| 释义 |
▪ I. sh
a consonantal digraph representing the simple sound |ʃ|. In late OE. this sound was represented by the combination sc, which retained its original phonetic value |sk| only in words of foreign origin. The sound |ʃ| did not exist in early OF., and hence the early ME. texts, written by French-educated scribes, show great diversity of attempts to find expression for it. The OE. notation by sc became rare after the 12th c. Some scribes of the 12–13th c. used the single s initially and finally. More frequent was ss (used in all positions), which is found as late as 1340 (Ayenbite). In medial and final positions ssh was common from the 13th to the 16th c.; Coverdale (1535) has frequently szsh, sometimes szh (but also often sh). The prevailing form from the end of the 12th c. to the end of the 14th c. was sch (initially; in other positions it was less frequent); in the north it was common down to the end of the 16th c. In the 13th c. we occasionally find sge, sȝe, sze for she (rarely sȝ or sz in other words), and in the 14–15th c. some East Anglian scribes wrote xal, xulde for shall, should. In ME. texts the suffix -ship is often written -chipe, and sometimes ch occurs as the symbol of |ʃ| in other positions.
The combination sh (probably to be regarded as a simplification of sch) is regularly used in the Ormulum c 1200 and frequently in the Trinity College Homilies of about the same date. It is the usual symbol in the London documents of the 14th c. and in the MSS. of Chaucer, and from the time of Caxton onwards it has been the established notation for |ʃ| in all words except those which (as machine, schedule, Asia, the derivatives in -tion, etc.) are spelt unphonetically on etymological grounds.
In some compounds as dishonest, mishap, Gateshead, s and h come together without forming a digraph. The pronunciation of some proper names in which this sequence occurs has been affected by misinterpretation of the spelling; e.g. Evesham is often called |ˈiːvʃəm|, Petersham |ˈpiːtəʃəm|.
▪ II. sh, int.|ʃ|
Also written 'sh (as if an abbrev. of hush).
An exclamation used to enjoin silence or noiselessness; = hush int. The reduplication or prolongation of the sound is indicated by sh-sh, s-s-sh, and the like (see quots.).
1847Man in the Moon II. 114 He..imposed silence by a long-drawn S-s-s-s-s-s-sh! 1848Thackeray Van. Fair xix, When anybody entered the room, she uttered a shshshsh so sibilant and ominous, that it frightened the poor old lady in her bed. 1867R. Broughton Cometh up as Flower xxvi, Sh! Sh! don't make a scene! 1883Howells Register ii. in Harper's Mag. Dec. 79/2 'Sh! Listen. 1893J. Ashby-Sterry Naughty Girl vii. 66 S-s-sh! Don't make a noise!
b. Used (in reduplicated form) to express a low faint rustling or swishing sound. Cf. shish.
1878Besant & Rice Monks of Thelema xli, The gardener's boy sharpened his scythe musically, and then began again his low and gentle sh-sh-sh over the lawn.
▪ III. sh, v.|ʃ|
Also sh-sh-sh.
[f. sh int.; cf. shshsh, shush v.]
a. trans. To reduce to silence or tranquillity with the sound of ‘sh!’, or attempt to do so.
1887A. J. Evans At Mercy of Tiberius vii. 125, I patted and, ‘she-e-d’ her [sc. a baby], but she got her head above cover..and..set up a squall. 1916‘B. Cable’ Action Front 62 Ainsley ‘sh-sh-sh-ed’ him to silence.
b. intr. To become quiet in response to an order ‘sh!’.
1925‘R. Crompton’ Still—William iii. 53 ‘Sh!’ William said fiercely. Violet Elizabeth ‘Sh'd’ obediently. 1972Wodehouse Pearls, Girls, & Monty Bodkin ix. 136 She uttered a ‘Sh!’ of such significance that Grayce instinctively lowered her voice. ‘Mrs. Molloy!’ ‘Sh!’ Grayce might have retorted that she had sh-ed and that if she sh-ed any further she could become inaudible. |