| 释义 |
▪ I. prospect, n.|ˈprɒspɛkt|
[ad. L. prōspect-us a look out, view, f. prōspic-ĕre to look forward, f. prō, pro-1 + specĕre to look. Cf. F. prospect (16th c. in Littré).]
I.
1. a. The action or fact of looking forth or out, or of seeing to a distance; the condition (of a building, or station of any kind) of facing or being so situated as to have its front in a specified direction; outlook, aspect, exposure. Obs. passing into 2.
1430–50tr. Higden (Rolls) I. 147 The water of Cilicia, which hathe prospecte ageyne the yle of Cipresse [L. sinum qui prospicit contra insulam Cyprum]. Ibid. II. 11 Briteyne is..sette as vn to the prospecte of Speyne [ad prospectum Hispaniæ sita est]. 1560Bible (Genev.) Ezek. xl. 44 Without the inner gate were the chambers of the singers in the inwarde courte..and their prospect was towarde the South. 1601Holland Pliny I. 119 [Armenia] confineth vpon the Medians, and hath a prospect to the Caspian sea. 1691Ray Creation ii. (1692) 4 This [erect] Figure is most convenient for Prospect, and looking about one. 1845Stocqueler Handbk. Brit. India (1854) 265 The atmosphere tolerably clear,..and the prospect, for the most part, clear and open: this is the autumn, if autumn there be at Dorjeling.
†b. A place which affords an open and extensive view; a look-out. Obs.
c1586C'tess Pembroke Ps. cii. xi, From the prospect of thy heav'nly hall Thy eye of earth survey did take. 1611Coryat Crudities 164 People may from that place as from a most delectable prospect contemplate and view the parts of the City round about them. 1667Milton P.L. iii. 77 Him God beholding from his prospect high,..Thus..spake. 1885Bible (R.V.) 1 Kings vii. 4 And there were prospects [1611 windowes] in three rows, and light was over against light in three ranks.
2. a. An extensive or commanding sight or view; the view of the landscape afforded by any position.
1538Elyot, Prospectus..a syght farre of, a prospecte. 1594Norden Spec. Brit. Pars (Camden) 23 A..howse of pleasure vpon the topp of a mount..: it is seene farr of, and hath most large and pleasant perspecte [sic]. 1613Purchas Pilgrimage (1614) 436 The streets are strait, yeelding prospect from one gate to another. 1634Sir T. Herbert Trav. 216 [St. Helena] giues a large prospect into the Ocean. 1657–83Evelyn Hist. Relig. (1850) I. 28 Take we next a prospect of the earth's surface, and behold from the lofty mountains how the humble valleys are clothed with verdure. 1778M. Cutler in Life, etc. (1888) I. 68, I had a fine prospect of the whole army as it moved off. 1818Miss Mitford in L'Estrange Life (1870) II. ii. 23 There is but one place in all Berkshire which has a really fine commanding prospect. 1853Phillips Rivers Yorksh. iv. 128 A most striking prospect over sea and land. 1860Tyndall Glac. i. vii. 49 The prospect was exceedingly fine.
b. in (within) or into prospect: in or into a position making it possible to see or to be seen; within the range or scope of vision; in or into sight or view; within view. Also fig. arch.
1555Eden Decades 13 Within the prospecte of the begynnynge of Cuba, he founde a commodious hauen. 1599Shakes. Much Ado iv. i. 231 Euery louely Organ of her life, Shall come..Into the eye and prospect of his soule. 1605[see 8]. 1664Butler Hud. ii. iii. 486 The Knight..Was now in prospect of the Mansion. 1685Baxter Paraphr. N.T. Matt. iv. 8 By all Kingdoms is meant, many that were within prospect. 1738Gray Tasso 5 Nor yet in prospect rose the distant shore. 1800–24Campbell Dream iv, Yon phantom's aspect..would appal thee worse, Held in clearly measured prospect.
3. a. That which is looked at or seen from any place or point of view; a spectacle, a scene; the visible scene or landscape.
a1633Austin Medit. (1635) 278 What a prospect is a well-furnish'd Table? 1662J. Davies tr. Mandelslo's Trav. 58 The windows of all the houses..were beset with Lamps, before which were placed Vessels of Glass fill'd with waters of several colours, which made a very delightful prospect. 1693Humours Town 3, I had rather look up to see the welcome prospect of your House. 1711Swift Jrnl. to Stella 25 Aug., He is ravished with Kent, which was his first prospect when he landed. 1727–46Thomson Summer 1438 Heavens! what a goodly prospect spreads around, Of hills, and dales, and woods, and lawns, and spires. 1763Johnson in Boswell 6 July, But, Sir, let me tell you, the noblest prospect which a Scotchman ever sees, is the high road that leads him to England. 1798Wordsw. Peter Bell i. xvi, On a fair prospect some have looked. 1859Dickens Lett., to Mrs. Watson 31 May, A snug room looking over a Kentish prospect.
‖b. A vista; a long, wide, straight street; an avenue of houses. Cf. Prospekt.
†4. The appearance presented by anything; aspect. Obs. rare.
1604Shakes. Oth. iii. iii. 398 It were a tedious difficulty, I thinke, To bring them to that Prospect. 1709E. Singer Love & Friendship 36 in Prior's Poems, On the Plain when she no more appears, The Plain a dark and gloomy Prospect wears. 1715Leoni Palladio's Archit. (1742) II. 8 By Prospect is understood the first show or appearance that a Temple makes to such as approach it... Those which have their Porticos only in front, may be said to have the Prospect Prostylos.
†5. A pictorial representation of a scene or the like; a view, a picture, a sketch. Obs.
1649Evelyn Diary 20 June, I went to Putney and other places on the Thames to take prospects in crayon to carry with me into France, where I thought to have them engrav'd. 1695E. Bernard Voy. fr. Aleppo to Tadmor in Misc. Cur. (1708) III. 119 We have since procured a Curious Prospect of these Noble Ruins, taken on the Place. 1708J. Chamberlayne St. Gt. Brit. ii. iii. x. (1737) 435 The Prospects of it [the Bass], as represented in Slezer's Theatrum Scotiæ, will sufficiently shew the Difficulty of Access to it. 1762–71H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Paint. (1786) II. 180 His works are mentioned in the royal catalogue, particularly prospects of his majesty's houses in Scotland.
II.
†6. A mental view or survey; a look, inspection, examination; also, an account or description. Obs.
1625Bacon Ess., Truth (Arb.) 501 ‘To see the Errours..in the vale below’: So alwaies, that this prospect, be with Pitty. a1648Ld. Herbert Hen. VIII (1683) 10 Our King being thus setled in his Throne, took several prospects upon all his neighbouring Princes. 1677Govt. Venice 266 Let us now take a Prospect of their Governours, I mean, consider the Manners and Maxims of their Nobility. a1718Penn Tracts Wks. 1726 I. 248, I take a Serious Prospect of the Spiritual Nature and Tendency of the Second Covenant. 1764Goldsm. (title) The Traveller; or, a Prospect of Society.
7. A scene presented to the mental vision, esp. of something future or expected; a mental vista.
1641Denham Sophy v. i, Man to himselfe Is a large prospect. 1672Grew Anat. Plants, Idea Philos. Hist. §63 How far soever we go, yet the surmounting of one difficulty is wont still to give us the prospect of another. 1736Butler Anal. i. Concl., Wks. 1874 I. 144 All expectation of immortality..opens unbounded prospect to our hopes and our fears. 1785T. Balguy Disc. 26 True knowledge will perpetually mortify us with the prospect of our own weakness and ignorance. 1879Cassell's Techn. Educ. IV. 95/1 The torch which illuminated the path of the youth, and opened new prospects to his eager views.
8. a. A mental looking forward; consideration or knowledge of, or regard to something future.
1605Shakes. Macb. i. iii. 74 To be King Stands not within the prospect of beleefe. 1662Evelyn Chalcogr. 102 Not..without Prospect had to the benefit of such as will be glad of instruction. a1703Burkitt On N.T. John xix. 22 The providence of God hath a prospect beyond the understanding of all creatures. 1779–81Johnson L.P., Dryden Wks. II. 400 His prospect of the advancement which it [navigation] shall receive from the Royal Society. 1862Stanley Jew. Ch. (1877) I. viii. 157 It was a Pisgah, not of prospect, but of retrospect.
b. esp. Expectation, or reason to look for something to come; that which one has to look forward to. Often pl.
1665Manley Grotius' Low C. Warres 281 For the future, nothing remained, but a prospect of Tyranny and slavery. 1667Marvell Corr. Wks. (Grosart) II. 223 If anything be particularly in your prospects,..you will do well to give us timely advice. c1775Johnson Lett., to Mrs. Thrale (1788) I. 259 Our gay prospects have..ended in melancholy retrospects. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. v. I. 535 The prospect which lay before Monmouth was not a bright one. 1860Tyndall Glac. i. xxiii. 165 Seeing no prospect of fine weather, I descended to Saas. 1881Froude Short Stud. (1883) IV. ii. iii. 196 He was careless about his personal prospects.
c. in prospect: within the range of expectation; expected, or to be expected: now chiefly of something personally advantageous.
1779Burke Corr. (1844) II. 286 Every thing in prospect appears to me so very gloomy. 1833H. Martineau Manch. Strike iv. 55 Allen longed to..forget all that had been done, and all that was in prospect. Mod. He has nothing in prospect at present.
d. A person or thing considered to be suitable for a particular purpose, spec. a potential or likely purchaser, customer, client, etc.
1922S. Lewis Babbitt vi. 68 He drove a ‘prospect’ out to view a four-flat tenement in the Linton district. 1922Glasgow Herald 19 Dec. 8/8, I consider my bull calves excellent prospects for next season's fairs. 1926Publishers' Weekly 16 Jan. 161/2 What the newspaper advertisement is for is to carry your helpful suggestions to the people who would be logical prospects for you. 1927Observer 27 Nov. 11/1 There are thousands of ‘prospects’ who simply will not decide about a car until they have seen the new Ford. 1932New Yorker 9 Apr. 32 She naturally considered her friends her best prospects. 1958Lickorish & Kershaw Travel Trade v. 149 To define your market, use this check-list: Is the price of your service..right for the likely prospects?.. How often are the prospects likely to buy your service? Ibid. vii. 236 The ultimate purpose of both paid advertising and ‘editorial’ publicity is to increase the number of prospects who will buy the tickets and tours offered by the travel trade. 1967N. Freeling Strike Out 49 A bank manager..would certainly regard her as a good prospect for a mortgage. 1973R. C. Dennis Sweat of Fear ix. 60 He told them he had a prospect looking at the house now. 1976Daily Mirror 16 July 5/5 Carter men even checked the health and mental stability of the final six vice-presidential prospects.
e. A selected victim of a thief or pickpocket; a dupe.
1931‘D. Stiff’ Milk & Honey Route viii. 91 Always approach a male prospect from the rear. Ibid. ix. 103 It is seldom that as he approaches one prospect after another he is not moved as much by speculative curiosity as by the need of sustenance. 1937[see lemon-game s.v. lemon n.1 7].
III. †9. Short for prospect-glass: see 11. Obs.
1639R. Baillie Lett., to W. Spang 28 Sept., The King himself beholding us through a prospect, conjectured us to be about 16 or 18,000 men. 1685Burnet Lett. iii. (1686) 169, I looked at this Statue..through a little prospect that I carried with me. 1743Hume Ess., Rise Arts & Sc. (1817) I. 106 A man may as reasonably pretend to cure himself of love, by viewing his mistress through the artificial medium of a microscope or prospect.
IV.
10. Mining. a. A spot giving prospects of the presence of a mineral deposit.
1839Marryat Diary Amer. Ser. i. II. 129 Finders, who would search all over the country for what they called a good prospect, that is, every appearance on the surface of a good vein of metal. 1882Rep. to Ho. Repr. Prec. Met. U.S. 180 There are also a number of prospects being opened up in the vicinity. 1895in Daily News 11 July 5/4 This demand [in California] is more for developed properties than for mere ‘prospects’ which may or may not become mines. 1975Offshore Sept. 73/1 Finding oil and natural gas at prospect Cognac off the Louisiana coast, whether the field turns out to be large or not, is an important reminder of what this offshore exploration business is all about.
b. An examination or test of the mineral richness of a locality or of the material from which the ore, etc. is extracted.
1855Melbourne Argus 10 Jan. 4/6 The result of a few prospects that have been made at a spot..has been very satisfactory.
c. A sample of ore or ‘dirt’ for testing; also, the resulting yield of ore.
1879R. J. Atcherley Boërland 115 The thrill of pleasure..with which the digger contemplates his first good ‘prospect’ in the pan. There they are—some bright and yellow, others inky black, little rounded nuggets of every shape. 1890‘R. Boldrewood’ Miner's Right (1899) 33/1 When the first ‘prospect’, the first pan of alluvial gold-drift, was sent up to be tested, we stopped work and joined the anxious crowd, who pressed around. 1891Melbourne Age 2 Sept. 5/3 The average prospect will not exceed from 2 to 6 oz. per dish.
V.
11. attrib. and Comb., as (from 1 b) prospect ground, prospect tower; (from sense 2) prospect-hunter; (from 10) prospect hole, prospect operation, prospect pan, prospect shaft, prospect work; prospect-glass, a ‘prospective glass’, telescope, field-glass.
1617Fight at Sea A iij, Who in a *prospect glasse perceiued them to bee the Turkes Men of Warre. 1871Carlyle in Mrs. Carlyle's Lett. (1883) I. 257 Susan..had from her windows, with a prospect-glass, singled me out on the..deck of the steamer.
1848Buckley Iliad 406 They rushed by the *prospect-ground and the wind-waving fig-tree.
1877Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 303 Most of these are as yet mere *prospect-holes, and can boast of but little rich ore.
1803D. Wordsworth Jrnl. 27 Aug. (1941) I. 271 The ferryman{ddd}would often say, after he had compassed the turning of a point, ‘This is a bonny part,’ and he always chose the bonniest, with greater skill than our *prospect-hunters and ‘picturesque travellers’.
1880Sutherland Tales of Goldfields 12 He stood up with the dripping *prospect-pan in his hand.
1877Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 56 As determined by the *prospect-shafts, the channel falls toward his end on a steep grade.
1900Daily News 25 Sept. 5/1 The Lord of the Manor determined to restore it to its original purpose of a *prospect-tower.
1882Rep. to Ho. Repr. Prec. Met. U.S. 290 *Prospect work is all that has thus far been done.
▪ II. † ˈprospect, ppl. a. Obs. rare—1.
[ad. L. prōspect-us, pa. pple. of prōspic-ĕre: see prec.]
Open to view, clearly visible.
a1619Fletcher, etc. Q. Corinth iii. i, I wear a Christall casement 'fore my heart... Let it be prospect unto all the world.
▪ III. prospect, v.
(see below)
[In branch I, ad. L. prōspect-āre, frequent. of prōspic-ĕre: see above; in branch II, a new formation from prospect n. IV.]
I. |prəʊˈspɛkt|.
†1. intr. To look forth or out; to front or face; to afford a prospect in some direction. Obs.
1555Eden Decades 79 It prospecteth towarde that parte of Aphrike. 1598Sylvester Du Bartas ii. i. iv. Handie-Crafts 206 Sixteen fair Trees..Whose equall front in quadran form prospected As if of purpose Nature them erected. 1613Purchas Pilgrimage (1614) 437 Their houses are low..and prospect into the streets.
†2. trans. Of a person: To look out upon or towards; to look at, view, see at a distance. Of a building or the like: To front, face; to lie or be situated towards; to command a view of. Obs.
1555Eden Decades 140 The highest towre of his palaice, from whense they myght prospecte the mayne sea. 1578Banister Hist. Man i. 20 Openyng the window of light, on the clearer side, prospecting the Sunne. 1579Fenton Guicciard. (1618) 223 He cast a mine on that side which prospects Pizifalcona. 1677[see prospecting vbl. n. 1]. 1698Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 150 The College of the Carmelites is on an high Mount, prospecting the whole City.
†3. trans. To foresee, look for, expect; to anticipate. Obs. rare.
1652Gaule Magastrom. 152 How many accidents fall out fatally, that can have no second cause ordinatly assigned to them, much less prospected in them. 1671J. Flavel Fount. Life xviii. Wks. 1731 II. 52/1 The infinite Wisdom, prospecting all this, ordered that Christ should first be deeply humbled.
II. Mining, etc. |ˈprɒspɛkt, -ˈspɛkt|. Orig. U.S.
4. intr. To explore a region for gold or other minerals.
1848[see prospecting ppl. a. 2]. 1850B. Taylor Eldorado ix. (1862) 88 Dr. Gillette came down..with a companion, to ‘prospect’ for gold among the ravines in the neighborhood. 1872Besant & Rice Ready Money Mortiboy iii, ‘Went prospecting to Mexico’—‘What's prospecting, Dick?’ ‘Looking for silver’. 1885Mrs. C. Praed Head Station (new ed.) 64 I've sent my mate to prospect for a new claim. 1898Morris Austral Eng., Prospect v., to search for gold. In the word, and in all its derivatives, the accent is thrown back on to the first syllable.
b. fig. To search about, look out for something.
1867E. Nason in N. Eng. Hist. & Gen. Reg. XXI. 5 Mr. Webster..finding himself almost pennyless,..came to Boston, ‘prospecting’ for employment. 1870Lowell Study Wind. I. 7, I hope she was prospecting with a view to settlement in our garden. 1872R. B. Marcy Border Rem. 145 A professional mesmerist..‘prospecting’ for subjects to exercise his powers upon after a lecture. 1884N. Eng. Hist. & Gen. Reg. XXXVIII. 340, I have prospected in the records, from the middle of the sixteenth to the middle of the seventeenth centuries.
5. trans.
a. To explore or examine (a region) for gold or other minerals.
b. To work (a mine or lode) experimentally so as to test its richness.
1858N. York Tribune 20 Sept. 7/2 [He] left Cherry Creek, near Pike's Peak, on the 27th of July, having satisfactorily ‘prospected’ a rich gold region. 1865Visct. Milton & Cheadle N.W. Passage xii. (1901) 222 The three miners..discovering that they were close to the Athabasca, had turned back to prospect the sources of the McLeod. 1877Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 162 A shaft is being sunk to prospect the ground.
c. fig. To survey as to prospects.
1864D. A. Wells Our Burden & Strength 10 Let us now cautiously prospect the resources of the future. 1867F. Francis Angling vii. (1880) 264 Prospect the place, look for an open space. 1892Daily News 12 Apr. 5/5 In prospecting the new year, he saw grounds for caution, but none for alarm.
6. intr. Of a mine, reef, or ore: To give (good or bad) indications of future returns; to ‘promise’ (well or ill). Also, to turn out, prove (rich or poor) on actual trial.
1868F. Whymper Trav. Alaska xxv. 282 If a speculation promises well, they may answer, ‘It prospects well’. 1877Raymond Statist. Mines & Mining 60 The dirt on the bed⁓rock is very rich, having prospected from $5 to $10 to the pan. 1897Daily News 3 Nov. 9/5 This stone is very rich in places, and some of it prospects fully 20 ounces to the ton. |