- 1高保養的；指人時台灣常說「難伺候」
If something is high-maintenance, it needs a lot of care to keep it in good shape. A high-maintenance car needs special oil and frequent checks; you cannot just forget it. A high-maintenance plant dies if you miss a week of watering. People also use this about people, and that is the sense many students meet first. A high-maintenance friend or partner needs a lot of attention, time, or money — texts answered at once, plans that must be perfect, praise, gifts. This people-sense is informal, a bit , and often . It was popularized in American English by the 1989 film When Harry Met Sally…. In real talk it can be a joke between friends, but said about someone who cannot hear you, it can sting. It does not mean “high quality.” A cheap old car can be high-maintenance too, because it keeps breaking. Though actually, almost anything that needs extra work can wear this label — a , a piece of software, even a friendship.
high-maintenance 用來形容需要花很多心力保養，才能維持好狀態的東西，例如需要特別機油和頻繁檢查的車，或是漏掉一週澆水就會死掉的植物。它的常見格式是「a high-maintenance ＿＿」。
用在人身上時，它指一個朋友或伴侶需要很多關注、時間或金錢，例如訊息要立刻回、計畫一定要完美、要不斷被稱讚、要送禮物。這個用法很口語，有點俚語味，常帶有不友善的意思。朋友之間當玩笑說可以，但如果是在背後這樣說某人，就可能很傷人。這個人身上的用法，在美式英文中是因為 1989 年的電影《當哈利遇見莎莉》而流行起來的。
它不是「高品質」的意思。一輛便宜的舊車，因為常常壞，也可以叫 high-maintenance。幾乎任何需要額外花心思的東西，都可以用這個字，例如髮型、軟體，甚至是友情。
From the word’s history
The figurative sense was popularized by the 1989 film When Harry Met Sally.
形容人的用法因 1989 年電影《當哈利碰上莎莉》而流行。
組成high (a lot of) + maintenance (the work of keeping something in good shape). The people-sense was popularized by the 1989 film When Harry Met Sally….
同家族的字
- maintenancethe care and repair work itself
- maintainthe verb: to keep something in good shape
- low-maintenancethe opposite: needing little care
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。
high-maintenanceadj
- 1
Requiring a high degree of maintenance to ensure proper functioning, and without which it is likely to break down.
- 2
derogatoryRequiring a lot of attention or reassurance; emotionally needy
- He has this incredibly high-maintenance girlfriend; if he doesn't tell her that he loves her every five minutes, she tends to break down into hysterical depressive weepy fits.
- There are two kinds of women: high maintenance and low maintenance.
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。