看美剧学英语高频短语：Keep one’s shirt on
Keep one’s shirt on：An informal idiom meaning “stay calm, don’t get upset, don’t lose your temper, and be patient.” It is often used when someone is getting irritated, anxious, or rushing others. （冷静点、别急、别生气、耐心一点。通常用来提醒对方不要烦躁或发火。）
一个广为流传、半真半传奇的故事是：19 世纪 40 年代的美国铁路工人脾气火爆，两个人只要吵起来，其中一个就会开始解扣子脱衬衫，表示“准备动手了”。传说某次工头看到两个工人要打了，就大喊：“Keep your shirts on! 我们是来铺铁路，不是来互相打断骨头的！”。这句话很快在工人之间流传开来，然后传到镇上、报纸上。到了 1850 年代，它已经成为固定习语，意思是：
“别发火，耐心点。”
A popular anecdote (half history, half legend) says that in the 1840s, American railroad workers were famously hot-tempered. Whenever two workers argued, one would immediately start unbuttoning his shirt, signaling he was ready to fight.
According to the story, a foreman once saw two men about to square off and shouted:
“Keep your shirts on! We’ve got tracks to lay, not bones to break!”The phrase spread quickly among workers, then towns, then newspapers. By the 1850s, it was widely used as an idiom meaning “don’t get mad; be patient.”
以下是“Keep one’s shirt on”在美剧语料库中的相关例句：
场景一：选自美剧《绝望的主妇》S03E18 13:01（Tom, Mrs. McCluskey）
Tom: Mrs. McCluskey! 麦克拉斯基太太！
Mrs. McCluskey: I’m right here. Keep your shirt on. 我就在这儿。别大惊小怪的/冷静点。
——>> I need another pill. 我再要一片药。
——>> And please tell the kids to turn down the TV. 还有请让孩子们把电视声音关小点。
Tom: I yell, they turn it down. I walk away, they turn it up. 我吼他们，他们就关小。我一走开，他们就开大。
——>> Vicious circle. 恶性循环。
Mrs. McCluskey: Surely you can control five little kids. 你肯定能管住五个小孩吧。
Tom: – Can I beat ’em? – 我能揍他们吗？
Mrs. McCluskey: – No. – 不能。
Tom: Then my hands are tied. 那我就没办法了。
场景二：选自美剧《小谢尔顿》S02E22 07:19（George Sr., Georgie）
Georgie: Since when do we get MTV? 我们什么时候能看MTV了？（在此语境中，“MTV” 指的是美国电视台 Music Television（音乐电视），最初是一个全天候播放音乐录像的频道。
如今的 MTV 已不再主要是“音乐电视台”。虽然名字仍叫 Music Television，但现代 MTV 的主要内容已经转变为：
真人秀节目（如《真实世界》《泽西海岸》《十几岁当妈》）
明星与流行文化类节目
恋爱节目、竞赛类非剧本节目
偶尔播出大型音乐活动（如 MTV 音乐录影带大奖）
所以在当代语境中，“MTV” 本质上指的是一个真人秀为主的频道，而不是播放音乐录像的频道。）
George Sr.: Since I got cable. 自从我装了有线电视。
Georgie: What do you mean, you got cable? 你装了有线电视是什么意思？
——>> I called up the cable company and I said, 我打电话给有线电视公司说，
——>> “Hello, I’d like cable,” and they put in cable. “你好，我想装有线电视，”然后他们就装了。
George Sr.: I’m not paying for that. 我不会付钱的。
Georgie: Keep your shirt on. I paid for it. 冷静点/别着急。我付过钱了。
George Sr.: Is that so? 是这样吗？
Georgie: Yeah, with money I saved from my job. 是啊，用我工作攒的钱。
场景三：选自美剧《亿万》S03E10 45:38
Axelord: You know, when it comes to pension fund managers, 你知道，说到养老基金经理，
——>> these groups never give an answer in the room. 这些团体从不会当场给出答复。
——>> But they did this time– 但这次他们给了——
Mike Wagner: The answer was no– 答复是“不”——
Axelord: It was ‘heck no.’ 是“绝对不”。
Ben Kim: They didn’t like it? 他们不喜欢这提案？
Mike Wagner:Found it offensive, called us unprofessional. 觉得被冒犯了，说我们不专业。
Axelord: So…what the hell was that? 所以……那到底是怎么回事？
Ben Kim: I’ve been tracking rental car usage in business cities, 我一直在追踪商业城市的租车使用情况，
——>> developing relationships with managers there. 和那里的经理们建立关系。
——>> Based on lots of activity in Milwaukee, 根据密尔沃基的大量活动，
——>> I’ve deduced a big move is going down… 我推断有大动作正在发生……
Axelord: Talk more. 说下去。
Ben Kim: Managers of the main airport locations have confirmed 主要机场门店的经理已经确认，
——>> that there are lots of Dutch passports 有很多荷兰护照
——>> being presented for car rentals. 被用于租车。
Axelord: Holland Inter-Bev’s going after Beer National. 荷兰国际啤酒公司要收购国家啤酒公司。
Ben Kim: My sources were able to confirm, by GPS, 我的消息源通过GPS确认了，
——>> that all these cars have been going from a Courtyard Marriott 所有这些车都是从万怡酒店
——>> seven miles to– 开了七英里到——
Axelord: Beer National’s Milwaukee headquarters. 国家啤酒公司的密尔沃基总部。
Ben Kim: Right. 对。
——>> I think there’s a merger coming, 我认为即将有一场并购，
——>> if not an outright purchase— 如果不是直接收购——
Mike Wagner: And Axe Cap will have positions in both companies, 而Axe资本会在两家公司都有头寸，
——>> ready for the ride up on the announcement. 准备好迎接消息公布时的上涨。
Axelord: Well fucking done, Ben Kim. 干得真他妈漂亮，本·金。
——>> Maybe next time, keep your shirt on… 也许下次，别你的衬衣穿上……
以下是英语高频短语“Keep one’s shirt on”在日常交流与商务语境中的相关例句：
日常场景：
-
Keep your shirt on—I’m coming! No need to yell.
冷静点——我马上来！不用吼我。 -
Just keep your shirt on. The food will be ready in a minute.
别急，饭马上就好。
商务场景：
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Let’s keep our shirts on. We need the full data before jumping to conclusions.
大家先别急，在下结论之前我们需要完整的数据。 -
Keep your shirt on—the contract will be finalized once legal signs off.
冷静点，合同要等法务批准后才能最终定稿。
