2011年2月26日 星期六

tick box, ticks all the boxes

Where’s the best place in the world to live? Well, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit, Vancouver in Canada ticks all the boxes.

tick
[名]
1 (答案の正解やリスト項目の確認を示す)チェックマーク()(((英))check).
2 (時計などの)カチカチという音;(心臓の)ドキドキという音.
3 ((単数形))((主に英話))短い時間, 瞬間
at seven o'clock on [to] the tick
きっかり7時に
in (half) a tick [=in two ticks]
たちまち.
4 (株などの)動き.
━━[動](自)
1 〈時計などが〉カチカチ音を立てる((away)).
2 〈時が〉刻々と過ぎる((away, by, on, past));〈ニュースなどが〉刻々とはいる((in)).
3 ((略式))〈機械などが〉動く, 働く(function).
━━(他)
1 〈時間を〉カチカチと刻む((away, out, off));〈通信文などを〉カチカチと打ち出す((out)).
2 ((主に英))〈項目などに〉印をつける, 照合する(((米))check)((off)).
tick ... off/tick off ...
(1) ⇒(他)1, 2
(2) 〈メーターなどが〉〈料金などを〉知らせる;〈人などを〉確認する, 見わける.
(3) ((英略式))〈人を〉しかる, たしなめる.
(4) ((米略式))〈人を〉憤慨させる
get ticked off at ...
…で憤慨する.
(5) ((米俗))…に密告する.
tick over
((英))(自)
(1) 〈乗り物のエンジンが〉空転する.
(2) ((しばしば進行形))((英))〈人が〉特別の変化もなく暮らしていく;〈事が〉よくも悪くもなく進んでいく.
━━(他)
[tick ... over/tick over ...]
〈エンジンを〉ゆっくり空転させる.
what makes a person tick
〈人を〉動かす原動力, 〈人の〉行動原理
Can you figure out what makes John tick?
ジョンがどうしてああなのか知っているかい.
[後期中英語tek(ちょっとふれること)]

tick box

In a country where the inclusion of a far right MP on a mainstream political panel show can prompt widespread blanket disapproval because of his inability to get beyond classifications of people on a racial basis, it is surprising that every day this country proves itself to be obsessed with racial classification. Even more surprising that those dignified types screaming and spitting through the gates of BBC centre are the same people calling for this racial classification.

2011年2月25日 星期五

grist for (one's) (or the) mill

'The Haves and the Have-Nots'

By BRANKO MILANOVIC
Reviewed by CATHERINE RAMPELL
"Anna Karenina," Manchester United and Nero are all grist for this analysis of global inequality


(grĭst) pronunciation
n.
  1. Grain or a quantity of grain for grinding.
  2. Ground grain.
idiom:

grist for (one's) (or the) mill

  1. Something that can be used to advantage.

[Middle English, from Old English grīst.]


2011年2月24日 星期四

misgivings,lend, bygone, Let bygones be bygones

Ill health curtailed Greene's activities shortly before Pearl Harbor, but he was able during the war to serve part-time as a consultant to the State Department's Division of Cultural Relations. He maintained a deep interest in Chinese affairs, and while he gradually, with misgivings, came to regard the Kuomintang as China's best hope, he was outraged by the attacks on John S. Service and other Americans who had reported favorably on Chinese Communist activities. He also lent active encouragement to the development of East Asian studies in the United States. Greene's home in his later years was Worcester, Massachusetts. He died in West Palm Beach, Florida, of cardiac failure and chronic nephritis and was buried in Westborough, Mass. He was survived by his wife, Kate Brown, whom he had married on May 8, 1920, and their two children, Edward Forbes and Katharine Curtis.

misgíving[mis・gíving]

[名][U][C]((通例〜s))疑惑;懸念;不安, 心配
have[feel] misgivings about one's health
健康に不安を感じる.
mis・gíving・ly
[副]

lend
(lĕnd) pronunciation

v., lent (lĕnt), lend·ing, lends. v.tr.
    1. To give or allow the use of temporarily on the condition that the same or its equivalent will be returned.
    2. To provide (money) temporarily on condition that the amount borrowed be returned, usually with an interest fee.
  1. To contribute or impart: Books and a fireplace lent a feeling of warmth to the room.
  2. To accommodate or offer (itself) to; be suitable for: The Bible lends itself to various interpretations.
v.intr.
To make a loan. See Usage Note at loan.

idiom:

lend a hand

  1. To be of assistance.

[Middle English lenden, alteration of lenen (on the model of such verbs as senden, to send , whose past participle rhymed with lent, past participle of lenen), from Old English lǣnan.]

lender lend'er n.

býgòne[bý・gòne]

[形]((比較なし))((限定))((文))過去の, 昔の;旧式の
memories of bygone days
過ぎ去りし日の思い出.
━━[名]((通例〜s))過去のこと, (特に悲しい)過去の出来事
let bygones be bygones
過去の不和を水に流すことにする, 和解する.
[北部中英語. gone byが一語となったもの]

Let bygones be bygones

Meaning

Allow the unpleasant things that have happened in the past to be forgotten.

Origin

'Let bygones be bygones' is one of the small group of phrases the meaning of which people enquire about more than they do the origin. On the face of it, the meaning is obvious and seems to require no explanation - after all, bygones can hardly be anything other than bygones. We don't have sayings like 'let greengrocers be greengrocers', so is there more to it? As it turns out, there is.

In the 15th century, a bygone was was simply 'a thing that has gone by', i.e. a thing of the past. Shakespeare used it with that meaning in The Winters Tale, 1611:

This satisfaction, The by-gone-day proclaym'd, say this to him.

As time progressed, 'bygones' came to refer specifically to past events that had an unpleasant tinge to them; for example, quarrels or debts. The Scottish churchman Samuel Rutherford recorded that usage of the phrase in a letter during his detention in Aberdeen in 1636. In the letter he regrets the follies of his youth and acknowledges his debt to God in showing him the error of his ways:

"Pray that byegones betwixt me and my Lord may be byegones."

So, there is a little more to the phrase 'let bygones be bygones' than to the more literal 'let sleeping dogs lie' or the old proverb 'let all things past, pass' that was recorded by John Heywood in his 1562 edition of Proverbs. 'Let bygones be bygones' uses both meanings of the word 'bygones' and means, in extended form, 'let the unpleasantness between us become a thing of the past'.


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2011年2月23日 星期三

tripped up on the last question

H-P Trips on Weak PC Sales
H-P's quarterly profit jumped 16% on strong demand from commercial customers but sales declined in two of its biggest businesses: PCs and technology services. Shares slumped.

trip

v., tripped, trip·ping, trips. v.intr.
  1. To stumble.
  2. To move nimbly with light rapid steps; skip.
  3. To be released, as a tooth on an escapement wheel in a watch.
  4. To make a trip.
  5. To make a mistake: tripped up on the last question.
  6. Slang. To have a drug-induced hallucination.

light sweet crude magnifies its importance

Why the Disruption Has Led to a Spike in Oil Prices

Libya produces less than 2 percent of the world’s oil, but its light sweet crude magnifies its importance.




sweet crude

The name given to barrels of crude oil that meet certain content requirements, such as low levels of sulfur and hydrogen.

Investopedia Says:
Sweet crude future contracts are the most popular oil contracts traded on commodity markets. This type of oil is much easier to refine than sour crude.


2011年2月22日 星期二

plantings, value over volume

Food-Price Fall Seen as Plantings Rise
A rush by farmers to expand plantings in many parts of the world is raising expectations that food prices may retreat as early as the second half of this year.


BP's Eastern March of Uncertainty
Value over volume may be BP's new mantra in two recent, supposedly groundbreaking deals in Russia and India, but right now, few investors know whether BP is creating either.

2011年2月20日 星期日

bookmobile /mobile library

bookmobile
noun [C]
US FOR mobile library

(from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)

這篇紐約時報的報導要付費的,所以只能神遊:
Dan Barry takes a ride on a bookmobile that has traveled nearly 165,000 miles around New Mexico.

2011年2月19日 星期六

It's been a long time coming

For Wisconsin Governor, Battle Was Long Coming

Critics and supporters alike say Gov. Scott Walker has always pressed for austerity.




'It's been a long time coming' means it is something that's been waited for, usually, but not always in a positive way - as in looked forward to - for a long time.


2011年2月18日 星期五

go after, government overthrows

Glenn Beck Goes After Google
"I'm really not sure that I want my search engine involved in government overthrows."


go after

Pursue, try to get, as in The officer went after the burglar; or Ed was going after a new job with a vengeance. [Mid-1400s]


epigraph, epigram

epigraph
[名]
1 (特に建物・像・墓・硬貨などの)碑銘, 碑文.
2 (巻頭に付す)銘句, 題辞.
(ĕp'ĭ-grăf') pronunciation
n.
  1. An inscription, as on a statue or building.
  2. A motto or quotation, as at the beginning of a literary composition, setting forth a theme.

[Greek epigraphē, from epigraphein, to write on. See epigram.]

epigraphic ep'i·graph'ic or ep'i·graph'i·cal adj.
epigraphically ep'i·graph'i·cal·ly adv.

epigram

[名]
1 警句;[U]警句的な表現.
2 (警句的な)短い風刺詩, 寸鉄詩, エピグラム.
[ラテン語←ギリシャ語epígramma (epí-上に+gráphein書く+-ma=ある特定のものの上に書いたもの→警句)]

2011年2月17日 星期四

Egypt’s Missing Stoke Concerns About Military

Egypt’s Missing Stoke Concerns About Military

While Egyptians have cheered the military, some accuse it of involvement in recent disappearances and torture.





stoke
(stōk) pronunciation

v., stoked, stok·ing, stokes. v.tr.
  1. To stir up and feed (a fire or furnace).
  2. To feed fuel to and tend the fire of (a furnace).
v.intr.
  1. To feed or tend a furnace or fire.
  2. Informal. To eat steadily and in large quantities.

[Back-formation from STOKER.]


2011年2月16日 星期三

dickens, Dickens

'Christmas Carol': Dickens's gift keeps on giving
Tale that helped ignite holiday spirit in 1843 still sparks it today

dickens
(dĭk'ənz) pronunciation
n. Informal
  1. A severe reprimand or expression of anger: gave me the dickens for being late.
  2. Used as an intensive: What in the dickens is that?

[Alteration of DEVIL (influenced by the name Dickens).]



2011年2月15日 星期二

backcloth, backdrop

backdrop

(băk'drŏp') pronunciation
n.
  1. A painted cloth hung at the back of a stage set. Also called backcloth.
  2. The setting, as of a historical event; the background.

2011年2月14日 星期一

boffo , cinema complexes

Despite record sales, film industry still anxious

Despite 2010 being a year of boffo box office sales, movie industry insiders are concerned about competition from cinema complexes driving out independent local theaters. (February 14) [more]


boffo

(bŏf'ō) pronunciation
Slang.
adj.
Extremely successful; great.

n., pl., -fos.
See boff1 (sense 3).

[Alteration of BOFF1.]



2011年2月12日 星期六

hedge "樹籬", high key

hedge 也非排樹

"樹籬" 可接受
The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen 简·奥斯丁失落的回忆 p.57

鄭桑溪攝影作品〈裸女〉,1963。
圖/莊靈提供
及表現高反差及高調(high key)效果的〈裸女〉(1963)


high-key
(′hī ¦kē)
(graphic arts) A negative or print that has an overall light effect, with very few dark tones or shadows.

2011年2月10日 星期四

Hallelujah/Alleluia

The Issa Valley: A Novel

我讀一點點就注意到那是天主教區 :

Alleluia Heb. (1) 阿〈亞〉肋路亞;哈利路亞(基):希伯來語原意是:「你們讚美雅威吧」,意即讚美天主。 (2) 讚美天主:是充滿歡樂和感恩的頌詞,在聖詠、聖詩、祈禱、證道中經常出現。又稱 Halleluiah

Hallelujah :阿肋路亞;讚美天主。詳見 alleluia

末一頁 兩隻馬Smilga 和 Birnik 的描寫也相當妙

embracers and cautious adapters

The emergence of embracers and cautious adapters

How fast are businesses adopting sustainability-driven management? Our research reveals two distinct camps: "embracers," who place sustainability high on their agenda, and "cautious adopters," who have yet to focus on more than energy cost savings, material efficiency and risk mitigation. Significantly, more than 70% of embracers believe that their organizations outperform their industry peers.

catholic/ Catholic Action

catholic (1) 天主教;公教;至公:代表至一、至聖、至公、傳自宗徒的真正的教會。 (2) 天主教教友;信徒。 (3) 天主教會。 (4) 大公教會的:此字原為希臘字,指大公、普遍之義。 107 年安提約基雅的聖依納爵( St. Ignatius of Antioch )始用之。

Catholic Action (1) 公教進行會;公進會:指平信徒有組織的使徒工作。是教宗碧嶽十一世所積極推動的一種教友見證、傳教團體。 (2) 公教進行運動:泛指 教友的一切見證、傳教活動。中華公教進行會,于民國元年由山西成玉堂、劉錦文神父(後均升為主教)和天津雷鳴遠神父等發起,在天津成立總支部。民國二年已 遍及十余省區。後該會聯合耶、佛、回、道教,共同反對「定孔教為國教」之議,終於成功。民國十七年教廷代表剛恒毅總主教(後升樞機)見該會會務衰落,擬定 該會組織大綱,並編寫《公進會臨時守則》;同年在北平成立公教進行會總部;民國廿一年教廷正式批准公進會章程;翌年由教宗任命于斌神父(後升樞機)為總監 督,陸伯鴻、鄧維屏為正副會長;對日抗戰時會務停頓。民國三十五年田耕莘樞機又一度提倡;大陸政權轉移後又被迫停頓。其功能與今日的天主教教友傳教協進會 類似。

2011年2月9日 星期三

Parallax, in half

Hazard: The swing seats on the playsets can crack and break in half, causing the user to fall to the ground.

Incidents/Injuries: Escalade Sports has received 24 reports of the seats breaking, no injuries have been reported.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parallax

Parallax

(păr'ə-lăks'pronunciation
n.
An apparent change in the direction of an object, caused by a change in observational position that provides a new line of sight.

[French parallaxe, from Greek parallaxis, from parallassein, to change : para-, among; see para-1 + allassein, to exchange (from allos, other).]
parallactic par'al·lac'tic (-lăk'tĭkadj.
[名][U][C]
1 視差:観察位置による対象物の変位.
2 《天文》視差.
3 《写真》(ファインダーとレンズの)視差.
[ギリシャ語parállaxis (para-そばに+allássein変動する+-sis(名詞語尾)=そばに変動すること)]

in half

In two equal or roughly equal parts. For example, Let's cut this sheet in half. [Late 1500s]

2011年2月6日 星期日

a plan to teach English to French three-year-olds

Inside Europe | 05.02.2011 | 07:05

France's Sarkozy promotes English for kids

La Grande Nation has always been very proud of its cultural heritage and its colourful language, so proud in fact that in the past it even introduced laws which banned the use of un-translated English words in advertising or stipulated that 40 percent of songs on French radio must be in French.

But now President Nicolas Sarkozy in a bold move has announced a plan to teach English to French three-year-olds. And as John Laurenson points out in this postcard from Paris, French linguistic purists are not amused.



give you a run for your money

N the category “What Do You Know?”, for $1 million: This four-year-old upstart the size of a small R.V. has digested 200 million pages of data about everything in existence and it means to give a couple of the world’s quickest humans a run for their money at their own game.

The question: What is Watson?



give you a run for your money
to be as good at something as someone who is known to be extremely good He was a very good actor and could have given any professional a run for his money.

2011年2月5日 星期六

elegiac re-examination, irrecoverably

Remembering the Reagan We May Never Know

By ALESSANDRA STANLEY

The centennial of Ronald Reagan's birth has prompted an elegiac re-examination of his presidency, but can't quite capture the man himself.


elegiac
  • [èlidʒáiək]
[形](またèl・e・gí・a・cal)((文))
1 《古典韻文》挽歌(ばんか)形式の, 哀歌体の.
2 哀調的
an elegiac tone
哀愁を帯びた調べ.
━━[名]((しばしば 〜s))挽歌形式の詩(行);哀歌体の詩.
(ĕl'ə-jī'ək, ĭ-lē'jē-ăk') pronunciation
adj.
  1. Of, relating to, or involving elegy or mourning or expressing sorrow for that which is irrecoverably past: an elegiac lament for youthful ideals.
  2. Of or composed in elegiac couplets.

[Late Latin elegīacus, from Greek elegeiakos, from elegeia, elegy. See elegy.]

elegiac el'e·gi'ac n.
elegiacal el'e·gi'a·cal adj.
elegiacally el'e·gi'a·cal·ly adv.

irrecoverable

[形]((形式))
1 取り戻せない, 取り返しのつかない
an irrecoverable debt
回収不能の貸し金.
2 不治の, 元通りにならない
irrecoverable sorrow
救いようのない悲しみ.
ir





iron, iron in the fire, The iron entered into his soul.

Hazard: The iron can overheat and cause a fire because of a wiring issue, posing a risk of burn injury to consumers.

Picture of recalled convertible iron



iron
[名]
1 [U]《化学》鉄(記号:Fe). ▼英語ではironとsteel(鋼鉄, はがね)を区別する;比喩表現ではironが多くsteelはあまり用いない
Strike while the iron is hot.
((ことわざ)) 鉄は熱いうちに打て;好機を逃すな.
2 [U](鉄のように)堅く強いもの, 不屈のもの;冷たい[無情]なもの;強さ, 堅さ
have a will of iron
不屈の意志をもつ
a man of iron
意志強固な人;冷酷な人間
(as) hard as iron
鉄のように堅い;非常に冷酷[厳格]な.
3 鉄製の器具[武器, 家庭用品];(鉄以外の)金属製工具;かんなの刃;(捕鯨用の)もり
fire irons
炉辺用鉄器具.
4 アイロン, こて, 火のし;焼き印[金].
5 《ゴルフ》アイアン:金属製ヘッドのついたクラブ. ⇒WOOD
6 ((俗))小型ピストル.
7 [U](栄養素としての)鉄分;《医学》鉄剤, 含鉄剤.
8 ((〜s))((主に文))手かせ, 足かせ;あぶみ;(O脚矯正などの)鉄製サポート, 下肢矯正器.
have many [several, etc. ] irons in the fire
(1つでも当たればよいと考えて)一度に多く[いくつか]の仕事に手を出す, 一度に多く[いくつか]の手を使う, ふたまたをかける.
in irons
(1) 〈帆船が〉金縛りの状態になって.
(2) 〈引き船が〉動きがとれない.
(3) ⇒[名]8
pump iron ((略式))(ウェートトレーニングで)バーベルを持ち上げる.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Whose feet they hurt with fetters - In Genesis 40:3; it is said of Joseph that he was "bound" in prison. It is not improbable that his "feet" were bound, as this is the usual way of confining prisoners.

He was laid in iron - In the prison. The margin is, "his soul came into iron." The version in the Prayer-Book of the Episcopal Church is, the iron entered into his soul. This is a more striking and beautiful rendering, though it may be doubted whether the Hebrew will permit it. DeWette renders it, "In iron lay his body."


The iron entered into his soul.
(とらわれの身で)非常な苦悩を味わった.
▼《聖書》詩編105:18のヘブライ語の誤訳から生じたもので, 原文はHis person entered into the iron.

17在他們以前衪將一人遣去,就是那被出賣為奴隸的若瑟。
18人以銬鐐扣他的雙腳,他的頸項也帶上了鐵鎖,
19直到他所講的預這實現,上主的話才在他身上應驗。




━━[形]((限定))
1 鉄(製)の.
2 鉄に似た, 不屈の, きびしい, 冷酷な
an iron will
鉄のように強固な意志
the iron laws of nature
自然のきびしい掟(おきて).
3 確固とした, ゆるがない
an iron alibi
動かしがたいアリバイ.
4 強健な, がん強な, じょうぶな
iron health
頑健.
5 しっかり結んだ, がっちり握った
with an iron grip
しっかりした握り方で.
6 不快な, 耳ざわりな〈音調・音色〉.
7 鉄器の.
━━[動](他)
1 〈人が〉…にアイロンをかける
Could you iron my trousers for me?
ズボンにアイロンをかけてくれますか.
2 …に鉄をかぶせる, 鉄を打つ, …を装甲する;《金工》…をしごき加工する.
3 …に手[足]かせをかける.
━━(自)〈人が〉アイロンをかける;〈布などが〉アイロンがかかる
Cotton shirts iron well.
木綿のシャツはアイロンのかかりがよい.
iron ... out/iron out ...
((略式))
(1) 〈衣服などに〉アイロンをかける, プレスする.
(2) [iron out ...](衣服などの)〈しわを〉アイロンでとる((in ...)).
(3) 〈事を〉円滑にする;〈困難や意見の相違を〉(話し合って)ならす, 解決する
This problem will iron itself out.
この問題は自然に解決するだろう.



(ī'ərn) pronunciation
n.
  1. (Symbol Fe) A silvery-white, lustrous, malleable, ductile, magnetic or magnetizable, metallic element occurring abundantly in combined forms, notably in hematite, limonite, magnetite, and taconite, and used alloyed in a wide range of important structural materials. Atomic number 26; atomic weight 55.845; melting point 1,535°C; boiling point 2,750°C; specific gravity 7.874 (at 20°C); valence 2, 3, 4, 6.
  2. An implement made of iron alloy or similar metal, especially a bar heated for use in branding, curling hair, or cauterizing.
  3. Great hardness or strength; firmness: a will of iron.
  4. Sports. Any of a series of golf clubs having a bladelike metal head and numbered from one to nine in order of increasing loft.
  5. A metal appliance with a handle and a weighted flat bottom, used when heated to press wrinkles from fabric.
  6. A harpoon.
  7. irons Fetters; shackles.
  8. A tonic, pill, or other medication containing iron and taken as a dietary supplement.
adj.
  1. Made of or containing iron: iron bars; an iron alloy.
  2. Strong, healthy, and capable of great endurance: an iron constitution.
  3. Inflexible; unyielding: iron resolve.
  4. Holding tightly; very firm: has an iron grip.

v., i·roned, i·ron·ing, i·rons. v.tr.
    1. To press and smooth with a heated iron: iron clothes.
    2. To remove (creases) by pressing.
  1. To put into irons; fetter.
  2. To fit or clad with iron.
v.intr.
To iron clothes.

phrasal verb:

iron out

  1. To settle through discussion or compromise; work out.
idioms:

in irons Nautical.

  1. Lying head to the wind and unable to turn either way.
iron in the fire
  1. An undertaking or project in progress: has many irons in the fire this year.

[Middle English iren, from Old English īren.]



2011年2月4日 星期五

Big on Symbolism, Less So on Substance


Law and Public Policy
The Hu-Obama Summit: Big on Symbolism, Less So on Substance

Chinese President Hu Jintao's state visit to the U.S. last month ended with a spurt of export agreements that his country has recently become known for. But after 2010's escalating trade tensions, summit-weary observers are not celebrating just yet. They note that thorny issues, like China's currency policy, were stubbornly sidestepped, and they wonder whether the summit achieved what business leaders in both countries now need -- a mutual trust and assurance that their companies will be allowed to prosper.

spring migration , straining nerves

China's Great Spring Migration

As the Year of the Rabbit Kicks off, nearly 250 million travelers will be coming and going from China's big cities to their hometowns, straining nerves and the nation's mighty transport system

Spring Migration 春(節)運(輸)