Question of the Day #122

今回も、１センテンスから二つの問題です。 "In shakeup, Trump to set up 'war room' to repel attacks over Russia probe"
From the headline of this article at Reuters.

上記の文で、shakeupとwar roomの意味は？
In the sentence above, what do "shakeup" and "war room" mean?

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解答

意味：

Shakeup
英辞郎によると、


刷新、変革、大改造、大改革、機構改革、大整理、鍛え直し(shake-upと書くこともできる)

War room
英辞郎によると、

作戦指令室

Answer

Shakeup
According to Merriam-Webster:

an act or instance of shaking up; specifically :  an extensive and often drastic reorganization

War room
According to Merriam-Webster:

a room (as at a business headquarters) used for conferences and planning that is often specially equipped (as with computers, or charts)

Etymology/語源

Shakeup
Online Etymology Dictionaryによると、

初めて使われたのが1899年。動詞句shake (v.) + up (adv.)から

War room
Merriam-Websterによると、

初めて使われたのが1901年。

Shakeup
According to Online Etymology Dictionary:

"reorganization," 1899, from verbal phrase, from shake (v.) + up (adv.).

War room
According to Merriam-Webster:

First known use of war room: 1901

Examples

Shakeup

• Bird attributes the sound to a shake-up in his recording process.
• He even foreshadowed his plans for a shake-up during a conference call with media reporters back in November.
• The company is undergoing a radical shake-up.
• The arrival of the new baby caused a thorough shake-up of their family life.
• "top officials were forced out in the cabinet shakeup"

War room

• A war room for the 2008 election season, By the People had its world premiere in Los Angeles this week.
• A Dukakis staffer turned Clinton humorist reviews the new documentary "The Return of the War Room."
• What the war room represented was centralized control, broad sharing of information.
• As for the McCain campaign, the remnants of the war room can be seen in its daily episodes of Extreme Message Makeover.
• The first war room gave us the working metaphor for modern campaigns and a roster of politicos who themselves became legends.

Question of the Day #121

"Trump asked intelligence chiefs to push back against FBI collusion probe after Comey revealed its existence"
From the headline of this article at the Washington Post.

上記の文で、push backの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "push back" mean?

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Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
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解答

意味：
push backは、句動詞なのですが、英辞郎には、これの適切な和訳がないけれど、名詞のpush-backの和訳は、


反対、抵抗◆特に相手の意見などに対して使う。

となっている。なので、句動詞のpush backの意味は、 


＜相手の意見などに＞反対する、抵抗する

ということになります。

Answer

According to Collins Dictionary:

If you push back against something, such as a change or criticism, you refuse to accept it or try to prevent it.

Examples

• Teachers who feel they have been criticized are starting to push back.
• How do we push back against urban poverty without replacing one need with another need? Christianity Today (2000)
• The next step is to push back hard against the worldwide collapse in the demand for goods and services. Times, Sunday Times (2009)
• The banks who own the debt are pushing back hard against the German demand for more sacrifice. Times, Sunday Times (2011)
• Why haven't our mainstream politicians the brains or moral courage to push back against the lies and the nonsense? Times, Sunday Times (2014)

Question of the Day #120

"Trump praises Duterte for 'unbelievable job' cracking down on drugs in the Philippines"
From the headline of this article at Politico.

上記の文で、crack down onの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "crack down on" mean?

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解答

意味： 英辞郎によると、


～に断固たる措置を取る、～を厳しく取り締まる［とがめる・懲らしめる］、～を厳重に［びしびし］取り締まる、～を厳罰に処する、～を弾圧する

Answer

According to Oxford Dictionaries:

Take severe measures against.

Etymology/語源

Online Etymology Dictionaryによると名詞のcrackdownの語源は、

crack downとも書く。1935年に動詞句（1915年）から派生。

According to Online Etymology Dictionary, the origin of the noun crackdown is as follows:

also crack down; 1935, from the verbal phrase (1915), from crack (v.) + down (adv.); probably from the sense of "to shoot at" (1913).

Examples

• ‘Labour has taken tough measures to crack down on crime and anti-social behaviour.’
• ‘The government has cracked down on more complex tax-avoidance schemes.’
• ‘The relationship between citizens and police has changed since the police started cracking down on organized crime.’
• ‘Its still illegal, but what this does mean is that the police are cracking down on the harder drugs, like cocaine and heroin.’
• ‘Where these are not cracked down on immediately then further, and worse, anti-social behaviour usually follows.’

Question of the Day #119

"‘He only knows how to write in 140 characters’: Trump slammed over yearbook-style note at Holocaust memorial"
From the headline of this article at Raw Story.

上記の文で、slamの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "slam" mean?

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解答

意味： 英辞郎によると、


〔～を厳しく〕非難する、糾弾する、けなす

Answer

According to Dictionary.com:

Informal. to criticize harshly; attack verbally

Etymology/語源

Dictionary.comによると、

1650~60年ごろから。スカンジナビア系の言語より。アイスランド語、ノルウェー語、スエーデン語のslamraが変形したと思われる。

According to Dictionary.com:

1650-60; perhaps < Scandinavian; compare Icelandic, Norwegian, Swedish slamra to slam

Examples

• He slammed my taste mercilessly.
• You know you want to slam Romney for it, but it's a lie to suggestotherwise.
• Although the reviewers slammed the play, the audience loved it.
• ‘the new TV soap was slammed as being cynical and irresponsible’

Question of the Day #118

今回も、一つのセンテンスから２問です。
Another twofer.

"Mueller is widely seen as a nonpolitical, dogged investigator, respected on both sides of the aisle. "
From this article at CNN.com.
Fifth paragraph from the top.
上から５段落目。

上記の文で、doggedとboth sides of the aisleの意味は？
In the sentence above, what do "dogged" and "both sides of the aisle" mean?

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解答

意味：
英辞郎によるとdoggedは、


1. 根気強い、容易に屈しない、粘り強い、頑固な

英辞郎によるとon both sides of the aisleは、

1. 両陣営の

Answer

According to Merriam-Webster "dogged" means:

1. marked by stubborn determination

According to MacMillan Dictionary "both sides of the aisle" means:

1. used for referring to one or both major political parties in the U.S.

Etymology/語源

英辞郎によるとdoggedの語源は、

◆【語源】犬がしつこくつきまとう様子から

Wikipediaによるとon both sides of the aisleのaisleは、

米国の国会の上院の中央の通路から。伝統的に、議長席から見て民主党は通路の右側に座り、共和党は左側に座る。

According to Online Etymology Dictionary:

Meaning "persistent" is from 1779.

According to Wikipedia:

Usage of the term "aisle" comes from the United States Congress. In the Senate, desks are arranged in the chamber in a semicircular pattern and the desks are divided by a wide central aisle. By tradition, Democrats sit on the right of the center aisle (as viewed from the presiding officer's chair) while Republicans sit on the left.

Examples

Dogged

• a dogged competitor
• dogged devotion
• Her dogged efforts eventually paid off.
• That dogged consistency, I think, is what attracts young voters to Ron Paul.
• But through improved forensic technology—and dogged detective work—detectives discovered that wasn't the case.

On both sides of the aisle

• The welfare proposal has support on both sides of the aisle.
• Massachusetts has also benefited from creative political leadership on both sides of the aisle and from remarkable flexibility by our education unions. — Mitt Romney, Washington Post, Mitt Romney: Trump has made a smart choice for education secretary, 6 January 2017
• The research underscores how climate change is a scientific fact—and thus solutions can and should come from both sides of the aisle. — Rosa Inocencio Smith, The Atlantic, The Atlantic Daily: Planetary Politics, 4 January 2017

Question of the Day #117

"Liberal redneck baffled by Trump’s cult: ‘Seems like they hate us more than they love their country’"
From the headline of this article at Raw Story.

上記の文で、redneckの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "redneck" mean?

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解答

意味： 英辞郎によると、


1. 〈米俗・軽蔑的〉レッドネック、〔無学の白人〕労働者◆【語源】外で肉体労働をすると首が日焼けして赤くなることから。
2. 〈米俗・軽蔑的〉〔偏見に満ちた田舎の〕守旧派、偏屈者

Answer

According to Dictionary.com:

1. an uneducated white farm laborer, especially from the South.
2. a bigot or reactionary, especially from the rural working class.

Etymology/語源

Dictionary.comによると、

red+neckから。1820-30年ころのアメリカで初めて使用された。

According to Dictionary.com:

An Americanism dating back to 1820-30; red+ neck

Examples

• Fredis a crude red-neck, and Carol is his latest bimbo.
• An example of a redneck is a poor, uneducated white person in the South who engages in prejudiced behavior.
• A large Texan redneck was shouting obscenities at Ali.

Question of the Day #116

"Fareed Zakaria: GOP is a banana republic ‘platform to support the ego, appetites of one man and his family’"
From the headline of this article at Raw Story.

上記の文で、banana republicの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "banana republic" mean?

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解答

意味： 英辞郎によると、


〈侮蔑的〉バナナ共和国◆バナナなどの果物の輸出への依存度が高い南米の国々

とあるが、ちょっと違うと思います。なぜなら、重要な要素が抜けているからです。英英辞典でも様々な定義があることは確かですが、口語英語においてbanana republicの最も重要な要素は、「腐敗している、独裁政治の国」であることです。
同義語： kleptocracy

Answer

According to Cambridge Dictionary:

a small country, especially in South and Central America, that is poor, corrupt, and badly ruled

Synonym: kleptocracy

Etymology/語源

Wiktionary によると、

O. Henryの1904年の短編集Cabbages and Kingsで初めて使用。O. Henryが1896-1897年に滞在したホンジュラスをモデルにしたAnchuriaという架空の国のことを言った。

According to Wiktionary :

Coined by American author O. Henry in his 1904 book of short stories, "Cabbages and Kings", set in the fictional "Anchuria", which was based on his 1896-97 stay in Honduras.

Examples

• If those consumers get their hands on some money, they'll move upmarket to Crate and Barrel and banana republic.
• Tropico is the excellent nation-builder game that simulates a Caribbean banana republic during the Cold War.
• Opponents said Sarkozy backing his son for the job made France look like a “ banana republic.”
• At that time we had a treaty with about every foreign country except Belgium and that banana republic, Anchuria. - Cabbages and Kings, O. Henry

Question of the Day #115

"‘Too bad, little snowflakes’: MSNBC panel mocks conservatives offended by Colbert’s c*ck joke"
From the headline of this article at Raw Story.

上記の文で、snowflakeの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "snowflake" mean?

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解答

意味： 英辞郎によると、


1. 雪のひとひら、雪片
2. 雪の結晶

等の訳があるが、これは当然違うので、英英辞典の定義を参照します。
Wiktionaryの4番目の定義は、

自分が雪の結晶のようにユニークで特別だと思っている人。侮辱等に敏感で、とくに自分が道徳的に正しいと信じている若い人。

また、下記語源の説明を参照してください。

Answer

According to Wiktionary:

Someone who believes they are as unique and special as a snowflake; someone hypersensitive to insult or offense, especially a young person with politically correct sensibilities.

Also refer to the etymology below.

Etymology/語源

this article at Merriam-Websterによると、

近年、snowflakeは、新しい侮辱的な言葉として、いろいろな社会問題等に敏感でナーバスな人を言うようになっている。2016年の米大統領選挙戦においては、共和党の右派が民主党の候補や支持者を侮辱する言葉として頻繁に使われた。

According to this article at Merriam-Webster:

It's developed a new and decidedly less pleasant use as a disparaging term for a person who is seen as overly sensitive and fragile. In the lead-up to the 2016 U.S. elections it was lobbed especially fiercely by those on the right side of the political spectrum at those on the left.

Examples

• "You are not special. You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake. You are the same organic and decaying matter as everyone else." 1996, Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
• "It’s particularly effective given that there’s really no comeback to it: in calling someone a snowflake, you are not just shutting down their opinion, but telling them off for being offended that you are doing so." 2016, Rebecca Nicholson, The Guardian, 28 November
• "Marc Hokoana messaged a friend on Facebook the day before Yiannopoulos was scheduled to talk and said he 'can’t wait for tomorrow,' according to police officials. In the Facebook message, obtained by a search warrant, he wrote: 'I’m going to the Milo event and if the snowflakes get out off [sic] hand I’m just going to wade through their ranks and start cracking skulls.'"2017, 25 April, Couple charged in shooting of protester at Milo Yiannopoulos event in Seattle (in The Guardian)

Question of the Day #114

"The optics could not be worse."
Vox.comのこの記事の最後の段落の最初のセンテンス。

上記の文で、opticsの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "optics" mean?

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解答

意味：

残念ながら2012年ごろから頻繁に使われ始めた用法にもかかわらず、例文の場合の適訳は無料版の英辞郎等の辞書に掲載されていない。そこで、英英辞書で調べてみました。 Dictionary.comによると、

状況、活動、出来事等が一般人や特定の団体によってどのように理解または把握されるか。

注意点としては、opticsを使用する場合、複数形の動詞を使うこと。

ということなので、「見え方、受け取り方、認識の仕方」という意味になります。同義語は、appearance, looks等。

例文を書き換えれば、
The appearance could not be worse.
How this looks could not be worse.

になります。

Answer

According to Dictionary.com:

(used with a plural verb) the way a situation, action, event, etc., is perceived by the public or by a particular group of people

Etymology/語源

Stack Exchangeによると二つの説がある、

Macmillan Dictionaryによると、政治的に初めて使用されたのが、米国のカーター大統領時代（1976-1980）。

Oxford English Dictionaryによると、最も古い使用例は、1958年。

There are two answers according to the replies at Stack Exchange:

Macmillan Dictionary has been following the development of this new metaphor. Their gloss of the word’s history claims that the first political use was during the US presidency of Jimmy Carter, but that it became popular more recently in the context of the Libyan conflict.

The OED’s definition 2c of the singular optic as a noun is ‘A particular way of interpreting or experiencing something; a viewpoint, a perspective.’ The earliest citation in this sense is dated 1958.

Examples

• The optics on this issue are pretty good for the Democrats.
• Administrators worry about the bad optics of hiring new staff during a budget crisis.
• … when a broken-down bailout recipient like Citigroup tries to pay its top executives gigantic bonuses or to acquire a new private jet, it has failed to reconsider the optics. — Nick Paumgarten
• Skilling said Baxter “was concerned about the optics of the conflict, but not about the ethics or propriety of the transactions,“ according to interview memos. — Peter Behr and April Witt
• The Carter lovefest shows insensitivity to the buzzword of this year—the optics —not just with Israel but with American voters.

Question of the Day #113

"Trump Walks Back Threat to Defund Black Colleges"
From the headline of this article at the New York Times.

上記の文で、walk backの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "walk back" mean?

答えは、コメントに書いてください。
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明日、ここに答えを書きます。
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解答

意味：
英辞郎に適訳がないので、Merriam-Websterによるとwalk backの意味は、


（以前述べた意見や立場から）退くまたは取り消す

ということなので、問題の見出しの場合は、「取り消す」が適訳でしょう。
同じような意味の単語が、backpedal。例えば、問題の見出しを書き直したら、Trump Backpedals from Threat to Defund Black Collegesになります。

Answer

According to Merriam-Webster:

to retreat from or distance oneself from (a previously stated opinion or position)

Etymology/語源

Lex Maniacによると、

LexisNexisで発見した最も古い例が1980年代半ばからである。

According to Lex Maniac:

The earliest instances I found in LexisNexis date from the mid-1980’s,

Examples

• … try not to say anything in the primary campaign that you might need to walk back in the general election. — The Progressive Populist
• … has tried to walk back his suggestion about Japan, in particular, claiming in recent days that he “never said” that the Asian nation should acquire nuclear weapons. — Julian Hattem
• ‘senior members of the administration tried to walk back her comments’
• This week, he was forced to walk back those comments in Washington.
• Though Himmelman gave Bradlee multiple chances during his research,the famed editor did not walk back his comment.

Question of the Day #112

今回は、一つの見出しから二つの用語・イディオム。
Two for one today. :)

"NY Dem has a brilliant way to troll Republicans who are afraid to face the music after voting for Trumpcare"

From the headline of this article at the Raw Story.

上記の文で、trollとface the musicの意味は？
In the sentence above, what do "troll" and "face the music" mean?

答えは、コメントに書いてください。
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明日、ここに答えを書きます。
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解答

trollの意味： 英辞郎によると、


〈俗〉〔インターネットの掲示板・チャット・メーリングリストなどで〕釣りをする、挑発的メッセージを投稿する

例文の場合は、インターネット用語ではないが、ほぼ同じ意味で使用されているので、「挑発する」が適訳でしょう。

face the musicの意味： 英辞郎によると、

〈話〉自分の言動の報いを受ける［結果を潔く受け止める］

Answer

According to Merriam-Webster "troll" in this example means:

to antagonize (others) online by deliberately posting inflammatory, irrelevant, or offensive comments or other disruptive content

According to Dictionary.com "face the music" means:

to meet, take, or accept the consequences of one'smistakes, actions, etc.

Etymology/語源

Oxford Dictionariesによると、trollは、

1992年に初めて使用された。恐らく北欧神話のtrollから。

The Phrase Finderによると、face the musicは、

19世紀半ばにアメリカで初めて使用された。最も古い記録として残っているものは、The New Hampshire Statesman & State Journalの1834年8月の下記の使用例である。

"Will the editor of the Courier explain this black affair. We want no equivocation - 'face the music' this time."

由来は、不名誉な除隊となった将校が太鼓の音とともに除隊されたこととする説が一つ。もう一つの有力な説は、舞台の役者がオーケストラピットに向かって演技をしたからと言われている。

According to Oxford Dictionaries troll's origin is:

Late Middle English (in the sense ‘stroll, roll’): origin uncertain; compare with Old French troller ‘wander here and there (in search of game)’ and Middle High German trollen ‘stroll’. The computing senses (first recorded in 1992) are probably influenced by troll.

According to The Phrase Finder face the music's origin is:

It may help to pinpoint the origin to know that the phrase appears to be mid 19th American in origin. The earliest citation I can find for the phrase is from The New Hampshire Statesman & State Journal, August 1834:

"Will the editor of the Courier explain this black affair. We want no equivocation - 'face the music' this time."

A commonly repeated assertion is that 'face the music' originated from the tradition of disgraced officers being 'drummed out' of their regiment. A second popular theory is that it was actors who 'faced the music', that is, faced the orchestra pit, when they went on stage.

Examples

Troll

• … trolls engage in the most outrageous and offensive behaviors possible—all the better to troll you with. — Whitney Phillips
• ‘if people are obviously trolling then I'll delete your posts and do my best to ban you’
• ‘you folks taking this opportunity to troll me, you really need to reassess your values in your life’
• Violentacrez and his ilk were free to troll: to post objectionable, offensive garbage.

Face the music

• He's squandered his money and now he's got to face the music.
• If you have done something wrong, you have to face the music.
• The children broke the window pane while playing and had to face the music when their parents returned home.
• If you don’t complete the project on time, you will have to face the music when the boss asks for a status report.
• If you keep breaking the rules, sooner or later you will be caught and then you will have to face the music.

Question of the Day #111

"Robert Reich masterfully turns Ann Coulter’s ‘free speech’ gripes into smackdown on Trump’s media war"
The headline from this article at Raw Story.

上記の文で、smackdownの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "smackdown" mean?

答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
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---

解答

意味：
実は、英辞郎にsmackdownの訳はありませんが、イディオムのsmack downの訳はあります。 英辞郎によると、smack downの意味は、


～に灸を据える

また、下記Merriam-Websterの四つの定義を考慮すると、問題の場合の適訳は、「決定的な敗北をあたえる」ぐらいがいいと思います。

Answer

According to Merriam-Webster:

1. the act of knocking down or bringing down an opponent
2. a contest in entertainment wrestling
3. a decisive defeat
4. a confrontation between rivals or competitors

Etymology/語源

The Bleacher Reportによると、

smackdownは、２００７年７月１０日に初めてMerriam-Websterに掲載されたが、使われ始めたのがその約１０年前の１９９０年代半ば。（もっと詳しい説明は、下記英語の語源参照。）

According to The Bleacher Report:

It's one of those minor factoids that often gets glazed over, but today marks the anniversary of a pretty cool accomplishment for WWE. It was exactly five years ago today, on July 10, 2007, that the people at Merriam-Webster announced 20 new words that would officially be added to their English dictionary. Words that were added that day varied from trendy things like sudoku to advancing technologies like DVR. One of the words added was a word birthed nearly a decade before that day and has been a fixture in WWE for more than a dozen years now. The word was "smackdown".

Examples

• If he wins South Carolina, the smackdown with John King may well be remembered as the turning point.
• Halfway through his speech, Obama laid the smackdown on Congress.
• The third Romney smackdown in his first week back was something of a surprise.
• The technology made you feel like you had your finger on your mouse, made you expect the instant gratification of a “smackdown.”
• Way back during the 2000 Bush-Gore smackdown, I dug around in the data, interviewed undecideds, and called up a passel of experts.

Question of the Day #110

"Jaws Drop As Trump Admits That He Is Not Reading The Executive Orders He Is Signing"
From the headline of this article at Politicus USA.

上記の文で、jaws dropの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "jaws drop" mean?

答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
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解答

意味： 英辞郎によると、 jaw dropsの訳は、


びっくりする、驚いて大口を開ける

別のHuffington Postの記事には、Samantha Bee On Trump’s First 100 Days: ‘My Jaw Has Been On The Floor 300 Times’という変形の使い方をしていた。これは、jaw drops on the floorの変形でもある。

Answer

According to The Free Dictionary:

to show great surprise

Etymology/語源

Jaws dropの語源は、なかなか見つからないけれどjaw-droppingという形容詞の語源は、Merriam-Websterによると、1980年に初めて使用されたとしている。

I could not find the etymology for "jaws drop," but according to Merriam-Webster "jaw-dropping" was first used in 1980.

Examples

• My jaw dropped when I heard she'd been admitted to Harvard.
• The news I'm pregnant after so many tries made my husband's jaw drop.
• Cleo’s jaw dropped in surprise.