Abstract:Idioms are phrases and sentences that do not mean exactly what they say. Even if you know the meaning of every word in the phrase or sentence, you may not understand the idiom because you don’t understand the culture behind it. So it is difficult for both English and Chinese readers to understand the idiom translation thoroughly and exactly. This thesis analyzes the factors that influence the translation of English idioms from the aspects of geographical circumstances, way of thinking, customs, historical allusions, religions and beliefs. After that, it talks about the method of translate English idioms, literal translation and free translation. Then we can have a good understand of idioms and know what kinds of methods we should use when doing translation.

Key words: English idioms; literal translation; free translation

中文摘要:习语是由短语和句子组成的，但又不单从字面的意思去理解。即使你认识短语或句子中的每一个单词，你也不一定能够弄懂整句话的意思。因为你对这些习语背后的文化并不了解。所以想要想精确而又准确地理解习语对中外学生来说都不是件容易的事情。本文分析了影响习语翻译的因素：地理环境，思维方式，风俗习惯，历史典故，宗教信仰。之后又谈及了习语的翻译方法：直译和意译。这样一来我们对习语就有了全面的了解，也知道在日常翻译中应该采用哪种译法。

关键词:  英语，习语，直译，意译