核心畫面

One way to hold plainly: picture flat open ground with nothing standing on it. Nothing has been put in front of you, so you see and hear the thing whole. Nothing has been wrapped around the words, so the truth arrives whole. And nothing has been added on top for show, so what is left looks simple. Same empty ground, three different things missing from it.

可以想成一片空曠的平地,上面什麼都沒有。沒有東西擋在前面,所以看得清楚、聽得明白。沒有東西包在話外面,所以真話完整送更多收起可以想成一片空曠的平地,上面什麼都沒有。沒有東西擋在前面,所以看得清楚、聽得明白。沒有東西包在話外面,所以真話完整送到。也沒有東西加在上面裝飾,所以樣子就是樸素。同一片空地,只是「少掉的東西」不一樣:少了遮蔽、少了包裝、少了花樣。

From the word’s history

The evidence packet's Wiktionary entry traces plainly to Middle English playnly, that is plain plus -ly. The adverb has carried the adjective's picture of open, unadorned ground into all three modern uses.

證據包的 Wiktionary 記載 plainly 來自中古英語 playnly,也就是 plain 加上 -ly。這個副詞把形容詞那片「空曠、沒有裝飾」的畫面,一路帶進了今天的三個用法裡。

Wiktionary entry for plainly, kaikki extract supplied in this evidence packet (source_ref kaikki:3f6f69a190036ae4:987121408:5794)

Two branches

沒有遮蔽,所以清楚

空地上沒有東西擋著:不管是景象、聲音,還是一句真話,都能完整送到對方那裡。

r · B2

In a way that is easy to see, hear, or understand, so that nobody could miss it or doubt it. It is also used at the start of a sentence to mean that the whole statement is obvious.

明顯地;清楚地

沒有裝飾,所以樸素

同一片空地,換成「沒有人在上面加東西」:不是被擋住,而是根本沒有多加。

r · B2

In a simple way, with nothing added for show — no decoration, no pattern, no extra detail.

樸素地;簡單地