Flip-flops are open summer shoes, usually rubber, with a thin sole and a V-shaped strap that goes between the big toe and the next toe. That strap is the whole “upper”: there is no back, no laces, nothing round the heel. You slide in and walk.

Flip-flops夾腳拖 are open summer shoes是夏天穿的露趾涼鞋, usually rubber通常是橡膠做的, with a thin sole and a V-shaped strap有薄薄的鞋底和一條 V 字形的帶子 that goes between the big toe and the next toe穿過大拇趾和第二根腳趾之間。That strap那條帶子 is the whole "upper"就是整個鞋面: there is no back, no laces, nothing round the heel沒有後跟、沒有鞋帶，腳跟也沒有任何東西固定。You你 slide in and walk套進去就能走。

The name is the sound they make on a hard floor — flip, flop, flip, flop.

The name這個名字 is the sound they make on a hard floor就是它們踩在硬地板上的聲音——flip, flop, flip, flop啪嗒、啪嗒、啪嗒、啪嗒。

People wear them at the beach, by the pool, in hot weather, or to the shop when they cannot be bothered with real shoes. They feel casual, even a bit lazy; you would not wear them to a formal dinner or a job interview.

People人們 wear them at the beach, by the pool, in hot weather會在海邊、泳池邊、天氣熱的時候穿, or to the shop when they cannot be bothered with real shoes或懶得穿正式鞋子時穿去買東西。They它們 feel casual, even a bit lazy給人隨性、甚至有點懶散的感覺；you would not wear them to a formal dinner or a job interview你不會穿它們去正式晚宴或面試。

One shoe is a flip-flop; people almost always talk about a pair of flip-flops. In American and British English this is the ordinary word. In Australia the same shoes are often called thongs — which, confusingly, means a kind of underwear in American English.

One shoe單獨一隻 is a flip-flop叫 a flip-flop；people almost always talk about a pair of flip-flops但人們幾乎都是說一整雙 flip-flops。In American and British English在美式和英式英文裡 this is the ordinary word這是最普通的說法。In Australia在澳洲 the same shoes are often called thongs同樣的鞋常被叫做 thongs——which, confusingly令人搞混的是, means a kind of underwear in American English這個字在美式英文裡是指一種內褲。

Though actually, newspapers also use flip-flop as a picture for a politician who keeps changing sides: first this way, then that way, like the shoe slapping back and forth. That is a different use of the same sound-word. Here we mean the shoes.

Though actually不過其實，newspapers新聞報導 also use flip-flop as a picture也會用 flip-flop 來比喻 for a politician who keeps changing sides一個立場一直改變的政治人物：first this way, then that way一下這樣、一下那樣，like the shoe slapping back and forth就像這雙鞋啪嗒啪嗒地來回甩動。That那 is a different use of the same sound-word是同一個擬聲字的另一種用法。Here在這裡 we mean the shoes我們指的是鞋子。