| 释义 |
Swiss, n. and a.|swɪs|
Forms: 6 Swyce, pl. Swices, Swesses, 6–7 Swisse, 7 Swizz, 7–8 Suisse, 7– Swiss.
[ad. F. Suisse, ad. MHG. Swiz (cf. MDa. Svids, Suitz).]
A. n.
1. (Pl. the Swiss; † formerly the Swisses.) A native or an inhabitant of Switzerland.
pl. (a)1515Pace in St. Papers Hen. VIII, VI. 39, I be this day butt forti milis fromme the Swisses. 1522J. Clerk in Ellis Orig. Lett. Ser. iii. (1846) I. 312 He shewed me also that the Bastard of Savoy was with the Swices. 1535Lincoln Diocese Documents 251 After them came the swesses euery man with his Javelinge in his hande. 1577–8W. Davison in Nicolas Mem. Sir C. Hatton (1847) 45 He..solicited the succour and assistance of..the Swisses. 1608Chapman Byron's Trag. i. i. 8 At fourteene yeares of age he was made Colonell To all the Suisses seruing then in Flanders. 1687Dryden Hind & P. iii. 177 Those Swisses fight on any side for pay. 1735Berkeley Querist §324 What sea-ports or foreign trade have the Swisses? 1796[see bastard a. 4]. 1801tr. Gabrielli's Myst. Husb. IV. 265 The Swisses excepted.
pl. (b)1678Butler Hud. iii. iii. 458 Lawyers..make their best Advantages, Of other quarrels, like the Swiss. a1700Evelyn Diary Apr. 1646, I..pass'd the guard of Swisse. 1799Med. Jrnl. II. 494 The Swiss are indebted, it is thought, to the vigorous tone of their digestive organs, for the long preservation of their lives. 1831Sir J. Sinclair Corr. II. 404 The Scots and the Swiss have always felt a strong predilection for each other.
sing.1632Massinger & Field Fatal Dowry i. ii, And thou thyself slave to some needy Swiss. 1770Ld. Huntingdon in 3rd Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. 430/2 The imputation..of being an accommodating man, that voted like a Swiss with every administration. 1771Fletcher Checks Wks. 1795 II. 357 Like a true Suisse I love blunt honesty. 1829Scott Anne of G. xxviii, ‘I set at all’, said the daring young Swiss.
2. The Swiss dialect of German or other language spoken by the Swiss. rare.
1846Worcester. Swiss, a native, or the language, of Switzerland. 1949J. C. Herold Swiss without Halos i. 15 There are several popular misconceptions concerning the language situation in Switzerland. Some believe that the Swiss speak a language called Swiss. 1972L. P. Johnson in M. Pasley Germany i. 19 Alsatian, Swabian and Swiss are forms of Alemannic.
3. Short for Swiss muslin. Freq. dotted Swiss.
1895Montgomery Ward Catal. Spring & Summer 19/1 Imported Curtain Swiss, white with woven coin spots. 1897Sears, Roebuck Catal. 214/1 Shirt..With wide pleated puff bosom of snow white dotted Swiss. 1909Public Ledger (Philadelphia) 24 June 5/7, 50c. for 75c. to $1. Dressing Sacques: Lawns and Swisses. 1924C. E. Mulford Rustlers' Valley vi. 68 He thought he could make out an oval face drawing back from the dotted Swiss. 1948E. B. White Let. June (1976) 294 Mrs. Dow has just entered this room bearing fresh dotted Swiss curtains. 1978J. Updike Coup (1979) iv. 157 An overheated room with..dotted Swiss curtains.
4. A tournament, usu. of bridge or chess, played in accordance with the Swiss system (see sense 1 b of the adj. below).
1953British Chess Federation Year Bk. 1951–52 150 Do not expect the Swiss to do more than it is capable of doing. 1965Listener 29 Apr. 651/2 It is usual, for publicity purposes, to pair the favourite with one of the local hopes in the first round of a Swiss. 1975Games & Puzzles June 4/2 A 5-round Swiss would make an excellent final.
B. adj.
1. a. Of, belonging to, or characteristic of the Swiss or Switzerland; native to, or coming from, Switzerland. Also Swiss-French, Swiss-German adjs. and ns., (designating) the dialect of French or German spoken in Switzerland, or a speaker of this. Cf. French-Swiss, German-Swiss at first element.
1530Palsgr. 278/1 Swyce or swycers pype, fleuste dalemant. 1613Chapman Maske Inns Court, A strange person..half French, halfe Swizz. 1706–7Farquhar Beaux Strat. v. v, My Valour is downright Swiss; I'm a Soldier of Fortune, and must be paid. 1843Penny Cycl. XXVI. 32/1 A dialect of the Swiss-German is the language of the country. 1846Lindley Veg. Kingd. 707 Arnica montana, a Swiss herb, called in our gardens Mountain Tobacco. 1897Ch. Times 20 Aug. 186/1, I never yet saw a Swiss breakfast without a bowl of honey on the table. 1941M. F. K. Fisher in As they Were (1983) 58 She..stood close against the stone, saying, ‘Oh, you are adorable, adorable’..in..Swiss-French. 1961L. F. Brosnahan Sounds of Lang. vii. 166 [pf, ts] and [kx] are still almost exclusively characteristic of High German, the former two in the standard language, the last confined to a few of the Swiss-German dialects. 1964M. A. K. Halliday et al. Linguistic Sciences 83 Germanic speakers in Switzerland regard themselves..as speaking a distinct ‘Swiss-German’. 1969R. Petrie Despatch of Dove i. i. 19 Her French was fluent, without the savoyard singsong you could so often detect in Swiss-French. 1970Guardian 2 June 15/4 Mr Schwarzenbach is a Swiss-German. 1979T. Barling Olympic Sleeper i. 17 Her accent could have been Swiss-French.
b. Designating a system of organizing tournaments, usu. of bridge or chess, under which each player or team is matched, in each round except the first, against an opponent with a similar score, but no two opponents may meet more than once.
1953Brit. Chess Federation Year Bk. 1951–52 150 The Swiss system in the last few years..has become increasingly popular. 1964Frey & Truscott Official Encycl. Bridge 599/1 Swiss system (for multi-session team-of-four events), a method which has been used successfully for many years in major chess tournaments. When insufficient time is available for a complete round robin, a partial round robin is played. 1965Listener 29 Apr. 651/1 The most popular method of deciding a large tournament is now the Swiss system, a hybrid of the conventional all-play-all event and a knock-out. 1973Jewish Chron. 19 Jan. 43/2 This is the first time the English Bridge Union have held a ‘Swiss’ teams event.
2. In names of things, animals, etc. actually or reputedly coming from Switzerland: e.g. Swiss cambric, Swiss chalet, Swiss clock, Swiss copper, Swiss darning, Swiss deal, Swiss embroidery, Swiss flute, Swiss franc, Swiss lace, Swiss milk, Swiss muslin, Swiss patchwork, Swiss pigeon, Swiss pine, Swiss shell, Swiss watch (see quots.); Swiss bank, a bank in Switzerland, often chosen by international clients, whose anonymity and security are preserved by a system of numbered accounts (see numbered ppl. a. 2); also Swiss banker, banking; Swiss chard = silver beet s.v. silver n. and a. 21 e; Swiss cottage, a chalet; hence, a type of tent; Swiss cream, a type of trifle; Swiss drill, a cylindrical drill with the cutting point shaped into two pyramidal planes; Swiss file (see quot. 1964); Swiss guards, mercenary soldiers from Switzerland used as a special bodyguard by former sovereigns of France and other monarchs: still employed at the Vatican; Swiss Itch U.S. slang (see quot. 1967); Swiss melilot, a plant, Trigonella cœrulea; Swiss plover or sandpiper, a large plover (Squatarola helvetica) having four toes like a sandpiper; Swiss roll, a ‘sweet’ consisting of sponge cake rolled up with a layer of jam; Swiss steak U.S., a steak (usu. round) cooked by dipping in flour, pounding and braising, and served with vegetables; hence, a steak (usu. a less tender cut) suitable for cooking in this way; Swiss stone-pine: see stone-pine; Swiss sword, a basket-hilted sword used in the 16th c. by Swiss foot-soldiers; Swiss tapeworm, the broad tapeworm, Bothriocephalus latus; Swiss tea, an infusion of several herbs of the genus Achillea, common in the Swiss Alps.
1949M. Cranston Introd. Switzerland v. 54 To have one's money in a Swiss bank is to have it somewhere secure against wars and revolutions. Ibid. Capital flowed into Switzerland during the two decades between the wars, and Swiss bankers were able to take advantage of this. 1962Sayers & Linder in R. S. Sayers Banking in Western Europe 188 The Swiss banker does not regard bonds as a really attractive use of resources. 1981P. O'Donnell Xanadu Talisman ix. 187 Your Swiss banker telephones confirmation of receipt. 1982D. Wiltse Wedding Guest xvi. 215 The reputation of the entire Swiss banking community, depends on reliability in following procedures the client stipulates.
1882Caulfeild & Saward Dict. Needlework s.v. Swiss Cambric, This is a cotton material, manufactured at Zurich and St. Gall for a long period before muslins..were produced in England.
1879I. L. Bird Lady's Life in Rocky Mts. v. 58 A small house, which bore a delightful resemblance to a Swiss châlet. 1970‘D. Halliday’ Dolly & Cookie Bird iii. 33 The story..about Diana doing her Swiss chalet housekeeping last winter.
[1731P. Miller Gardeners Dict. s.v. Beet, The Swiss or Chard Beet.] 1832Swiss chard [see chard2]. 1900L. H. Bailey Cycl. Amer. Hort. I. 289/1 This vegetable is also known as Sea-kale Beet and Swiss Chard. 1950N.Z. Jrnl. Agric. Jan. 10/1 Silver beet also called Swiss chard and sea kale beet is grown for its foliage. 1980Times 23 June 16/5 The Swiss chard, a spinach-like green, was developing brown dry spots on the leaves.
1897M. Kingsley Trav. W. Africa i. 16 Manchester cottons and shawls, Swiss clocks, and..vividly coloured china. 1982R. Ludlum Parsifal Mosaic xix. 306 ‘Pretty punctual, huh?’ ‘Like a Swiss clock.’
1881Dalpayrat Limoges Enamels 8 Of the kind called virgin or Swiss Copper.
1820M. Wilmot Let. 1 Aug. (1935) 75 A beautiful Swiss Cottage, built in the most correct manner. 1884T. H. Lewin Fly on Wheel iv. 117 The ‘Swiss cottage’ tent, on which I decided [in 1862], as it had the advantage of being divisible into two compartments, with, in addition, a small bathing-room, and large outer flaps which served as shelter for my servants. 1968Sat. Rev. (U.S.) 27 July 40/1 Take the omnibus..to the Swiss Cottage—the play⁓chalet which Prince Albert designed for his children. 1971A. D. Gorwala Queen of Beauty 70 In the snug well⁓lighted Swiss Cottage tent that was his itinerant home and office for weeks on end while on tour. Ibid. 77 There were quite a number of places at which the old Swiss Cottage proved useful.
1845E. Acton Mod. Cookery xx. 527 (heading) Swiss cream, or trifle. (Very good.) 1861Mrs. Beeton Bk. Househ. Managem. 748 Swiss cream..1/4lb. of macaroons or 6 small sponge-cakes, sherry, 1 pint of cream, 5 oz. of lump sugar, 2 large tablespoonfuls of arrowroot, the rind of 1 lemon, the juice of ½ lemon, 3 tablespoonfuls of milk. 1903Joyce Let. 26 Feb. (1966) II. 31 Today for dejeuner I had some cold ham, bread and butter, Swiss cream with sugar.
1882Caulfeild & Saward Dict. Needlework s.v. Swiss Darning, The method of reproducing Stocking-web by means of a darning needle and a thread of yarn worked double.
1843Holtzapffel Turning I. 107 The sounding boards of..most..instruments, are made of the Swiss deal.
1846Holtzapffel Turning II. 547 It is sometimes called the Swiss drill, and was employed..for making the numerous small holes, in the delicate punching machinery for manufacturing perforated sheets of metal and pasteboard.
1882Caulfeild & Saward Dict. Needlework s.v. Swiss Embroidery, This Embroidery is the same as is known as Broderie Anglaise, Irish Work, and Madeira Work.
1960E. L. Delmar-Morgan Cruising Yacht Equipment & Navigation xiv. 163 The Swiss files are most useful for repair jobs. 1964S. Crawford Basic Engin. Processes i. 8 Needle files or Swiss files, small fine-cut files of various cross-sections, used for instrument work and in the match-making industry.
1852Seidel Organ 105 Swiss flute is an open flue-register.
1934Webster, Swiss franc. 1938M. Muggeridge In Valley ix. 62, I wrote a cheque for twenty Swiss francs. 1973‘G. Black’ Bitter Tea i. 11 She had just made quite a killing..and had invested her take in Swiss francs.
a1700Evelyn Diary 22 Oct. 1644, In this Palace the Duke ordinarily resides, living with his Swiss guards. 1823Scott Quentin D. Introd., With his usual attendants of two files of Swiss guards preceding, and the same number following him.
1959Life 7 Dec. 51/1 The technique..was..old stuff to mature Americans who in Prohibition days had used it, complete with salt, as the safe way to take bathtub gin, then called ‘Swiss Itch’. 1967Amer. N. & Q. June 152/1 ‘Swiss Hitch’.., I believe the correct form is Swiss Itch, and I suspect that there is more than one recipe, but I have always heard the term applied to the process by which one places a pinch of salt on the back of the hand, then licks it off, and takes immediately a jigger of tequila, and follows that by immediately biting into a segment or a slice of lime.
1865Reading Industr. Exhib. Catal. in Reading Mercury (1968) 17 Aug. 11 Swiss lace, tambour muslin, leno and every description of curtain materials. 1882Caulfeild & Saward Dict. Needlework s.v. Swiss Lace, Lace was manufactured in Switzerland during the sixteenth century.
1889Girl's Own Paper Summer No. 13/1 A small tin, which everyone supposed was Swiss milk, but which proved to be a shilling tin of cream. 1898Jrnl. Sch. Geog. (U.S.) Oct. 296 He had brought up a family of thirteen children entirely on Swiss milk and American flour.
1832T. S. Fay Dreams & Reveries I. 155 If I had any⁓thing to say about bobbinet or Swiss muslin collars, I should at least wait till he had reached some passage not particularly remarkable for beauty. 1882Caulfeild & Saward Dict. Needlework s.v. Swiss Muslin, Muslin was manufactured at St. Gall and Zurich long prior to the production of the textile in England. It is a coarse description of buke or book muslin, much used for curtains, made with raised loose work in various patterns, and also plain.
1882Caulfeild & Saward Dict. Needlework s.v. Patchwork, Raised [Patchwork]. This is also known as Swiss Patchwork, and is made by stuffing the patches out with wadding so that they are well puffed up.
1855Poultry Chron. III. 140/1 (Pigeons) Gulls or Swallows, Shields, Swiss. 1881Lyell Pigeons 101 The Swiss pigeon..also goes by the name of moon, crescent, and badge of honour pigeon.
1879Man. Artill. Exerc. 71 Swiss pile drivers.
1896A. J. Hipkins Pianoforte 122 Swiss Pine, a name applied by pianoforte makers to the finer qualities in growth and grain of Abies Excelsa, the Spruce Fir.
1874Coues Birds N.W. 449 Black-bellied, Gray and Swiss Plover. 1897Econ. Confect. Bk. 13 Swiss Roll. Ingredients. ½ lb. of Flour. ½ lb. of Castor Sugar. 9 eggs. A pinch of Volatile Salts. 6 drops Essence of Lemon.
1753Chambers Cycl., Supp. s.v. Trumpet-Shell, The rough buccinum, called the Swiss-shell.
1932E. Craig Cooking with Elizabeth Craig 175 Swiss Steak... Take a..2 pound slice of steak. Sprinkle thickly with flour. Pound... Brown steak on both sides. 1947L. P. De Gouy Gold Cookery Bk. vi. 345 Swiss Steak. The original name of this recipe was ‘Schmor Braten.’ It is three centuries old. 1973Black Panther 12 May 10/1 Safeway was charged with..mislabeling swiss steaks as round steak for an extra profit of ten cents per pound.
1860Hewitt Anc. Armour III. 617 The basket-hilted sword does not appear till the middle of the [sixteenth] century. It is often called by old writers the ‘Swiss sword’.
1860Chambers' Encycl. I. 29/1 The inhabitants of the Alps..use them [sc. leaves of Achillæa] for making what is called Swiss Tea.
1885C. M. Yonge Two Sides of Shield I. iii. 28 Her mother's little Swiss watch. 1977H. Kaplan Damascus Cover (1978) xvi. 174 The Colonel had honed the movements of the two Israeli agents with the precision of a Swiss watch.
▸ Swiss Army knife n. (also Swiss Army penknife) a penknife typically incorporating multiple blades and other tools; (also fig.) a thing with multiple purposes or applications.
[1891Woodland (Calif.) Daily Democrat 25 Sept. 2/1 The officers of the Swiss Army have decided that every soldier of that country shall carry a pocket knife of a certain form and shape, and which shall contain four blades.., and also provided with a can opener and a corkscrew.] 1935N.Y. Times 23 Dec. 8 (advt.) *Swiss Army Knife... 5.00. 1972Last Whole Earth Catal. 269 Swiss army knives, made in Switzerland from tough, rust-proof, corrosion-proof Stainless Steel. 1988Times 9 Mar. 6/2 Scout knives and Swiss army penknives would be protected under the legislation. 1995Daily Tel. 1 Mar. 35/1 The modern portable has become the Swiss Army knife of computing, bristling with secret compartments and pop-out gadgets.
▸ Swiss shower n. a shower consisting of several powerful water jets from nozzles positioned at various heights; a health treatment involving such a shower.
1961N.Y. Times 5 Nov. xx. 14 (advt.) Superb penthouse spa—featuring 2 luxurious oversize Roman Pools! 14 aerojet pools, *Swiss showers. 1982People (Nexis) 17 May 129 Guests..receive a comprehensive medical checkup.., hair and skin treatments, herbal wraps, Swiss showers, saunas and Turkish baths. 2002Caribbean World Summer 48/1 Spa Palace Resort–an extensive spa menu with hydrotherapy, Swiss showers, facials,..[etc.]. |