Question of the Day #26

"We need to bite the bullet and make some budget cuts."

上記の文中のbite the bulletの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "bite the bullet" 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。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

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解答

意味：英辞郎によると：

歯を食いしばって耐える［こらえる・頑張る］、グッとこらえる、耐え忍ぶ、苦しい［つらい・困難な・嫌な］仕事を我慢してやる、ひるまない、苦しい［つらい・困難な・嫌な］状況に耐える［敢然と立ち向かう］、あえて困難な方法を取る

Answer

to force yourself to do something unpleasant or difficult, or to be brave in a difficult situation

Etymology/語源

In past wars, when painkillers were in short supply, it was sometimes common for medical doctors in the field to give their patients a bullet to bite on when preforming a painful operation. This would distract them from the pain and keep them quiet while the medical work was performed.

英辞郎によると：

開拓時代に麻酔なしの手術で患者に弾丸をかませて痛みをこらえさせたことから

とあるが、ほとんどの英語の説明では、「開拓時代」ではなく、「麻酔薬が発明される前の戦場」または「麻酔薬が不足している戦場」ということになっている。

Examples

• You are just going to have to bite the bullet and make the best of it.
• They decided to bite the bullet and pay the extra for the house they really wanted.
• Car drivers are biting the bullet after another rise in petrol prices.
• I decided I had to bite the bullet and take a couple of math classes even though I knew they were hard.
• After several months of poor sales, the factory was forced to bite the bullet and proceed with layoffs.

Weekend Recommendation #8

This week's recommendation:

今週のおすすめ：

Tangorin/単語林ｵﾝﾗｲﾝ和英辞書

Why is this recommended?

なぜ、これがおすすめ？

For definitions of individual Japanese words/terms, I have found this online dictionary to produce the most usable English translations. It is better than Eijiro for that purpose, although Eijiro wins when it comes to translations of various Japanese words/terms within a phrase or sentence.

翻訳者としての経験から、日本語の用語を英語に訳す上では、このサイトが一番いいと思う。英辞郎よりもはるかに使える訳を出力しますが、具体的な文例の訳がないので、その点では英辞郎の方が優れている。

Tangorin/単語林ｵﾝﾗｲﾝ和英辞書

Question of the Day #25

"What are you eating?"
"It's a soup with cellophane noodles."

上記の会話で、cellophane noodlesの意味は？
In the dialogue above, what are "cellophane noodles"?

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。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

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解答

意味：春雨、葛切り等の透明な麺類

Answer

According to Wikipedia:


Cellophane noodles (also known as Chinese vermicelli, bean threads, bean thread noodles, crystal noodles, or glass noodles) are a type of transparent noodle made from starch (such as mung bean starch, yam, potato starch, cassavaor canna starch), and water.

Question of the Day #24

"What? You're still using a feature phone?
"Yeah, I just don't think I need a smartphone."

上記の会話で、feature phoneの意味は？
In the dialogue above, what does "feature phone" 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。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

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解答

意味：スマホではない携帯電話。つまり、いまではガラケーになる。もとはと言えば１９９０年代にできた言葉で、高機能携帯電話（ただの通話以上の機能）のことだったが、スマホの出現でこのように意味が変わった。
ちなみに、折りたたみ式のガラケーは、flip phoneという。

Answer

According to PC Magazine:

"A cellphone that contains a fixed set of functions beyond voice calling and text messaging but is not as extensive as a smartphone. For example, feature phones may offer Web browsing and e-mail, but they generally cannot download apps from an online marketplace.

The "feature phone" moniker made sense when they were introduced in the late 1990s, because they included more functions than a regular cellphone. Today, the device is more a "featureless phone" compared to the ever-expanding functionality of a smartphone.

Question of the Day #23

A. Looks like you hurt your leg pretty bad.
B. Looks like you hurt your leg pretty good.

上記のAとBの違いは何？
What is the difference between A and B above?

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。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

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解答

アメリカ英語では、全く同じ意味です。
上記の例文は、StackExchangeというサイトにあったものです。
そのページで、数人からの説明の投稿がありますが、はっきりした結論としては慣用的なものであって、ネイティブにはすぐに理解できる言い回しであるが、第二外国語として英語を習っている人にはわかりにくいということです。
したがって、使えるかどうかは別として、こういう使い方があることを理解していただきたい。

Answer

They are both the same in colloquial American English. (I wonder if they could be used in Great Britain or other countries in the same way? If you know or have an opinion, please chime in in the Comments.)
The two sentences above were picked up from the StackExchange web site, and there were a number of people trying to give some sort of explanation, but the only one that I found convincing was, "Whether one gussies up expressions such as these or not, native speakers understand immediately what they mean. On the other hand, non-native speakers might question not only the grammar, but also the meaning."
So, I guess we'll have to leave it at that.

Weekend Recommendation #7

This week's recommendation:

今週のおすすめ：

Simple English Wikipedia

Why is this recommended?

なぜ、これがおすすめ？

I stumbled upon this page the other day. It is Wikipedia, but with articles written in simplified English. It might be too simple for people who read this blog, but then again it might help you to learn how to explain things in a simpler way.

先日、このSimple English Wikipediaを偶然発見。ウィキペディアの一部であるが、比較的簡単な英語を使った記事が中心です。このブログを読んでいる方には簡単すぎると思うが、簡単な言い回しを覚えるいい方法でもあると思います。

Simple English Wikipedia

Question of the Day #22

"Why don't you come with Jenny and me to the movie?"
"No thanks, I don't want to be a third wheel."

上記の会話で、third wheelの意味は？
In the dialogue above, what does "third wheel" 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。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

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解答

意味：例文の場合は「お邪魔虫」。このほかに、「足手まとい」「役立たず」の意味もある。Fifth wheelという場合もある。

Answer

According to Dictionary.com: "a third person joining a couple in a social context, esp. one who is in the way"

Etymology/語源

Quora.comによると:

このイディオムは、fifth wheelに由来する。

１７世紀頃から四輪馬車が予備の車輪を運ぶようになった。Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fableによると、この車輪は今のスペアタイヤのように使われ、非常時に必要であったけれど、普段はじゃまだった。

しかし、すべての馬車が四輪というわけではなく、中にはone-horse shayと呼ばれた二輪馬車もあったのでこのような表現ができた。

また、今日では、カップルのお邪魔虫的存在は、三人目であるところからthird wheelという表現の方がわかりやすいから、より多く使われるようになったと推測される。

According to Quora.com:

The idiom comes by analogy to the phrase "fifth wheel".

"Fifth wheel" arose as a term of superfluity originating from the extra wheel carried on four-wheel coaches, carriages, and wagons, dating back to the 17th century. Some speculation from the Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable says that this was a spare wheel, useful in emergencies but cumbersome in general.

However, not all carriages had four wheels. One alternate mode of transportation was the one-horse shay, a two-wheel carriage (commemorated in the 1858 poem "The Deacon's Masterpiece" by Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.). Although shays did not carry a third wheel, the metaphor transferred.

I presume that the greater prevalence of the phrase "third wheel" today is because it's the easiest way to refer to a third person who tags along with a romantic couple and thus either feels uncomfortable or makes them feel uncomfortable. (Just my speculation.)

Examples

• Well, if you're bringing your girlfriend, I'll have to take my cousin with me, don't wanna be the third wheel.
• Veronica Mars felt like a third wheel.
• He was a third wheel when they went to the fair.
• I was hanging out with Jason and his brother, but I just felt like a third wheel.