喜樂美語

核心畫面

Think of a wave rolling over something and burying it: the water does not push the thing aside, it comes over the top and covers it completely, all at once. Whatever was standing there is now under.

一道浪整個翻過來，把底下的東西蓋住。水不是把東西推到旁邊，而是從上方壓過去、瞬間淹沒，本來站在那裡的東西現在都在水面…更多收起一道浪整個翻過來，把底下的東西蓋住。水不是把東西推到旁邊，而是從上方壓過去、瞬間淹沒，本來站在那裡的東西現在都在水面下了。這個字的力氣全在「量太大、來太快、蓋滿」這三件事上——不是一點一點磨掉你，而是一次覆蓋。之後所有的用法都是把那道浪換成別的東西：情緒、工作、敵軍、好意，然後看被蓋住的是誰。

From the word’s history

whelm on its own meant "to turn over, to cover completely" (as in turning a vessel upside down over something); over- intensifies it, so overwhelm is literally to cover something right over.

英文原本就有一個獨立的動詞 whelm，意思是「翻覆過來、整個蓋住」，像是把一個碗倒扣在東西上面；over- 再加強一層。所以 overwhelm 從字根看就是「整個蓋過去」，現代那種被情緒或工作淹沒的感覺，其實是同一個倒扣的動作。

Wiktionary, "overwhelm" / "whelm" (Middle English whelmen, to turn over, cover)

Three branches

水真的蓋過來

字面的那道浪，其他用法都是從這裡借出去的。

overwhelm, flood or submerge · verb · C1

When water overwhelms a piece of land, it covers all of it quickly and completely.

淹沒

感受與訊息淹過來

浪換成從心裡湧上來或從外面撲過來的東西，被蓋住的是一個人的思考能力。

overwhelm, overpowering feeling · verb · C1

When a feeling overwhelms someone, it is so strong that they cannot think clearly.

情緒淹沒

用壓倒性的力量蓋過對方

浪換成軍隊或人數，被蓋住的是抵抗的一方；重點仍是「量差太大，一次淹過去」。

overwhelm, crush militarily · verb · C1

To beat an army completely, usually because you have many more people or much better equipment.

徹底擊敗

原始詞典資料5 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。

overwhelmverb/ˌəʊ.vəˈwɛlm/

  • 1

    To engulf, surge over and submerge.

    • The dinghy was overwhelmed by the great wave.
  • 2

    To overpower, crush.

    • In December 1939 the Soviet Union attacked Finland with overwhelming force.
    • The sea overwhelmed their enemies.
  • 3

    To overpower emotionally.

    • He was overwhelmed with guilt.
    • Joy overwhelmed her when she realized that she had won a million dollars.
  • 4

    To cause to surround, to cover.

    • I lay Turpentine all over the same: then I overwhelm a broader pipe about the first

overwhelmnoun/ˌəʊ.vəˈwɛlm/

  • 1

    The state or condition of being overwhelmed.

    • If you beat your opponent by a margin of 5 or more, you have Overwhelmingly Succeeded. This type of success is often simply called an Overwhelm. […] An overwhelm means you've not only succeeded, but you've done something better than the average success would be.
    • The fact is, that full permeation and understanding of an overwhelm or trauma makes it cease as an overwhelm or trauma.

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。