金库与小金库

句子：政府三令五申任何单位不得私设小金库。

误译：The government has repeatedly issued orders that no unit is allowed to set up a private little treasury.

正译：The government has repeatedly issued orders that no unit is allowed to set up hidden reserves.

解释：treasury有两个意思，一是泛指“宝库”或“金库”；二是专指 “财政部”。

“金库”的第一个意思是“经管国家预算资金收支的机构”，即“国库”。英语可译为 state treasury, national treasury。“金库”的第二个意思是“金融机构或企业存放日常备用现金的地方”。英语可译为treasury, coffers。“金库”的第三个意思是“银行存放贵重物品的地方”。英语可以译为bank vault。

“小金库”不是指存放钱的小型金库，译为little treasury 是不合适的。“小金库”的第一个意思是指“在单位财务以外另立账目、私自存放和支配的公款”。可译为unauthorized departmental coffers, hidden coffers, hidden reserves, off-book accounts。例如：1. 中国最近作出新的努力治理被称为小金库的违法账目。China has recently made a new effort to stamp out illicit accounts known as hidden coffers.

“小金库”的第二个意思是指“家庭成员中个人私自保存和支配的钱财”，即“私房钱”。英语可以译为 secret assets。例如：2. 大多数妻子相信她们的丈夫没有小金库，而她们紧紧掌管着家庭钱财。Most wives believe their husbands have no secret assets and they have a grip on their family purse strings. ▲

（本栏目供稿：王逢鑫教授）