right. When something has strings attached, it often means there are hidden commitments and you should find out what they are.

　　Helen: Thats good to know. 這個短語僅僅是在說到錢的時候才能用嗎?

　　Chris: It can often be used when talking about financial agreements or negotiations, but it can also be based on personal relationships too, like when you gave me the present. Heres another example:

　　A: My brother said I could use his car this weekend, no strings attached.

　　B: Really? Thats a nice thing to do.

　　A: Well, he does owe me a favour after I washed the car last week.

　　Chris: So Helen, now that youve finished with your mp3 player, can I listen to it?

　　Helen: You can, but there are strings attached.

　　Chris: Oh, OK. What are they?

　　Helen: 我的 mp3 里只有古典音樂。

　　Chris: Oh no, I hate classical music!

　　No strings attached

　　沒有附帶條件

　　Chris: Hi Helen. Wow, whats that?

　　Helen: This is a present for you, Chris. 一個小禮物。

　　Chris: A present for me? Oh, thats very kind of you!

　　Helen: Here you go.

　　Chris: A new dictionary - how nice! Thats such a lovely present, and its not even my birthday. But hang on, why have you stuck all these pieces of string onto the book?

　　Helen: There are strings to your present. 我把好幾根繩子夾在字典里。

　　Chris: Erm, I see. Do you mean there are certain conditions that come with this present?

　　Helen: Yes, strings to your present!

　　Chris: Ah, you mean there are strings attached

　　Helen: I see so its an expression in English?

　　Chris: Thats right. Having strings attached doesnt actually mean you need to stick pieces of string to the book. You can just tell me what the conditions are.

　　Helen: Oh, OK. Well, the conditions are that I can borrow your dictionary whenever I need to use it. 我的附加條件是我可以隨時隨地的用你的字典。怎么樣?

　　Chris: Thats absolutely fine. You can borrow it anytime.

　　Helen: Great! Do you have any headphones I can use too? I want to listen to my mp3 player. 能借借你的耳機嗎?

　　Chris: Yes, here you go.

　　Helen: Thanks. Are there any strings attached?

　　Chris: No, you can use the headphones for as long as you like - no strings attached.

　　Helen: Wonderful, thanks very much.

　　Chris: Lets take a listen to some examples of how strings attached or no strings attached can be used:

　　Make sure you read all of the contract before you sign it, there could be strings attached.

　　Were giving away our brand new toy to the first fifty customers who visit our shop - no strings attached.

　　Helen: So it can be a warning about whether there are restrictions to something or not.這個短語就是警告別人這里有附加條件。

　　Chris: Thats right. When something has strings attached, it often means there are hidden commitments and you should find out what they are.

　　Helen: Thats good to know. 這個短語僅僅是在說到錢的時候才能用嗎?

　　Chris: It can often be used when talking about financial agreements or negotiations, but it can also be based on personal relationships too, like when you gave me the present. Heres another example:

　　A: My brother said I could use his car this weekend, no strings attached.

　　B: Really? Thats a nice thing to do.

　　A: Well, he does owe me a favour after I washed the car last week.

　　Chris: So Helen, now that youve finished with your mp3 player, can I listen to it?

　　Helen: You can, but there are strings attached.

　　Chris: Oh, OK. What are they?

　　Helen: 我的 mp3 里只有古典音樂。

　　Chris: Oh no, I hate classical music!