cloth的词源
英文词源
- cloth
- cloth: [OE] The history of the word cloth is not known, beyond the fact that its immediate source is Germanic (German has the related kleid ‘garment’). In Old English it meant both ‘piece of fabric’ and ‘fabric in general’, and in the plural it was applied to ‘garments’ (hence modern English clothes). The verb clothe, too, probably goes back to Old English times, although it is not recorded before the 12th century.
- cloth (n.)
- Old English claþ "a cloth, sail, cloth covering, woven or felted material to wrap around one," hence, also, "garment," from Proto-Germanic *kalithaz (cognates: Old Frisian klath "cloth," Middle Dutch cleet, Dutch kleed "garment, dress," Middle High German kleit, German Kleid "garment"), of obscure origin. As an adjective from 1590s. The cloth "the clerical profession" is from 17c. in reference to characteristic dress.
中文词源
cloth（布）：希腊神话中负责纺织生命之线的命运女神克罗托
在古罗马神话中共有三位命运女神：分别是克罗托（Clotho）、 拉克西斯（Lachesis）和阿特罗波斯（Atropos）。她们通过生命之线的长度决定人的寿命长短。其中，最大的克罗托负责纺织生命之线，老二克拉 西斯负责决定生命之线的长短，最小的阿特罗波斯负责切断生命之线。英语单词cloth、clothe、clothing都来自负责纺线的克罗托的名字Clotho。
cloth：[klɔθ, klɔ:θ] n.布，织物adj.布制的
clothe：[kləʊð] vt.给……穿衣，覆盖
clothing：['kləʊðɪŋ] n.（总称）服装
该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版：cloth 词源，cloth 含义。
约在10世纪时的英国，人们把任何遮体这物都叫作clath，包婴儿的布叫cild-clathe，即“child-cloth（襁褓）”。随着语言的发展，后来clath可以指船帆，继而指制作船帆的帆布、国王宝座上的覆盖物等等。到了12世纪，英语成了重要的布匹中心，clath的含义也更加广泛，泛指一切布匹材料。另外，在此基础上产生的clothe（衣服）从语音、拼法、含义上都有了变化。
可能来自PIE*kel,遮盖，隐藏，词源同hole,cellar.
