Expressions about water are almost as common as water itself. But many of the expressions using water have unpleasant meanings.

關于水的表達幾乎和水本身一樣常見，但很多含有水的表達卻有不愉快之意。

The expression to be in hot water is one of them. It is a very old expression. Hot water was used five hundred years ago to mean being in trouble. One story says it got that meaning from the custom of throwing boiling water down on enemies attacking a castle.

英語中有to be in hot water(遇到麻煩;陷于困境)的表達。實際上，早在500年前，英文中便出現了hot water的說法，用來指“困境”。據說這樣的用法起源于古代，當敵人襲擊一座城堡時，城堡里的人會將滾燙的開水潑向敵人。

That no longer the custom. But we still get in hot water. When we are in hot water, we are in trouble. It can be any kind of trouble--serious, and not so serious. A person who breaks a law can be in hot water with the police. A boy can be in hot water with his mother, if he comes into the house with dirty, wet shoes.

現在這樣的傳統(tǒng)不復存在了，但我們仍會get in hot water(惹上麻煩)。當我們使用in hot water的表達方式時，表明我們遇到了麻煩。它可能是任何種類的麻煩：嚴重的、沒那么嚴重的。違法者可能會與警察鬧糾紛;一個男孩子如果穿著臟兮兮、濕漉漉的鞋子進家門，會給媽媽惹很多麻煩。

Being in deep water is almost the same as being in hot water. When you are in deep water, you are in difficulty. Imagine a swimmer in water over his head who cannot reach the shore.

Being in deep water(陷入困境)與being in hot water意思相近。當你in deep water時，表明你陷入困境了。設想一個水沒過了頭頂、卻游不到岸的游泳者，你就會有所體會。

You are in deep water when you are facing a problem that you do not have the ability to solve. The problem is too deep for you. You can be in deep water, for example, if you invest in stocks without knowing anything about the stock market.