人用嘴發出的低聲
聲音來自人的喉嚨：閉著嘴的那個 m-m-m，可以是有旋律的，也可以是說不出話時的填空。
hum a tune · verb · C2
To make a tune with your voice while your lips stay closed, without using words.
哼唱
核心畫面
Hold this picture: a low, continuous sound made with the mouth closed — no words, no gaps, just an even m-m-m-m that goes on and on. The word is the sound itself. Everything else is a question of what is making it: your throat, a machine, or a of people.
嘴巴閉著發出的一種低低的、連綿不斷的聲音——沒有字、沒有停頓，就是一路 m-m-m-m 地延續下去。這個字本身就是那…更多收起
嘴巴閉著發出的一種低低的、連綿不斷的聲音——沒有字、沒有停頓，就是一路 m-m-m-m 地延續下去。這個字本身就是那個聲音（英語裡這類字叫擬聲字，唸出來就是它在描述的東西）。後面所有的用法差別只在：發出這個聲音的是誰——是你的喉嚨、是一台機器，還是一整個房間的人。From the word’s history
From Middle English hummen "to hum, buzz, drone", related to Dutch hommelen "to buzz" — an imitative word, coined to sound like the noise it names.
來自中古英語 hummen（哼、嗡嗡作響），跟荷蘭語 hommelen（嗡嗡叫）同源。這是一個擬聲字：它不是從別的意思引申來的，而是直接模仿那個聲音造出來的。所以理解這個字不必繞路——把嘴閉起來發出 hmmmm，那個聲音就是這個字的全部起點。
Wiktionary, "hum" (Etymology 1): from Middle English hummen ("to hum, buzz, drone"); akin to Dutch hommelen ("to bumble, buzz").
Three branches
機器與環境的持續低鳴
聲音來源換成無生命的東西：機器運轉時發出的那種平穩、不間斷的低頻噪音，聽起來就跟人閉嘴哼出的音一樣。
hum, low steady sound · verb · C2
To make a low, steady sound that continues without stopping, like the sound of some machines.
嗡嗡響
人聲匯成的熱鬧
很多人同時在講話，遠遠聽過去，個別的字都聽不清了，只剩下一片連續的低鳴——聲音的形狀還是核心那個 hum，只是這次是一群人合成的。從這裡再走一步，那片聲音就代表了「這裡很有活力」。
buzz of conversation · noun · C2
The sound of people talking because they are excited, pleased, or showing they agree.
議論聲
原始詞典資料19 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。
Humname
- 1
A town in the central part of Istria, northwest Croatia, 7 km from Roč.
humnoun詞源 1/ˈhʌm/
- 1
A hummed tune, i.e. created orally with lips closed.
- 2
An often indistinct sound resembling human humming.
- They could hear a hum coming from the kitchen and found the dishwasher on.
- the shard-borne beetle with his drowsy hums
- 3
Busy activity, like the buzz of a beehive.
- 4
slangUnpleasant odour.
- 5
datedAn imposition or hoax; humbug.
- 6
obsoleteA kind of strong drink.
- you do provide me hum enough , And lour to bouse with
- 7
A phenomenon, or collection of phenomena, involving widespread reports of a persistent and invasive low-frequency humming, rumbling, or droning noise not audible to all people.
- There is a range of theories from farm or factory machinery to conspiracy theories such as flying saucers. And yet, "the hum" remains an unsolved case.
humverb詞源 1/ˈhʌm/
- 1
To make a sound from the vocal cords without pronouncing any real words, with one's lips closed.
- We are humming happily along with the music.
- 2
To express by humming.
- to hum a tune
- The team hummed “We Shall Overcome” as they came back onto the field after the break.
- 3
To drone like certain insects naturally do in motion, or sounding similarly.
- The leaves of the foreſt were loaded with manna, pure amber dropped from every bough, honey diſtilled from the rifted rock, and the humming bee, drunk with joy, ſtrayed from flower to flower, forgetful of his burſting cells.
- A slight gloom fell upon the table. Jacob was helping himself to jam; the postman was talking to Rebecca in the kitchen; there was a bee humming at the yellow flower which nodded at the open window.
- 4
To buzz, be busily active like a beehive.
- The streets were humming with activity.
- 5
To produce low sounds which blend continuously.
- 6
slangTo reek, smell bad.
- This room really hums — have you ever tried spring cleaning, mate?
- 7
datedslangTo flatter by approving; to cajole; to deceive or impose upon; to humbug.
humintj詞源 1/ˈhʌm/
- 1
Synonym of hmm: a noise indicating thought, consideration, &c.
- Hum! hum! What's all this?
- 2
Synonym of um: a noise indicating doubt, uncertainty, &c.
- Ah, now this is why we must proceed with great circumspection. They were both, hum, “put out” themselves.
humnoun詞源 2/hʌm/
- 1
informalSynonym of see hum (“blood cockles, ark clams”).
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。