几个有意思的古英语表达

1.Meldrop

 

Derived¹ from Scandinavian roots, meldrop was originally a drop of foam² from a horse's mouth as it chomped³ on the bit—the metal crossbar held in a horse's mouth, the Old Norse word for which was mel. According to the English Dialect Dictionary, however, it came to have additional meanings in 16th-century Scots: Meldrop can be used to refer to both a drip of water from the tip of an icicle and a pendulous⁴ droplet⁵ on the tip of a person's nose.

Meldrop的词根源于斯堪的纳维亚语，最初是指马戴着马嚼子而从嘴里留出的一滴唾沫（马嚼子是马嘴里戴着的金属横条），而古斯堪的纳维亚语中mel表示马嚼子的意思。然而，根据《英语方言词典》，Meldrop在16世纪的苏格兰语中有了其他含义：既可以用来指冰柱顶端的一滴水，也可以用来指人鼻尖上的一滴鼻涕。

 

2.Snirl

 

Besides being a long-forgotten dialect word for the nose—or for the metal hoop⁶ pierced through a bull's nostrils—snirl or snurl is an old 18th-century dialect word for a stuffy⁷ head cold.

Snirl或snurl是一个过时已久的方言词，表示鼻子或穿过公牛鼻孔的金属环，在18世纪方言词中形容感冒鼻塞。

 

3.Kiffle

 

To kiffle is to cough because you have a tickle⁸ in the throat. To hosk, meanwhile, is to cough harshly or painfully; to boke is to cough violently, according to the English Dialect Dictionary; and to wirken is to cough or choke, likely because you're eating too quickly. A tissick, likewise, is a dry, tickling⁹ cough.

Kiffle表示因喉咙发痒而轻咳。此外，hosk表示剧烈或痛苦的咳嗽；根据《英语方言词典》，boke是剧烈咳嗽；而wirken指因为吃得太快等而呛咳。而tissick表示发痒干咳。

 

4. Fox's Cough

 

According to the Oxford¹⁰ English Dictionary, this is a hoarse¹¹, scratching cough that refuses to clear up, apparently¹² so-called because the fox's call is so raucous¹³.

根据《牛津英语词典》解释，Fox's Cough是一种嘶哑的、刺挠的、持续的咳嗽，这么说显然是因为狐狸的叫声非常刺耳。

 

5. Sternutament

 

Sternutation is a 16th-century medical word for the act of sneezing, which makes sternutament an equally ancient word for a single sneeze.

Sternutation是16世纪的医学术语，表示打喷嚏这个动作，而Sternutament在古代英语中表示一个喷嚏。

 

6. Presenteeism

 

The opposite of absenteeism is presenteeism—a term coined in the early 1930s for the act of turning up to work, despite being unwell.

Presenteeism是absenteeism的反义词，是20世纪30年代初出现的一个术语，用来表示尽管身体不适，但仍坚持上班的行为。

 

7.Headwarch

 

Waerc was an Old English word for pain (which derives¹⁴ from the same ancient root as work). That makes headwarch an equally ancient word for a headache.

Waerc在古英语中表示疼痛（它与work源自同一古英语词根）。因此，headwarch在古代就是头痛的意思。

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