有的人有烟瘾，有的人有酒瘾。有的人老是在工作，好像对工作上了瘾。今天我们就来介绍工作狂怎么说。工作狂的说法跟alcoholic(喝酒上瘾的人)有点关系。我们先从一个故事中了解一下这个词的起源。

　　根据高克毅写的《通俗美语辞典》，大约二十年前有一个名字叫作韦恩·奥茨的美国教会辅导员，他每天从早到晚忙个不停，是一个典型的工作狂。有一天，他五岁的儿子要见他，但是儿子非得通过他爸爸的秘书约好一个时间后才能见到他。这件事使韦恩·奥茨省悟了过来，于是他写了一本书，题目是：《一个工作病狂者的忏悔录》，英文名字是："Confessions of a Workaholic"。这是workaholic这个词第一次出现。实际上就是把 alcoholic这个字前面的四个字母a-l-c-o改成w-o-r-k。从那时候起，workaholic就开始用来指一个只知道工作，忽视家庭，没有正常生活的人。A workaholic is a person who is addicted¹ to work.

　　A "workaholic" in the negative sense is popularly characterized by a neglect of family and other social relations. 请看下面的例句：

　　My brother Bill designs computers and he's turned into a real workaholic. He works twelve hours a day, talks about nothing else and pays no attention to his wife and three kids, or his old friends.

　　我的弟弟比尔是设计电脑的。他真变成了一个工作狂。每天工作十二个小时，一开口除了讲他的工作外没有任何别的内容。他把妻子、三个孩子以及一些老朋友完全抛在脑后。

　　This phrase does not always imply that the person actually enjoys their work, but rather simply feels compelled to do it. 请看下面例句：

　　Don't call me workaholic please! Yes, I spend most of my time in the office and can't go on vacation with you and the kids. But you think I like it? I have to work hard if I want to be promoted and make more money.

　　请你别叫我工作狂。是的，我把大多数时间都花在办公室里，也不能跟你和孩子们一起出去休假旅行。但是，你以为我喜欢那样吗？要是我想被提升，挣更多的钱，我非得努力工作不可呀。

　　Although the term "workaholic" usually has a negative connotation, it is sometimes used by people wishing to express their devotion to one's career in positive terms.