明喻(simile)是最明顯最直接的打比方。根據(jù)“直譯”、“意譯”兩大分野的傳統(tǒng)劃分，可以將兩位譯者對(duì)明喻的翻譯思路分述如下：

1.直譯法 

對(duì)于句中顯豁而形象的明喻，譯者顯然都帶著欣賞的眼光，并將這些繪聲、繪色、繪形、繪情的傳神佳喻原汁原味地帶到了譯文讀者面前。

1)他這一下去，就如同一盆才抽出嫩箭來的蘭花送到豬窩里去一般。（第七十七回）

楊譯：

...seriously ill as she is and with all that resentment bottled up inside her，is like throwing a delicate orchid just coming into bloom into a pigsty.

霍譯：

Sending her to that place now is like taking a potted orchid that has just started putting out its first tender spears of growth and setting it down in a pigsty.

2)探春冷笑道：“……咱們倒是一家子親骨肉呢，一個(gè)個(gè)不象烏眼雞，恨不得你吃了我，我吃了你！”（第七十五回）

楊譯：

Tanchun smiled mockingly. “…We're a happy family of kith and kin I must say，all like game-cocks fighting to finish each other off.”

霍譯：

‘Well，why not?，said Tan-chun bitterly.‘Better be driven out now by me than by someone else later on. Kinsfolk are lucky. They don't have to stay here. Not like the members of this happy family — all glaring at each other like angry fighting-cocks，wondering which will be the first one to strike!'

例1是借寶玉之口形容晴雯被無端驅(qū)逐，含冤負(fù)屈所經(jīng)受的悲慘命運(yùn)。句中“一盆才抽出嫩箭來的蘭花”和“送到豬窩里去”美丑相形，構(gòu)成極強(qiáng)烈的對(duì)比。例2的本體是“咱們一家子親骨肉”，喻體是“烏眼雞”，探春話里的這個(gè)明喻十分深刻地揭示了賈府的矛盾和危機(jī)已漸趨表面化，以及她對(duì)賈府“哀其不幸，怒其不爭(zhēng)”的明確態(tài)度。兩個(gè)譯本對(duì)以上兩例都采取直譯法，且喻詞都選用了英語明喻中較常見的like。再舉幾例直譯明喻的例子，并請(qǐng)?zhí)貏e注意兩譯本喻詞選擇的不同：

3)有幾百株杏花，如噴火蒸霞一般。（第十七回）

楊譯：

...hundreds of apricot-trees，their blossoms bright as spurting flames or sunlit clouds.

霍譯：

Inside it were several hundred apricot trees，whose flowering tops resembled the billowing rosy clouds of some vegetable volcano.

4)出了院門，四顧一望，并無二色，遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)的是青松翠竹，自己卻如裝在玻璃盒內(nèi)一般。（第四十九回）

楊譯：

Once outside of his own gate he gazed round. All was white except for some green pines and emerald bamboos in the distance，so that he had the sensation of being in a crystal bowl.

霍譯：

Once outside tile courtyard gate, the Garden stretched out on every hand in uniform whiteness, uninterrupted except for the dark green of a pine-tree or the lighter green of some bamboos here and there in the distance. He felt as if he was standing in the middle of a great glittering crystal bowl.