畫面／空間的後層
這一族是 background 最原始、最看得見的畫面：主角在前，其他東西在後。其他用法都是從這個「在後面那一層」的畫面長出來的。
background (of a picture) · noun · B1
The part of a picture or view that is behind the main thing you look at.
背景（畫面）
核心畫面
Picture a photo or a painting: there is the main thing your eye lands on in front, and then everything sitting behind it — the part of the scene that is further back, not the focus. 'Background' can be thought of as that whole behind-layer. From this one picture, the word stretches in two directions: outward in space (the back of any view, the surface under a design, the sounds behind the main sound) and inward in time/attention (the events behind a situation, the life behind a person, a quiet spot where nobody looks at you).
可以想成一張照片或一幅畫：前面有一個你的目光最先落上去的主角，而它後面那一整層、比較遠、不是焦點的部分，就是 bac…更多收起
可以想成一張照片或一幅畫：前面有一個你的目光最先落上去的主角，而它後面那一整層、比較遠、不是焦點的部分，就是 background。整個字可以想成這個「在後面那一層」的畫面。從這個畫面，它往兩個方向延伸：一個是空間上的後面（畫面深處、圖案底下的底色、主聲音背後的雜音），另一個是時間與注意力上的後面（事情背後的來由、一個人背後的成長經歷、一個沒人會看你的安靜角落）。Three branches
事情／人的背後來由
把空間的「後面」換成時間與緣由的「後面」：事情或人的眼前是看得到的，而推動它、解釋它的那些更早的事，就像畫面深處那一層，藏在後頭。
background (context/history of a situation) · noun · B1
The events from the past that help explain why something is happening now.
來龍去脈 / 背景
不顯眼的位置
從「在後面」延伸到「待在後面、不被看到」：站在畫面深處的人不引人注意，於是 background 也用來指一個刻意低調、沒人盯著你的位置。
background (out of sight, unnoticed) · noun · B1
A place or position where you are not noticed because you stay out of sight.
幕後 / 不顯眼處
原始詞典資料14 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
backgroundadj詞源 1/ˈbæk.(ɡ)ɹaʊnd/
- 1
Less important or less noticeable in a scene or system.
- background noise
- The antivirus program runs on a background thread.
backgroundnoun詞源 1/ˈbæk.(ɡ)ɹaʊnd/
- 1
One's social heritage, or previous life; what one did in the past.
- The lawyer had a background in computer science.
- 2
A part of the picture that depicts scenery to the rear or behind the main subject; context.
- Earless ghost swift moths become “invisible” to echolocating bats by forming mating clusters close[…]above vegetation and effectively blending into the clutter of echoes that the bat receives from the leaves and stems around them. Many insects probably use this strategy, which is a close analogy to crypsis in the visible world — camouflage and other methods for blending into one’s visual background.
- 3
broadcastingfilmmediaAn extra who appears in the background, with no speaking role.
- 4
Information relevant to the current situation about past events; history.
- 5
A less important feature of scenery (as opposed to foreground).
- There was tons of noise in the background.
- The photographer let us pick a background for the portrait.
- 6
computingengineeringmathematicsThe image or color over which a computer's desktop items are shown (e.g. icons or application windows).
- 7
computingengineeringmathematicsA type of activity on a computer that is not normally visible to the user.
- The antivirus program is running in the background.
backgroundverb詞源 1/ˈbæk.(ɡ)ɹaʊnd/
- 1
To place in the background.
- Ha! I see Venus’ transit now;—lo! a new planet there;—and behind all, an infinite starry nebulousness, as if thy being were backgrounded by some spangled vail of mystery.
- 2
To put in a position that is not prominent.
- One aspect of the story that appears interesting is that the alleged rapist and victim are only referred to by name together in the same sentence once. In all the other sentences, one receives more focus, while the other is backgrounded.
- 3
journalismmediaTo gather and provide background information (on).
- 4
To increase the weight and immunity of (a calf) by feeding with forage and grains, as an intermediate stage in cattle production, between weaning and placement in a feedlot.
這個拼法也被記錄為下列字的變化形：
資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。