短语“carry a torch for someone”并不是说“为某人举着火把“，而是指对某人抱有持久而未被回应的深厚情感，通常指的是对过去恋人的感情，或者暗恋某人。这个成语形象地表达了即便没有得到对方的回应或者对方甚至不知情，依然对他们怀有深情的情况。 例如：小李和小王大学时是一对情侣，毕业后因为理想和现实分手了。虽然小王已经结婚，但小李始终放不下这段感情，他始终carry a torch for小王。
例句
He has been carrying a torch for her for years.
多年来，他对她一直念念不忘。
Even though they broke up years ago, he still carries a torch for her.
尽管他们多年前就分手了，他仍然对她念念不忘。
She's been carrying a torch for him since high school, but he's completely oblivious to it.
从高中开始她就对他一往情深，但他对此却浑然不觉。
It's obvious that he's carrying a torch for his co-worker, considering the way he talks about her.
从他谈论她的方式来看，很明显他对他的同事情有独钟。
After the reunion, it became clear that Jennifer still carried a torch for her first love, no matter how much time had passed.
重聚之后，显然无论过了多久，珍妮弗对她的初恋仍旧念念不忘。
They all teased him for carrying a torch for the pop star; he had every poster of her on his walls.
他们都取笑他对那位流行歌星痴心不改；他的墙上贴满了她的每一张海报。
起源
短语carry a torch源自希腊和罗马的婚礼传统，其中新娘会从自家的壁炉中点燃一支火炬，然后用它去点燃她和丈夫新家中的火焰。此外，爱神厄洛斯（或称丘比特）在神话中也被描绘为会使用火炬点燃爱侣之间的火焰，因此该短语的起源很可能与此有关。
满分语法 