我們知道，雙關(guān)可以使語言含蓄、幽默、風(fēng)趣、婉轉(zhuǎn)、生動(dòng)、耐人尋味，適合于表達(dá)含蓄、曲折的思想，在一定場合可以用于諷刺和揭露，能加深語意，給人以深刻的印象。由于種種原因有些話不便明說直講，用雙關(guān)手法表達(dá)可取得理想的效果。前面講到的諧音雙關(guān)是漢英共有的雙關(guān)語類別，而語義雙關(guān)則不同。

語義雙關(guān)又名“借義雙關(guān)”、“彼此雙關(guān)”、“對象雙關(guān)”，是利用詞語的多義性(除本義之外，還有比喻義、引申義等）構(gòu)成的。這種雙關(guān)通常不只是一個(gè)詞，一個(gè)句子，而是幾個(gè)句子，甚至整首詩、整段話都是雙關(guān)，利用音、形、義都能關(guān)涉兩種事物的語句，借眼前的事物來表達(dá)自己真正的意思。

英語中除諧音雙關(guān)（利用同音異義詞[homophone]構(gòu)成）之外的另一種雙關(guān)叫詞義雙關(guān)(利用同形異義詞[homonym]構(gòu)成），試舉—例（范家材1992: 187—188)如下，以區(qū)分語義雙關(guān)和詞義雙關(guān)的不同特點(diǎn)：

例：I finally figured out how government works. The Senate gets the bill from the House, The President gets the bill from the Senate. And we get the bill for everything. (Reader's Digest，p.220 Feb.l991)(參考譯文：我終于弄懂了我們的政體是如何運(yùn)行的。議會(huì)的提案由眾議院轉(zhuǎn)到參議院再從參議院轉(zhuǎn)到總統(tǒng)。于是輪到我們支付一切賬單。）

該例中的前兩個(gè)bill指議會(huì)提案，第三個(gè)bill指賬單，從而構(gòu)成雙關(guān)。由此可見，詞義雙關(guān)是利用同形異義詞，緊扣雙重情境，以造成詼諧等效果的修辭格。其翻譯的難度是顯而易見的。

下面，我們來分析語義雙關(guān)及其翻譯：

寶釵笑道：“寶兄弟，虧你每日家雜學(xué)旁收的，難道就不知道酒性最熱，若熱吃下去，發(fā)散的就快，若冷吃下去，便凝結(jié)在內(nèi)，以五臟去暖他，豈不受害？從此還不快不要吃那冷的了?！睂氂衤犨@話有情理，便放下冷酒，命人暖來方飲。

黛玉磕著瓜子兒，只抿著嘴笑?？汕慎煊竦男⊙诀哐┭阕邅砼c黛玉送小手爐，黛玉因含笑問他：“誰叫你送來的？難為他費(fèi)心，那里就冷死了我！”雪雁道：“紫鵑姐姐怕姑娘冷，使我送來的?！摈煊褚幻娼恿?，抱在懷中，笑道也虧你倒聽他的話。我平日和你說的,全當(dāng)耳旁風(fēng)，怎么他說了你就依，比圣旨還快些！ ”寶玉聽這話，知是黛玉借此奚落他，也無回復(fù)之詞，只嘻嘻的笑兩陣罷了。（第八回）

楊譯：

“Brother Bao，”put in Baochai teasingly，” “You've the chance every day to acquire miscellaneous knowledge. How come you don't realize how heating wine is? Drunk hot，its fumes dissipate quickly; drunk cold，it stays in your system and absorbs heat from your vital organs. That's bad for you. So do stop drinking cold wine. ”

Since this made sense，Baoyu put dawn the wine asked to have it warmed.Daiyu had been smiling rather cryptically as she cracked melon-seeds. Now her maid Xueyan brought in her little hand-stove.

“Who told you to bring this?”demanded Daiyu. “Many thanks. Think I was freezing to death here!”

“Zijuan was afraid you might be cold，miss，so she asked me to bring it over. ”

Nursing the stove in her arms Daiyu retorted，“So you do whatever she asks，but let whatever I say in one ear and out the other. You jump to obey her instructions faster than if they were an Imperial edict.”

Although Baoyu knew these remarks were aimed at him，his only reply was to chuckle.