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A paramour is a lover — but a lover in a situation that is not fully open or fully allowed. Most often it means someone who is having a romantic or sexual relationship with a married person, or with someone who already has a partner. So the word carries a whiff of secrecy and of rules being broken. It is not a neutral word for 'boyfriend' or 'girlfriend'.
A paramour is a loverparamour 是一種情人 — but a lover in a situation that is not fully open or fully allowed但這種情人所處的關係並不完全公開、也不完全被允許。 Most often it means someone最常見的用法是指某個人, with a married person, or with someone who already has a partner跟已婚的人、或跟已經有伴侶的人 who is having a romantic or sexual relationship發生戀愛或性關係。 So the word carries a whiff of secrecy所以這個字帶著一絲祕密感 and of rules being broken也帶著一點違反規矩的味道。 It is not a neutral word它不是中性的說法 for 'boyfriend' or 'girlfriend'用來講「男朋友」或「女朋友」。
You will almost never hear this word in ordinary conversation. It belongs to three places: old books and poetry, where it once simply meant 'sweetheart' with no shame attached; newspapers and court reports, where it is a slightly stiff, slightly old-fashioned way of saying 'the other man' or 'the other woman' in a scandal; and modern joking speech, where someone says it with a raised — 'And who is this paramour of yours?' — precisely because it sounds so grand and dramatic.
in ordinary conversation在日常對話中 You will almost never hear this word你幾乎不會聽到這個字。 It belongs to three places這個字主要出現在三個地方: old books and poetry舊小說和詩, where it once simply meant 'sweetheart' with no shame attached那時候它單純表示「心上人」，沒有羞恥的意味; newspapers and court reports新聞和法庭報導, where it is a slightly stiff, slightly old-fashioned way of saying 'the other man' or 'the other woman' in a scandal用一種有點生硬、有點過時的方式，講醜聞裡的「小王」或「小三」; and modern joking speech還有現代開玩笑的說法, where someone says it with a raised eyebrow講的人會挑一下眉毛說 — 'And who is this paramour of yours?'「這位就是你的 paramour 啊？」 — precisely because it sounds so grand and dramatic正因為這個字聽起來又浪漫又戲劇化。
The word can be used for a man or a woman; it does not change form. Older writing used it more , and you can still feel that warmth underneath. That is part of why the modern joking use works: the word sounds romantic and courtly, so putting it on a plain everyday relationship is funny.
The word can be used for a man or a woman這個字男女都能用; it does not change form不會因為性別而改變形式。 Older writing used it more warmly早期的寫作用這個字時語氣比較溫暖, and you can still feel that warmth underneath你現在還是能感覺到底下那份溫暖。 That is part of why the modern joking use works這也是現代開玩笑用法之所以有效的部分原因: the word sounds romantic and courtly這個字聽起來浪漫又有宮廷氣息, so putting it on a plain everyday relationship is funny所以把它套在平凡的日常關係上就顯得好笑。
組成From Middle English par amour, borrowed from Old French par amour — literally 'by love' or 'through love'. It began life as an adverb meaning 'passionately, out of love', and only later hardened into a noun for the person you loved that way. par comes from Latin per ('through, by means of'), and amour from Latin amor ('love').
同家族的字
- amateuralso from Latin amor / amare — someone who does a thing for love, not for money
- amorousfrom Latin amor — full of romantic feeling
- enamouredfrom the same Latin amor — to be in love with something
- per centthe par in paramour and the per in per cent are the same Latin per, 'by, through' — per cent is 'by the hundred'
原始詞典資料7 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。
paramournoun/ˈpæɹəmʊə/
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archaicA person who is the object of one's love, especially in an affair or romance; a lover; also, a sexual partner.
- No ſolace could her Paramour intreat / Her once to ſhovv, ne court, nor dalliaunce, / But vvith bent lovvring brovves, as ſhe vvould threat, / She ſcould, and frovvned vvith frovvard countenaunce, / Vnvvorthy of faire Ladies comely gouernaunce.
- It vvas no ſeaſon then for her [Nature] / To vvanton vvith the Sun her luſty Paramour.
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datedA person (especially someone who is not one's spouse) with whom one has an illicit or secret affair; also (Scotland, US, law), one with whom a married person has an adulterous affair.
- to run away with a paramour
- And if it ſo that ſhe be not his wyfe (bicauſe ſhe was once his brothers wyfe) as your Doctors ſaye and affirme, then no man can excuſe your kynge nor ſaye but that ſhe hath ben euyil handeled, and kepte lyke a Concubine or Paramour for the bodely appetite, which is a great ſpotte, ſhame, ⁊ rebuke to her and to her whole lynage, […]
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historicalA woman who is the object of a knight's love, and who he fights for.
- It is the leaſt of his famous aduentures, that hee vndertaketh to be Greenes [Robert Greene's?] aduocate: […] He may declare his deere affection to his Paramour; or his pure honeſtye to the vvorld; […]
- Chloris, the Queene of Flovvers; / The ſvveetneſſe of all Shovvres; / The ornament of Bovvres; / The top of Par-amours!
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obsoleteChristianityGod as the object of a person's devotion or love.
- Clad you with yͤ ſilke of ſinceritie, with yͤ ſaten [satin] of ſanctitie, with the purple of probitie. Thus prune and pricke vp your ſelues, and God himſelfe ſhall be your paramour, ⁊c.
paramourverb/ˈpæɹəmʊə/
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datedTo have an illicit or secret affair with a person, especially someone who is not one's spouse.
- [W]ine loued I deeply, dice deerely, and in vvoman out paromord the Turke, […]
- [I]ndeed a daughter is better ill married, then vvell Paramour'd.
paramouradv/ˈpæɹəmʊə/
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obsoleteOf loving, etc.: out of or through romantic feeling or sexual desire; passionately.
- […] Cleopatra, doughter of Ptolomee late kinge of Egypt (whome Ceſar [Julius Caesar] in his lyfe helde for his Concubine) the ſame lady Antoni [Mark Antony] (with whome Octauiane [later Augustus] deuided the empire) loued alſo peramours, abandonynge his wyfe, whiche was ſuſter to Octauian.
- Because you love par amours, is it reasonable you should throw away your life and ours?
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obsoleteUsed chiefly when addressing someone: out of or through devotion or kindness; as a favour or kindness.
- [T]he Lord Chiefe Iuſtice ſtood vp, and forbad the proceedings, alotting Paramour the Lands vvith the ſatiſfying of the plaintifes, and thereupon commanded Nailor to giue Thorn againe his Gauntlet, vvhich he vnvvillingly did; and ſo the Combate being ended, vve may haue leaue to proceed.
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。