| 释义 |
red herring
[Cf. herring 1 b.]
1. a. collect. Herring to which a red colour is imparted in the process of curing them by smoke.
c1420Liber Cocorum (1862) 54 Cover þy white heryng..þen cover red heryng and set abufe. 1466Mann. & Househ. Exp. (Roxb.) 207 Paid..for j. cade of rede herynge vs. 1577B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. i. (1586) 12 Here is a good handsome rooffe..well stored with redde Hearing, Bacon, and Martilmas beefe. 1633Hart Diet of Diseased i. xxi. 91 Some are salted, and afterwards hung up and dried: and then wee call them Red-hering.
b. A single herring cured in this way.
1495Naval Acc. Hen. VII (1896) 162, ccc Redde Heryngs—iijs. 1561in Child-Marriages (1897) 70 Stockfishe, red heringes and such marchaundrie wares. 1620Venner Via Recta iv. 77 Red Herrings and Sprats giue a very bad and adusted nourishment. 1686N. Cox Gentl. Recreat. v. (ed. 3) 65 The trailing or dragging of a dead Cat, or Fox, (and in case of necessity a Red-Herring) three or four miles..and then laying the Dogs on the scent. 1714Mandeville Fab. Bees (1725) I. 263 Red-herrings, pickled-sturgeon,..and every thing that was proper to make their liquor go down with pleasure. a1818M. G. Lewis Jrnl. W. Ind. (1834) 106 The slaves also receive..a regular weekly allowance of red herrings and salt meat, which serves to relish their vegetable diet. 1885Anstey Tinted Venus 87 A display of joints, cauliflowers, and red herrings.
c. slang. A soldier.
1853in Househ. Words (1854) 75/2 A soldier [is called] a swaddy, a lobster, a red herring.
2. In phrases, or allusively:
a. neither fish, (nor) flesh, nor good red herring, etc.: (see fish n.1 4 c).
1542[see fish n.1 4 c]. 1605Breton I pray you be not Angrie To Rdr., They that are neither of both, but betwixt both, neither Fish nor Flesh, but plaine Red-Hearing. 1698Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 123 To me it seems..neither Fish nor Flesh, nor good Red Herring. 1711Addison Spect. No. 165 ⁋6 A Letter that was neither Fish, Flesh, nor good Red-Herring. 1850Smedley F. Fairleigh liii, A brat that's neither fish, flesh, nor fowl, nor good red herring.
b. to draw a red herring across the track (cf. quot. 1686 in 1 b): to attempt to divert attention from the real question; hence red herring, a subject intended to have this effect.
1884Liverpool Daily Post 11 July 5/4 The talk of revolutionary dangers is a mere red-herring. 1892Spectator 12 Mar. 360/2 These red-herrings drawn across the path. 1900Westm. Gaz. 2 Feb. 2/1 Not to be put off the main line of attack by the red-herrings of an unreformed War Office. 1928Manch. Guardian Weekly 10 Aug. 105/1 Both the Opposition parties are trying to drag in the Protectionist red herring in the vain hope of causing dissension. 1956[see chivvy v.1]. 1967G. F. Fiennes I tried to run Railway iv. 48 The Coroner's opinion that the detonators were ‘something of a red herring’. 1975M. Russell Murder by Mile xi. 116 This could be a side-issue or red herring designed to..turn me from the genuine scent. 1976Southern Even. Echo (Southampton) 13 Nov. 9/3 He accused Mr. Deacon of introducing a red herring into the issue.
3. attrib., as red-herring cob, red herring house, red herring sort.
1594[see cob n.1 8]. 1598W. Haughton Englishmen for my Money (1616) B 2 b, [I] looke like nothing but Red-Herring Cobbes, and Stock-Fish. 1727–41Chambers Cycl. s.v. Herring, Such as are kept to make red herrings..are hanged up in the herring-hangs, or red-herring houses. 1833Marryat P. Simple xxvii, He has his wife on board, who is a red-herring sort of a lady, and very troublesome to boot. |