英文词源
- boast
- boast: [13] The immediate source of boast appears to be Anglo-Norman bost, but where it came from before that is far from clear; German dialect bauste(r)n ‘swell’ has been compared, suggesting that it could be of Germanic origin. To begin with it meant ‘loud or threatening talk’ as well as ‘bragging’.
- boast (n.)
- mid-13c., "arrogance, presumption, pride, vanity;" c. 1300, "a brag, boastful speech," from Anglo-French bost "ostentation," probably via Scandinavian (compare Norwegian baus "proud, bold, daring"), from Proto-Germanic *bausia "to blow up, puff up, swell" (cognates: Middle High German bus "swelling," dialectal German baustern "to swell;" Middle Dutch bose, Dutch boos "evil, wicked, angry," Old High German bosi "worthless, slanderous," German böse "evil, bad, angry"), from PIE *bhou-, variant of root *beu-, *bheu- "to grow, swell" (see bull (n.2)).
The notion apparently is of being "puffed up" with pride; compare Old English belgan "to become angry, offend, provoke," belg "anger, arrogance," from the same root as bellows and belly (n.). Related: Boasted; boasting. An Old English word for "boasting" was micelsprecende, "big talk." - boast (v.)
- early 14c., "to brag, speak arrogantly;" from the same source as boast (n.). Related: Boasted; boasting.
中文词源
boast：自夸
发音释义：[bəʊst] vt. 夸口说，自吹自擂说；以有…而自豪；拥有（值得骄傲的东西）vi. 自吹自擂n. 自夸；值得夸耀的事物，引以为荣的事物
词源解释：boast←诺曼时期的英式法语bost（卖弄）←原始日耳曼语bausia（吹、使膨胀）
boast和brag都含有“自夸”的意思，区别在于：boast的初始含义是“膨胀”，表示因为自豪而膨胀，强调“以有…而自豪”、“炫耀”，有时候表示“拥有（值得骄傲的东西）”而不是“炫耀”；而brag的初始含义是“发出很大的声音”，引申为“大吹大擂”。
该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版：boast 词源，boast 含义。
boast：吹牛
来自PIE *bheu, 膨胀，鼓起，吹。词源同bucket, 圆木桶。