weerabbit

為什麼會想記一下這個字?說來好笑.

最近看在達文西密碼,老是看到這個字,又脫不開這個字給我的印象: A small low bed for an infant, often furnished with rockers. 但是,又和文本那麼不相干.

夜裡睡不著,爬起來翻字典,還學到了許多用法
from the cradle to the grave

Noun
1 [countable] a small bed for a baby, especially one that moves gently from side to side
ￚsee also cot She rocked the cradle to quieten the child.

2 the cradle of something
formal the place where something important began
Athens is often regarded as the cradle of democracy.

3 from (the) cradle to (the) grave
all through your life
From cradle to grave, the car marks every rite of American passage.

4 [singular] the beginning of something
Like most Catholic children, he had heard stories of Ireland from the cradle .

5[countable] a structure that is used to lift something heavy up or down
a window-cleaner's cradle

6 [countable] the part of a telephone where you put the receiver when you are not using it
She replaced the receiver on the cradle.

我想,文本中的解釋會比較偏向動詞的解釋:

1 to hold something gently, as if to protect it
John cradled the baby in his arms.
2 to hold a telephone receiver by putting it between your ear and your shoulder
She hunched over the desk, telephone cradled at her neck.

最讓我意外的發現是-我找到了那天和阿三說電話時,我一時解釋不清的東東,那天,電話沒掛好,所以他打進會議室時,跟本無法接通,而我,想了半天,就是想不出來該怎麼說~

The part of a telephone that contains the connecting switch upon which the receiver and mouthpiece unit is supported. 

所以,下次再遇到這種狀況時,我可以說: The telephone reciever was not on the cradle, so the line was busy when you called.

哈哈,翻英文字典,果然有幫助~