white elephant
复数形式
white elephants
1
白象, 有毒的礼物
a possession that is costly to maintain and difficult to dispose of, often more trouble than it is worth
The idiom "white elephant" comes from Southeast Asian traditions, where owning a sacred white elephant was a mark of prestige—but the animal couldn't be put to work and required expensive upkeep. Kings would sometimes gift one to a rival as a financial burden.
- The software upgrade was a white elephant—flashy but impractical.
软件升级是一个白象— 华丽但不实用。
- The luxury yacht turned out to be a white elephant, draining their finances.
那艘豪华游艇原来是个白象，耗尽了他们的财力。
- That abandoned stadium is a white elephant—millions spent, and no one uses it.
那个废弃的体育场是一个白象—花费了数百万，却无人使用。
- His sprawling mansion became a white elephant after retirement.
他广阔的豪宅在退休后成了一头白象。
- The government project was criticized as a white elephant with little public benefit.
这个政府项目被批评为一个白象，几乎没有公共效益。
2
白象, 白色大象
a rare, pale-colored elephant, often considered sacred in certain cultures, especially in Southeast Asia
- The king regarded the white elephant as a symbol of prosperity.
国王将 白象 视为繁荣的象征。
- A white elephant was gifted to the temple as a sacred offering.
一头白象作为神圣的祭品被赠予寺庙。
- Legends often feature white elephants as omens of great change.
传说中常将白象描绘为重大变革的预兆。
- The discovery of a white elephant was celebrated with a national holiday.
发现一头白象时，全国放假庆祝。
- Ancient texts describe the white elephant as a bearer of wisdom.
古代文献将白象描述为智慧的承载者。