又中又英——“oleaginous”、“toadyism”
Michael Chugani 褚简宁
2020-05-12 04:17 HKT
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One of America's most famous conservative writers, George Will, wrote a column last week that surprised many people. Even though Will is right-wing, he has no respect for Donald Trump. He used his columns to say he wanted Trump to lose the 2016 election. In his column last week he used strong words to insult Trump but used far stronger words to insult Vice President Mike Pence. The column was so strongly-worded that it became a news item. Some words Will used to insult Pence were so unusual I had never heard of them. My good friend Chip Tsao (To Kit) told me he had to use the dictionary for the meaning of one of the words. I must admit I had to do the same.
The word Will used to insult Pence was “oleaginous”. This word is not difficult to pronounce but is very insulting when used against a person. The ordinary meaning of this word is very oily or producing a lot of oil. But when used as a slang word, oily can mean “slimy”. The slang word meaning of “slimy” describes a person who is dishonest or immoral. The other meaning of the adjective “oleaginous” describes someone who is polite, kind, or helpful in a false way to get an advantage or benefit. This word became the most searched word on the internet after Will used it to insult Pence. The headline of his column was “Trump is no longer the worst person in government”.
Another insulting word Will used against Pence was “toadyism” which comes from the noun “toady”. A “toady” is a person who praises or kowtows to bosses or powerful people to get an advantage from them. It is clear from Will’s column that he has no respect for Pence. He said Pence could become America’s “most repulsive public figure”. The word “repulsive” means disgusting, hateful, or very unacceptable. After reading Will’s column, it proved to me again the importance of a free media. Only democracies allow the media to attack their leaders.
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美国其中一位最知名的保守派作家乔治‧威尔，上星期写了一篇震惊许多人的专栏文章。尽管威尔是右翼的，他却毫不尊重特朗普。他曾透过他的专栏，说他希望特朗普输掉二○一六年的选举。在他上周的专栏中，他用了强烈的言词去辱骂特朗普，但用了更猛烈的措词去侮辱副总统米克‧彭斯。那篇专栏文章措词强硬得变成了一则新闻条目。威尔辱骂彭斯时所用到的一些言词，罕见得我简直从未听说过。我的好友陶杰跟我说，他要翻字典才能理解其中一个字，我不得不承认我也要这样做。
威尔用来侮辱彭斯的字是“oleaginous”，这个字并不难发音，但用来攻击一个人时就非常侮辱。这个字的原意是很油腻（oily），或是产生许多油份的，但当用作俚语时，oily则可解作“slimy”，而“slimy”作俚语用时则形容人油腔滑调、虚伪、可鄙的。形容词oleaginous的另一个意思就是形容某人谄媚、巴结奉迎的，为了私利或好处而假装热情或满口恭维。威尔用了这个字去侮辱彭斯后，它就成了网络热搜字。他的专栏文章的标题是：「特朗普不再是政府里最差的人了」。
另一个威尔用来侮辱彭斯的字是“toadyism”，它来源于名词“toady”。A “toady”就是卑躬屈膝、阿谀奉承上司或有权势者的马屁精。威尔的文章明显反映对彭斯无一丝尊重。他说，彭斯会成为美国「最repulsive的公众人物」；repulsive解作令人恶心、厌恶，或非常难以接受的。读过威尔的文章后，对我而言是再一次证明自由媒体的重要性。只有民主的政体容许传媒抨击他们的领导人。
中译：七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁
The word Will used to insult Pence was “oleaginous”. This word is not difficult to pronounce but is very insulting when used against a person. The ordinary meaning of this word is very oily or producing a lot of oil. But when used as a slang word, oily can mean “slimy”. The slang word meaning of “slimy” describes a person who is dishonest or immoral. The other meaning of the adjective “oleaginous” describes someone who is polite, kind, or helpful in a false way to get an advantage or benefit. This word became the most searched word on the internet after Will used it to insult Pence. The headline of his column was “Trump is no longer the worst person in government”.
Another insulting word Will used against Pence was “toadyism” which comes from the noun “toady”. A “toady” is a person who praises or kowtows to bosses or powerful people to get an advantage from them. It is clear from Will’s column that he has no respect for Pence. He said Pence could become America’s “most repulsive public figure”. The word “repulsive” means disgusting, hateful, or very unacceptable. After reading Will’s column, it proved to me again the importance of a free media. Only democracies allow the media to attack their leaders.
＊＊＊＊＊
美国其中一位最知名的保守派作家乔治‧威尔，上星期写了一篇震惊许多人的专栏文章。尽管威尔是右翼的，他却毫不尊重特朗普。他曾透过他的专栏，说他希望特朗普输掉二○一六年的选举。在他上周的专栏中，他用了强烈的言词去辱骂特朗普，但用了更猛烈的措词去侮辱副总统米克‧彭斯。那篇专栏文章措词强硬得变成了一则新闻条目。威尔辱骂彭斯时所用到的一些言词，罕见得我简直从未听说过。我的好友陶杰跟我说，他要翻字典才能理解其中一个字，我不得不承认我也要这样做。
威尔用来侮辱彭斯的字是“oleaginous”，这个字并不难发音，但用来攻击一个人时就非常侮辱。这个字的原意是很油腻（oily），或是产生许多油份的，但当用作俚语时，oily则可解作“slimy”，而“slimy”作俚语用时则形容人油腔滑调、虚伪、可鄙的。形容词oleaginous的另一个意思就是形容某人谄媚、巴结奉迎的，为了私利或好处而假装热情或满口恭维。威尔用了这个字去侮辱彭斯后，它就成了网络热搜字。他的专栏文章的标题是：「特朗普不再是政府里最差的人了」。
另一个威尔用来侮辱彭斯的字是“toadyism”，它来源于名词“toady”。A “toady”就是卑躬屈膝、阿谀奉承上司或有权势者的马屁精。威尔的文章明显反映对彭斯无一丝尊重。他说，彭斯会成为美国「最repulsive的公众人物」；repulsive解作令人恶心、厌恶，或非常难以接受的。读过威尔的文章后，对我而言是再一次证明自由媒体的重要性。只有民主的政体容许传媒抨击他们的领导人。
中译：七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁
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