waffle

Reader's Digest 10月号の単語クイズ "Word Power" はMusical Hamilton（hip-hop libretto packed with rich vocabulary）に出てくる単語からの出題で、その中の問題の一つが "equivocate" でしたが、私の興味を引いたのはその単語の説明文にありました。
equivocate - waffle: I will not equivocate on my opinion.
私が知っている "waffle" は食べ物しかありませんが、"equivocate" と同じ意味を持っているって本当ですか？と言う驚きです。辞書で "waffle" を見ます。
・Oxford English Dictionary: Speak or write, especially at great length, without saying anything important or useful.: he waffled on about everything that didn't matter
・Cambridge English Dictionary: to talk or write a lot without giving any useful information or any clear answers: If you don't know the answer, it's no good just waffling (on) for pages and pages.
そして、食べ物を指す "waffle" の説明文からも新しい発見をしました。
(A small crisp batter cake, baked in a waffle iron and eaten hot with butter or syrup.)
adjective: Denoting a style of fine honeycomb weaving or a fabric woven to give a honeycomb effect.
食べ物の "waffle" はあの格子模様から来ていたのですね。

void

山や海の遭難事故についての記事はReader's Digestの定番の一つですが、次に引用するのは10月号の記事、"A Mountain of Trouble" からの抜粋です。
Charlie stood on a ledge a dozen yards to the right, lashed to a tree for safety as he fed rope to his dad. Reaching up, David dislodged a small stone, which tumbled off into the void. In the next moment, he heard a sharp crack from above as something larger broke loose.
"void" は「無効の」、「無効にする」、「空っぽ（の）」などを直ぐに連想しますが、上の文中での"void" はちょっと違う様です。辞書を見ます。
　 ・Cambridge English Dictionary: a large hole or empty space: She stood at the edge of the chasm and stared into the void.
・American Heritage Dictionary: An open space or a break in continuity; a gap.
・Oxford English Dictionary: An unfilled space in a wall, building, or structure.
私の想像力が足りなかったですね。「空っぽ」から「空間」、「隙間」、「割れ目」等を連想できないといけませんね。

palsy

Reader's Digest 10月号の記事 "Losing My Father's Smile" から引用します。
When Bell's palsy stole Robert Golden's grin, his son made a vow to join him. A month earlier, Bell's palsy had struck Dad, paralyzing the right side of his face.
"Bell's palsy" は特有な病気もしくは病気の症状を示し、顔の麻痺などを引き起こすある病気の様です。 "palsy" はもう少し汎用的な病気もしくは病気の症状を指している様なので、最初に "palsy" を調べます。
・Oxford English Dictionary: Paralysis, especially that which is accompanied by involuntary tremors.: a kind of palsy had seized him
・Collins Dictionary: Palsy is a loss of feeling in part of your body.: cerebral palsy
なるほど、どうも語源は "paralysis" ですね。
次に "Bell's palsy" を調べます。 ・Oxford English Dictionary: Paralysis of the facial nerve, causing muscular weakness in one side of the face.: Other viral illnesses such as mumps and rubella may also trigger Bell's palsy.
いわゆる顔面神経麻痺と同じでしょうか？

laugh lines

Fight Ire with Fire: Fend off a cruel or foolish declaration with a zinger that will have the Hampton buzzing
When Mick Jagger insisted that his wrinkles were actually laugh lines, jazz singer George Melly replied, "Surely nothing could be that funny."
(from Reader'd Digest, Oct. 2016 COMPLETE GUIDE TO witticisms Quips RETORTS)
明日は江東区のシーサイドマラソン（ハーフマラソン）に参加するために朝早くから出かけるのでブログは休みます。23日にできた足のマメと天気が心配です。

frenemy

Reader's Digestが毎年一度米国人にとってのTrusted Brandを調査し、発表する記事で銀行はBANK CHASEを挙げていました。
217 years: How long Chase Bank has been in the business of keeping money safe. American politician and Alexander Hamilton frenemy Aaron Buff fonded Chase's earliest iteration, the Bank of the Manhattan Company, in 1799, and the company still keeps the infamous Burr-Hamilton dueling pistols displayed in their New York headquarters.
この記事で使われている "frenemy" はfriendとenemyの合成語で、以前取り上げた記憶があるのですが、私の記録には残っていなかったので、重複するかと思いますが、取り上げす。
しかし、取り上げた記憶は確かにあるので、しつこく調べると、4/23/2015に "kondo your English" のタイトルの日記の中で "Frenemies, screenagers, kidults" として記事中で引用していました。

hit it off

小説の "The Partner" を読んでいる途中ですが、Reader's Digest 10月号が借りれたので読むのをRDに切り替えます。Down Off The Crossと題された記事の冒頭に以前取り上げた表現がでてきました。
Let's say I meet you on a bus. We really hit off, but I've got to exit soon, so you're going to tell me three things about yourself that help me understand who you are, that get at your essence. I'm wondering: Of those three things, is one of them surviving some kind of trauma, like being a cancer survivor, a war survivor, or an abuse survivor?
その表現は "hit off" ですが、意味が直ぐに思い出せなかったので復習のために再度取り上げました。

１０kmラン

今日東京都のシニアの１０kmに参加しましたが、大失敗をしました。会場に着いてランニングシューズを忘れたのに気が付きました。棄権しようかとも思ったのですが、電車で1時間かけてきたのに走らないのもと思い、普段の靴で走りました。しかし、走るのには向いていない靴なので途中で足が痛くなり、それでも我慢した完走しましたが、結局足にマメができました。 27日の日曜日にはハーフマラソンを走る予定ですが、絶対に忘れ物はしないぞと誓いました。

eat it up

John Grishamの "The Partner" を読んでいます。
He displayed his weeping client to the media, and said all sorts of vile things about the local Sheriff down there in Biloxi and the FBI and their lame efforts at locating Pepper. Shame on them for dragging their feet for over four years while his poor client lived in sorrow and uncertainty. He ranted and raved and made the most of his fifteen minutes of fame. He hinted at legal action against Patrick Lanigan, the man who obviously killed Pepper and burned his body to hide the evidence so he could make off with ninety million bucks, but he was vague on specifics.
The press, disregarding whatever caution it may have collectively possessed, if any, ate it up. They were given pictures of young Pepper, a simple-looking boy with nasty peach fuzz around his mouth and unkempt hair.
上に出てきた "ate it up" は文脈からして人の話を疑わずに信じる意味の様です。日本語の「鵜呑みにする」と全く発想が同じですね。一応辞書で確認します。
・Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary: informal: to enjoy (something) greatly: I thought the speech was stupid, but the audience ate it up.
・Wiktionary: (idiomatic, figuratively) To accept or believe entirely, immediately, and without questioning. She ate up everything that her image consultant said.
・McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs: Fig. to believe something. Those people really eat that stuff up about tax reduction. They'll eat up almost anything you tell them.

new lease on life

John Grishamの "The Partner" を読んでいます。
Patrick had always found his mother to be a depressing person, especially after his father left, an event that didn't particularly bother him because he wasn't much of a father anyway. And he wasn't much of a husband either. Patrick had encouraged his mother to get out of the house, find a job, find a cause, live a little. She had a new lease on life.
"new lease on life" は慣用句の様なので、意味を調べます。
・Wiktionary: Figuratively, an opportunity to an improved quality of life, due to some change in circumstances. The latest developments in drugs to treat patients with bipolar disorders have given many a new lease on life.
・McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs: Cliche a renewed and revitalized outlook on life. Getting the job offer was a new lease on life. When I got out of the hospital, I felt as if I had a new lease on life.
"turn a new leaf" を連想させる慣用句ですね。

in one piece

John Grishamの "The Partner" を読んでいます。逃亡者を追っかけて捕まえる話の様です。
Later, Stephano would again ponder the incredible question of how anyone in the world knew he had captured Lanigan.
"All right, here's the deal," Stephano said. "Give me forty-eight hours, I'll give you Lanigan. And you burn my warrant and drop the threats of future prosecution."
"It's a deal."
There was a moment of silence as both sides savored the victory. Jaynes said, "I need to know where to pick him up."
"Send a plane to Asuncion."
"Paraguay? What happened to Brazil?"
"He has friends in Brazil."
"Whatever." Jaynes whispered to an associate, who then left the house. "Is he in one piece?" he asked Stephano.
"Yeah."
"He'd better be. One bruise on his body, and I'll hound you to hell."
やはりGrishamの小説Ford Countyに出ていたので、今夏に覚えた表現 "in one piece" が出てきました。