华慧考博英语复习:小词详解 | spawn
外刊例句And the technique is promising enough to have spawned human clinical trials.
以该技术的前景,足以催生这方面的人体临床试验。
——《经济学人》
For years, prominent economists have warned that the world has become addicted to monetary policy and its crisis spawn, low interest rates, as the appropriate response for nearly every economic concern.
多年来有许多杰出的经济学家警告说,世界已经沉迷于货币政策,其滋生的产物——低利率——成为几乎每次经济问题的适当应对措施。
——《纽约时报》
基本释义
[verb] (of a fish, frog, mollusk, crustacean, etc.) release or deposit eggs
[动词] (指鱼、青蛙、软体动物、甲壳类动物等)产卵
深入解读
Spawn 一词源自拉丁语 expandere (分散、展开、扩展),进入英语时作动词指“(鱼、虾、蛙等)产卵”,作名词时即表示“(鱼、虾、蛙等一次产下的)卵、子、卵块”或者喻指“产物、结果”,比如:
我们的好恶常常是盲目的,都是天性或者习惯的产物。
Our likes and dislikes are often blind, the spawn of instinct or habit.
把 spawn 用在人身上,自然是个侮辱性的贬义词,作动词指“(人)生育”,作名词表示“(尤指大批)子孙、后代”或“崽子”,比如:
他出生在城市的贫民窟。
He was spawned in the city's slums.
你这个小妖孽。
You spawn of the devil.
鱼、虾、蛙等一次产卵,少则数百,多则成千上万,所以 spawn 带有“大量生育”的含义,由此引申开来还可以表示“使大量产生、大量发展、突然增长”(对比:churn something out),比如:
新的经济自由催生了上百家新的小企业。
The new economic freedom has spawned hundreds of new small businesses.
她的去世催生了无数电影和书籍。
Her death spawned countless films and books.
另外, spawn 也可以表示“造成、引起、酿成”(对比:court),尤指后果数量很多,比如:
他的突然辞职引起了种种谣言。
His sudden resignation spawned many rumours.
同近义词
lay: (of a female bird, insect, reptile, or amphibian) produce (an egg) from inside the body
oviposit: (especially of an insect) lay an egg or eggs
produce: create or form (something) as part of a physical, biological, or chemical process
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