“形异意合”类的成语对口译而言是最难的，译员稍不注意就有可能误译 甚至"卡壳”。例如Justice has long arms,将其译为“正义的胳膊很长”就会让听 众觉得不知所云。翻译此类成语完全依赖临场发挥是行不通的，这需要译员有 扎实的语言功底，对英语文化有深刻的理解以及平时髙质量的训练。又如: It's doubtful that people in Syria are familiar with the idiom "What goes around comes around. " But with a terrorist bomb exploding in Damascus this week, they're about to learn its meaning. Syria has long been a stronghold for terrorists. It's believed many of the "insurgents" operating in Iraq today have crossed the border to use their explosives expertise to kill and maim Americans and other coalition forces. Syria has been on the US. State Department's list of terror-sponsoring nations for its support of groups like Hamas and Hezbollah that attack Israel. Syria, though, says the anti-Is-raeli groups are not terrorists, and that it has an interest in fighting Islamic extremist groups like al-Qaida.
以上这段话中的 What goes around comes around的意思笔译时很容易确定，有了上下文，即使不熟悉也能猜出来。但同传译员就不能期待这种奢侈。而且What goes around comes around在不同的语境中有不同的意思。如：Women and men have worn the same clothing for centuries. Ancient Romans and Greeks wore tunics, so the unisex clothing of the 60s wasn't really new. The traditional clothing of China, India, Japan, and Malaysia has always been unisex. Some time during the Middle Ages women took of trousers and put on dresses, and gender-related fashions began. What goes around comes around in the world of fashion. Everything old is new again. Most “new” looks have been around before.因此，认真学习这类成语和谚语的翻译极为重要。
下面是一些常用成语和谚语的翻译。 to rain cats and dogs 倾盆大雨
Love me, love my dog. 爱屋及乌
cast pearls before swine 对牛弹琴
as poor as a church mouse 家徒四壁(一贫如洗)
the salt of the earth 社会精英
carry coal to Newcastle 多此一举
procrustean bed —刀切
Man Friday 忠心的仆人
apple of the eye 珍爱之物
Justice has long arms. 天网恢恢，疏而不漏
Rest breeds rust. 生命在于运动。
Enough is better than too much. 过犹不及。
Fact is stranger than fiction. 大千世界，无奇不有。
Fire and water are good servants, but bad masters. 水能载舟，亦能覆舟。
It is a poor mouse that has only one hole. 狡兔三窟
If you ran after two hares, you will catch neither. 脚踏两只船，必定落空。
Everybody's business is nobody's business. 人人负责，等于没人负责/三个和尚没水吃。
Creep before you walk. 循序渐进。
