开小差,原指军人脱离队伍私自逃跑(to leave the armed forces without permission and with no intention of returning)。
开小差,当逃兵可以用desert,这个单词除去有沙漠,荒漠的意思以外,还可以表示擅离(部队)。
目前常用来比喻做事不专心,思想不集中,英文可以翻译为lose concentration, be absent-minded。
例句:
听课时开小差,成绩一定好不了。
If you fail to follow the teachers lecture attentively1 in class, you will certainly not improve your performance on tests.
刚上课他就开始开小差了。
His mind wandered soon after the class began.
有的士兵在战争中开小差(当逃兵)。
Some soldiers deserted2 in the combat.