A watched pot never boils
Is it really true that when you watch a pot over a hot stove, it does not boil at all? Of course not. The boiling container may even catch you by surprise if you stay too close to it. Therefore, you need to be very careful so that you will not get scalded by the boiling water. Does the proverb " a watched pot never boils " make sense at all?
Normally, it takes about 8 to 10 minutes to boil 1 litre of water in a pot. It does not sound a long time, does it? However, if you simply stare at nothing more than a pot of water getting to boil, it really is a boring task. Not many people have the patience and interest. The proverbial expression " a watched pot never boils " means that time feels longer when you are anxiously waiting for something to happen.
The origin of this phrase goes back to the 18th century. Benjamin Franklin, an American polymath, used it in a report:
" … I was very hungry; it was so late; 'a watched pot is slow to boil,' …. "
當你看著火爐上的鍋時，鍋裡的水是否真的一點也不沸騰？當然不是。倘若你靠得太近這個沸騰的容器，它甚至能嚇你一跳。因此，你必須非常小心，以免被沸水燙傷。A watched pot never boils這個諺語是否講得通呢？
一般說來，需要8至10分鐘才能煮滾一鍋一公升水。這聽起來時間不長，是嗎？可是，如果你光是盯著一鍋水慢慢地煮滾，那麼，這件工作真的沉悶。具有耐心和興趣的人並不太多。A watched pot never boils這個諺語的意思是，當你焦急地等待一些事情發生時，你會感到時間很漫長。
這語句的來源追溯到18世紀。美國一位學識淵博的人物本傑明•富蘭克林曾在報告中寫道：
「……我很餓；天已經很晚；『時間過得很慢……（a watched pot is slow to boil）』……。」
捐款支持公教報 http://kkp.org.hk/donation
