Do Cats Really Have Nine Lives?猫真的有九条命吗？

We all love our cats. They might be grumpy animals that would knock things over around the house， curl up on us when we’re down. We like to think they would always be there for us since they have nine lives， right？ As much as we want our cats’ nine lives to be true， it is a myth. Here comes the question. Where did this myth come from？

我们都爱自己的猫。它们可能是脾气暴躁的动物，会把房子里的东西撞倒；在我们情绪低落时蜷缩在我们身上。我们往往认为它们会一直在我们身边，因为猫有九条命，对吧？尽管我们非常希望猫有九条命这种说法是真的，但这是一个错误的观点。那么问题来了。这个错误的观点是怎么来的呢？

The legend of the cat’s nine lives

猫有九条命的传说

No one knows who started the myth of the nine lives of cats， and there are no recordings of when and where it was first made， either. In one of William Shakespeare’s most famous plays， Romeo and Juliet， he wrote： “Good king of cats， nothing but one of your nine lives.”

没有人知道是谁最先说出猫有九条命这个错误观点的，也没有关于该观点第一次出现的时间和地点的记录。在威廉" 莎士比亚最著名的戏剧之一《罗密欧与朱丽叶》中，他写道：“善良的猫王，我所要的只不过是你九条命中的一条而已。”

Why do cats have nine lives？

为什么猫有九条命？

The cats are known to be very good at jumping. They can fall from high places and still land on their feet. In New York a cat fell from a 32-story building and still lived.

That may be where the idea of cats having nine lives came from. This is all thanks to the cat’s body， of course. Cats evolved from living in trees. They know how to jump up and down.

众所周知，猫非常善于跳跃。它们可以从高处坠落，但仍然安稳落地。在纽约，一只猫从一栋32层楼的建筑上掉下来，仍然安然无恙。

这也许就是猫有九条命这个观点的由来。当然，这都要归功于猫的身体结构。猫的祖先生活在树上。它们知道如何跳上跳下。

Why is it nine lives？

为什么是九条命？

We always asked why and how cats have nine lives， but have you ever thought why it is nine？ In some culture， the number nine is very important and special because of its composition of three groups of three. So people believed cats had super powers and nine lives.

我们总是问猫为什么会有九条命以及如何拥有九条命，但你想过为什么是九条命吗？在有的文化中，数字九是非常重要和特殊的，因为它由三组数字三组成。于是人们相信猫有超能力和九条命。

So the answer is no. Cats don’t have nine lives， no matter how much we would want them to.

所以答案是否定的。猫没有九条命，不管我们多么希望它们有。

Word Bank

knock… over 打倒（或击倒、撞倒）

She was knocked over by a bus.

curl up 蜷曲着坐（或躺）

She curled up and closed her eyes.

myth n. 荒诞的说法；不真实的事

evolve v. 进化；进化形成