喜樂美語

核心畫面

You can picture 'pregnant' as a rounded belly carrying new life inside — swollen, full, and holding something that is about to come out. That fullness-about-to-bring-forth is what stretches into the figurative uses too.

可以想成：一個鼓起的肚子，裡面正孕育著新生命——飽滿、脹滿，藏著一個即將要「出來」的東西。這種「滿到快要生出點什麼」…更多收起可以想成：一個鼓起的肚子，裡面正孕育著新生命——飽滿、脹滿，藏著一個即將要「出來」的東西。這種「滿到快要生出點什麼」的感覺，正是後面比喻用法的來源。

From the word’s history

From Latin praegnantem 'with child', usually read as prae- 'before' + a root tied to 'being born' — i.e. 'about to give birth'. So the word carries 'full and on the verge of bringing something forth' from the start.

源自拉丁文 praegnantem（懷著孩子），一般拆成 prae-（在…之前）+ 與「出生」同源的字根，也就是「即將臨盆」。所以這個字打從一開始就帶著「飽滿、快要生出點什麼」的味道。

etymonline.com/word/pregnant (Latin praegnantem 'with child', prae- 'before' + root of gnasci 'be born')

Two branches

懷著孩子（字面）

最字面、也最原始的意思：肚子裡有個正在長大的寶寶。

pregnant (literal) · adjective · B1

Having a baby growing inside the body, before it is born.

懷孕的

飽含、蓄勢待發（比喻）

把懷孕那種「脹滿、藏著即將出來的東西」搬到抽象的場合：不是肚子鼓起來，而是某個時刻或某段話裡，滿滿地含著還沒說出口的意思。

pregnant pause (meaningful) · adjective · B1

Used about a pause or silence that seems full of meaning or feeling.

意味深長的（停頓）

原始詞典資料9 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。

pregnantadj詞源 1/ˈpɹɛɡnənt/

  • 1

    Carrying developing offspring within the body.

    • I went to the doctor and, guess what, I’m five weeks pregnant!
    • I became pregnant in July 2014.
  • 2

    Carrying developing offspring within the body.

    • We are pregnant.
  • 3

    Meaningful, having numerous possibilities or implications; full of promise; abounding in ability, resources, etc.

    • a pregnant pause
    • wherein the pregnant enemy does much
  • 4

    Fecund, fertile, prolific (usually of soil, ground, etc.).

    • The sunne-beames bright vpon her body playd, / Being through former bathing mollifide, / And pierst into her wombe, where they embayd / With so sweet sence and secret power vnspide, / That in her pregnant flesh they shortly fructifide.
  • 5

    Pervaded by something, usually sth intangible.

    • The operations center was pregnant with anxiety.
  • 6

    obsoleteAffording entrance; receptive; yielding; willing; open; prompt.

    • play at subtill games; faire vertues all; To which the Grecians are most prompt and pregnant
  • 7

    obsoleteReady-witted; clever; ingenious.

pregnantnoun詞源 1/ˈpɹɛɡnənt/

  • 1

    A pregnant person.

    • The Entbundenen, or those already delivered, are separate from those pregnants awaiting their accouchement

pregnantadj詞源 2/ˈpɹɛɡnənt/

  • 1

    archaicCompelling; clear, evident.

    • Peregrine was in a little time a distinguished character, not only for his acuteness of apprehension, but also for that mischievous fertility of fancy, of which we have already given such pregnant examples.

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。