Objection! - sequel

実話その２です。
CASE NO.2
Attorney: "What was the first thing your husband said to you when he woke that morning?"
Witness: "He said, 'Where am I, Cheryl?"
Attorney: "And why did that upset you?"
Witness: "My name is Kathy."

gnaw

木の上にいる猫に向かって犬が "It's nice gnawing you." と吼えている場面を以前漫画で見た時に "gnaw" を覚えたのですが、ジョン万次郎の伝記、HEART of a SAMURAIに出たきた"gnaw" の意味はその意味とは違うようです。
A glance passed between the two boys, a glance that spoke of gnawing hunger, desperate thirst, endless wind, penetrating cold. Nothing could be worse than staying on this island, the glance said.
...
For hours they rowed, towing the heavy corpse back to the ship. As the sun set and darkness descended, Manjiro began to gnaw on a problem: What were they planning to do with this whale?
辞書で"gnaw" の意味を再確認します。
・American Heritage Dictionary:
　To afflict or worry persistently: fear that constantly gnawed me.
　To cause persistent worry or pain: Hunger gnawed at the prisoners.
・Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary: a: to be a source of vexation to: plague: anxiety always gnawing him b: to affect like gnawing: hunger gnawing
蛇足を一言 "It is still nice to know the meaning of gnaw."

undulate

"undulate" は２年程前（http://blog.alc.co.jp/blog/3302827/archive/2010/11/12）に取り上げた単語ですが、その後見かけることは無かったのですが、最近読んだ英文に立て続けに出て来ました。
最初はEnglish Journal　9月号　女優 Michelle Williamsへのインタビュー記事の中で、
Williams: Uh, you know, it's a feeling. You just have to catch the right feeling. You can't really have any -- the technique has to, sort of , lay somewhere underneath, ideally. And it came from watching her movies and trying to study how she's moving her hip that makes this sort of undulation happen.
そしてもう一つは今読んでいるジョン万次郎の伝記、HEART of a SAMURAIの中で、無人島に漂浪した万次郎達の島に誰かがボートで近づいてくるのが見えました。
They sat silently as the boat drew closer to the undulating island. Once again, Manjiro thought, his questions had led them into danger.
このブログで英単語や慣用句を取り上げるのは憶えるためですが、それでも中々憶えられません。しかし、その後に読んだ英文にでてくると憶えられる確率が大幅に増えるので、取り上げた単語がこの様に後で読む英文に出てくるとそれだけで嬉しくなります。ましてや、"undulation" が女性の動きを表現するのに使えることを知れば、容易に憶えられそうな気がします。

throe

万次郎達は誰も住んでいない無人島でなんと墓石を見つけるのです。
When Denzo told the others about what they had seen, the gathering grew solemn.
"That could be our fate," Toraemon said.
"I have thought that also," said Denzo.
Everyone turned to Jusuke, who heard none of this conversation. He tossed and moaned, in the throes of fever.
Tears streamed down their faces. None of them wanted to have to bury any of their friends.
万次郎はその時14歳、Denzoは船長です。
"throes of fever" は初めて見る表現ではありませんが、この際しっかりと憶えたいと思います。
・Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary: (Defined for Kids)
1: PANG: death throes: throes of childbirth
2 plural: a hard or painful struggle: a state in the throes of revolution
・Vocabulary.com: severe spasm of pain: “the throes of dying”
子供の本と言っても私の知らない単語・表現は結構あります。しかし、たいていの場合辞書を引かないでも意味が分かるような書き方がされています。それで子供は本を読むだけで自然と語彙が増えるのでしょうね。

jam

最近私が読む本はほとんど図書館から借りているのですが、今回は久し振りにアマゾンから買った本を読みます。円高のせいもあって洋書が日本の本と変らない価格で手に入るのと、注文後翌々日に配達されたのもびっくりです。
8月22日の朝日新聞朝刊に「ジョン万次郎の生涯をつづった米児童作家」マーギ・プロイスさんの記事があり、「ジョン万次郎　海を渡ったサムライ魂」の執筆中とありました。興味をおぼえたので、英語版はもう既に出版されていると思い "Margi Preus" 調べると、児童書ですが Heart of a Samurai" があり、万次郎の伝記との説明があり、読むことにしました。（３００ページ、760円の本です。）
さて、万次郎達4人を乗せた船は嵐で帆も舵も壊され、何日も漂浪し、無人島に着きました。
"May I humbly suggest," Manjiro said, "that on this island, we are rulers -- we are the Samurai of Bird Island. And from now on we shall live by Bushido. And we shall defend our honor and our island and each other against the blue-eyed barbarians." He leaped up onto a rock and swung his stick over his head. "Agreed?"
Goemon jumped up. "Agreed," he said, jamming his "knife" into his sash and slashing at Manjiro's "sword."
"jam" と言うと、私が思い浮かべるのは食べ物のジャムとか、ジャムセッション、交通渋滞、満員電車ですが、上の引用文の様に何か物を詰め込むような事にも使えるようです。
・Macmillan Dictionary: to push someone or something somewhere using a lot of force: jam someone/something into/on/against something: Marilyn jammed the hat firmly on her head and went out.: Mick jammed a copy of the report into my hand.: Kirsten was trying to jam all the papers into her bag.
・Cambridge English Dictionary: to push something forcefully or with difficulty into something else: He jammed the boxes into the back of the car.
物ではなく人を電車に詰めると満員電車になるのですね。

valedictory/valediction

Asiatic Society Japanの創設１４０周年を記念してドナルド・キーン氏が正岡子規についての講演をしましたが、講演のお礼（Vote of Thanks）を山之内先生（私の知っている限りでは元放送大学の先生でした。その前は東大？）が述べその中の一節を次に引用します。
I was greatly moved by your quotation of one one of Shiki's swan hototogisu songs or valedictory haiku poems, the one about the 'blooming sponge-gourd', in which, on the brink of imminent death, he depicts his helpless state with detachment mixed with a touch of humour.
今日覚えたい単語は "valedictory" ですが、名詞形の "valediction" はどこかで見た事があります。　意味もこの前に "swan hototogisu songs" とありので別れの詩であることが分かります。 "swan songs" は昨年の11月30日に取り上げていて、偶然なのか、やはりＡＳＪでの別のVote of Thanksに使われていました。
一応 "valediction/valedictory" を辞書で見ます。
・Vocabulary.com: 1) a farewell oration (especially one delivered during graduation exercises by an outstanding member of a graduating class) 2) the act of saying farewell
A valediction is a speech that wishes a group of people farewell. It's most commonly given at graduations.
・Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary: of or relating to a valediction : expressing or containing a farewell: a valedictory address given by the college president upon his retirement

lead

Reader's Digest 8月号の記事TakenはSouth Africaで子供を友人に預けて働いている女性が仕事終わり、友人宅に子供を引き取りにいったら子供も友人もいなくなっていました。
Delores' extended family and friends immediately started a search, joined by others as they combed community centres, shops and clinics asking after the Ambraals.
The only lead came from the neighbour.
上に出てきた "lead" はビジネスで良く使われる "sales lead" と同じ様な意味あいなので分かりますが、商売での "lead" 以外で使われているのを見るのは初めてです。一応辞書で確認します。
・Vocabulary.com: evidence pointing to a possible solution: “the police are following a promising lead”
・Macmillan Dictionary: a piece of information that may help someone to solve a problem or to find out the truth about something, especially a crime: The investigation will be scaled down unless new leads are discovered.

Objection!

毎日曜日はジョークを紹介しているのですが、ジョークのストックがなくなりました。
そこで今日はジョークより面白い実話です。（リーダーズダイジェストに載っていました）
Actual courtroom transcripts, from gravel2gravel.com
CASE NO.1
Defendant: "Judge, I want you to appoint me another lawyer."
Judge: "And why is that?"
Defendant: "Because the public defender isn't interested in my case."
Judge(to the public defender) : "Do you have any comments?"
Public defender: "I'm sorry, Your Honour. I wasn't listening."

stock-still

"stock" は沢山の意味があるのでこれまでにも4回も取り上げています。（下記参照）　Reader's Digest 8月号の旅行記事 The SPIRIT of DUBLIN の次ぎの個所に出てきた "stock" は過去に取り上げた "stock" とも意味が違っています。
One man on a bar stool, who looked like the grizzled singer Joe Cocker, suddenly launched into a ballad about a sailor at a Spanish port where woman with "dark eyes and dark hair" will "give you some more" even when "all your money is spent". I watched the intent faces on the two fiddlers: they sat stock-still except for their arms and hands.
早速 "stock-still" を辞書で調べます。
・Collins Dictionary: absolutely still; motionless: Bethan was sitting stock-still on a sofa with Isabel beside her, holding her hand.
・Cambridge English Dictionary: without moving; completely still: On seeing us, the deer stood stock-still for a moment, then turned and retreated into the forest.
辞書で "stock" を見ても、どの意味がこの "stock-still" になるのか分かりませんでしたが、Online
Etymologyに:
Stock-still (late 15c.) is lit. "as still as a tree trunk." の説明がありました。
参照
"stock character": http://blog.alc.co.jp/blog/3302827/archive/2007/2/20
"stock": http://blog.alc.co.jp/blog/3302827/archive/2007/4/1
"lock, stock and barrel": http://blog.alc.co.jp/blog/3302827/archive/2009/8/24
"take stock": http://blog.alc.co.jp/blog/3302827/archive/2011/3/15

perseveration/perseverate

Reader's Digest 8月号の記事 Don't regret に出てきた単語です。
The fourth component here is that regret is what psychologists call perseveration. To perseverate means to focus obsessively and repeatedly on the same thing. Now the effect of perseveration is to basically take these first three components of regret and put them on an infinite loop.
"perseveration" は心理学用語で、意味は文中で説明がありますが一応辞書を見ます。
・Vocabulary.com:
1) the act of persisting or persevering; continuing or repeating behavior: His perseveration continued to the point where it was no longer appropriate.
2) the tendency for a memory or idea to persist or recur without any apparent stimulus for it
・Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health:
the inappropriate persistence or repetition of a thought or action after the causative stimulus has ceased or in response to different stimuli; for example, a patient answers a question correctly but incorrectly gives the same answer to succeeding questions. Perseveration is most often associated with brain lesions but is also seen in schizophrenia.
日本語で馬鹿の一つ覚えと言うのがありますが、これも一種の "perseveration" でしょうね。