butterfly的词源

英文词源

butterfly

butterfly: [OE] A number of theories have been put forward as to how the butterfly got its name. Perhaps the most generally accepted is that it is a reflection of a once-held notion that butterflies land on and consume butter or milk left uncovered in kitchen or dairy (an idea perhaps supported by the German name for the ‘butterfly’, milchdieb, literally ‘milk-thief’). Other suggestions are that the word is a reference to the yellow wings of certain species of the insect, or to the colour of butterflies’ excrement.

butterfly (n.)

Old English buttorfleoge, evidently butter (n.) + fly (n.), but of obscure signification. Perhaps based on the old notion that the insects (or witches disguised as butterflies) consume butter or milk that is left uncovered. Or, less creatively, simply because the pale yellow color of many species' wings suggests the color of butter. Another theory connects it to the color of the insect's excrement, based on Dutch cognate boterschijte. An overview of words for "butterfly" in various languages can be found here. Also see papillon.

Applied to persons from c. 1600, originally in reference to vain and gaudy attire; by 1806 in reference to transformation from early lowly state; in reference to flitting tendencies by 1873. The swimming stroke so called from 1936. Butterflies "light stomach spasms caused by anxiety" is from 1908.

The butterfly effect is a deceptively simple insight extracted from a complex modern field. As a low-profile assistant professor in MIT's department of meteorology in 1961, [Edward] Lorenz created an early computer program to simulate weather. One day he changed one of a dozen numbers representing atmospheric conditions, from .506127 to .506. That tiny alteration utterly transformed his long-term forecast, a point Lorenz amplified in his 1972 paper, "Predictability: Does the Flap of a Butterfly's Wings in Brazil Set Off a Tornado in Texas?" [Peter Dizikes, "The Meaning of the Butterfly," The Boston Globe, June 8, 2008]

中文词源

butterfly（蝴蝶）：喜欢吃黄油的飞虫　　　

英语单词butterfly（蝴蝶）由butter（黄油） fly（飞虫）构成。那么，蝴蝶跟黄油到底有啥关系呢？有一种说法认为，是因为蝴蝶喜欢偷吃黄油和牛奶，还有一种说法认为，是因为很多蝴蝶的颜色像黄油，甚至还有一种说法认为，蝴蝶的粪便的颜色像黄油。

　　butterfly：['bʌtəflaɪ] n.蝴蝶

该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版：butterfly 词源，butterfly 含义。

butterfly：蝴蝶

butter, 黄油。fly, 昆虫。形容蝴蝶黄油色的翅膀。

butterfly：蝴蝶　　

在英语中好些有翅昆虫都被称以fly，如firefly(萤火虫)housefly(家蝇)horsefly(马蝇)gadfly（牛虻）和dragonfly（蜻蜒）等，butterfly（蝴蝶）也在此列。传说蝴蝶喜吃牛奶、黄油(butter)，故英语以butterfly为名。butterfly一词源自古英语buterfleoge，由butere‘butter’加fleoge‘flying creature’构成。以上传说也反映在蝴蝶的德语名称之一milchdieb，该词相当于英语milk-thief（偷奶贼）。另有一种解释说，其中butter是指蝶翅或排泄物的颜色。