| 释义 |
▪ I. punctuate, v.|ˈpʌŋktjuːeɪt|
[f. med.L. punctuāre (Du Cange) to prick, point, appoint, etc., whence It. puntuare, F. ponctuer (c 1500), f. L. punctu-s (u-stem) pointing, point.]
†1. trans. (?) To point out, note. Obs. rare—1.
1634W. Tirwhyt tr. Balzac's Lett. iv. ix. (vol. I) 331 You haue set such a luster upon that great City, and haue punctuated vnto me so many remarkeable things, and nouelties thereof, in the Letter you pleased to send me.
2. Nat. Hist. To mark with points or dots, esp. with small depressions resembling punctures. (? Usually in pa. pple.: see also punctuated 1, and punctate, -ed.) rare.
(?)1818R. P. Knight Symbolic Lang. (1876) 105 A large white flower, the base and centre of which is..punctuated on the top with little..cavities, in which the seeds grow.
3. a. To insert the stops or punctuation-marks in (a sentence, etc.); to mark or divide with points or stops. Formerly to point (point v.1 3). Also absol.
1818Todd, To Punctuate, to distinguish by pointing. 1841[see punctuated 2]. 1848Where to Stop, and Why 3 Some men punctuate according to vague ideas of sense [etc.]. 1884P. Allardyce How to Punctuate 52 All rhetorical questions are not thus punctuated. 1902De Vinne Correct Compos. 246 A knowledge of grammar is of great value in enabling a compositor to punctuate properly.
b. fig. † (a) To put a ‘period’ or stop to; to interrupt so as to bring to a close (obs.). (b) To interrupt at intervals (as a speech) by exclamations, etc.; to intersperse or ‘dot’ with.
1833Coleridge Table-t. 29 June, I am glad you have come in to punctuate my discourse, which I fear has gone on for an hour without any stop at all. c1865E. Dickinson Poems (1955) II. 731 A Flower's unobtrusive Face To punctuate the Wall. 1882Standard 17 Mar. 3/1 That speech [Mr. Forster's] was..punctuated throughout with cries of ‘Release the suspects’. 1892Zangwill Bow Mystery 111 Mr. Gladstone's speech was an expansion of his postcard, punctuated by cheers. 1901Scotsman 29 Oct. 9/4 The Miramar links are long and well punctuated with difficult hazards. 1941Penguin New Writing II. 54 They communicated with each other in a low drone.., punctuated by an occasional deep-throated ‘Ah!’ 1966C. M. Bowra Memories 1898–1939 v. 98 Roy Harrod..punctuated his speeches with such phrases as ‘I dare aver’ or ‘if you will permit the observation’. 1971E. Mavor Ladies of Llangollen ix. 159 Great delicacy had to be employed on both sides of a correspondence which was apt to be punctuated with small wounded silences, implied accusations followed by temporary reconciliations. 1977Times 25 Nov. (Christmas Book Suppl.) p. xxxi/4 The novel is one of many nicely turned backward looks that have worthily punctuated the year.
4. To give point to; to emphasize, accentuate.
1883Talmage in Chr. Globe 829/2 Telling the Custom House officer, ‘There is nothing in that trunk but wearing apparel’, and putting a 5 dol. gold piece in his hand to punctuate the statement. 1898Nat. Rev. Dec. 501 To punctuate his perjury he added this remark.
▪ II. ˈpunctuate, a. Nat. Hist.
= next, 1.
1890in Cent. Dict. |