- 1煽動者、激烈分子（鼓動人去改法律或政府的人；這裡的 brand 不是品牌）
A firebrand is a person who tries to stir people up — to make them angry about a law, a government, or the way things are — so that they will push for change. Newspapers use it for political : someone who makes fierce speeches, hot articles, or organises protests, and who seems to enjoy lighting that anger. It can sound or warning, depending on who is talking. Though actually, the older meaning is a piece of burning wood you carry to start another fire; calling a person a firebrand is a picture: they carry the spark and try to set other people’s feelings alight. We are writing about the person, not the stick. A firebrand is not a quiet adviser, and not someone who sets buildings on fire.
組成From Middle English fyr-brand, furbrond — fire + brand. Brand here is the old word for a burning piece of wood, not a company name. German has a close cousin, Feuerbrand.
原始詞典資料2 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，摘錄並精簡格式，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。
firebrandnoun/ˈfaɪə.bɹænd/
- 1
A torch or other burning stick with a flame at one end.
- The crowd cheered as a firebrand was tossed onto the huge pile of wood to start the traditional homecoming bonfire.
- […] he filled all their throats with it, so that those poor wretches were by it made to cough like foxes, crying, Ha, Pantagruel, how how thou addest greater heat to the firebrand that is in us.
- 2
An argumentative troublemaker or revolutionary; one who agitates against the status quo.
- The member of the college's Communist League was a firebrand who would launch a sit-in or protest march at a moment's notice.
- At the same time, Mr. Irons said, it is important to separate “this very valiant and completely kosher and clean repository of public material, which we perfectly endorse, and this kind of firebrand ‘We want to show the publishers they’re wrong’ kind of attitude.”
摘錄自 英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary，已精簡格式；依 CC BY-SA 4.0 授權使用，改動後的內容同樣以此授權提供。