| 释义 |
shamrock|ˈʃæmrɒk|
Forms: α. 6 shamrote, 7 shamroot; β. 6 shamrocke, sham-roke, 7 schamrock, shamrook, 7 shamocke, 8 shammock, shamroque, 6– shamrock; γ. 7 shamrogh, -rogth, shamerag, shamrug, -rogue, (chamroch), 7–8 shamrog(e, 8 shamrogge, (shambrogue, -brogh).
[a. Irish seamróg (= Gael. seamrag), dim. of seamar clover.]
1. A plant with trifoliate leaves, used (according to a late tradition) by St. Patrick to illustrate the doctrine of the Trinity, and hence adopted as the national emblem of Ireland; a spray or leaf of this plant.
The ‘shamrock’ of the legend has been conjecturally identified with many different plants, e.g. the white clover Trifolium repens, the red clover, T. pratense, the black medic, Medicago lupulina, the wood-sorrel, Oxalis Acetosella, and the water-cress. The name is now most commonly applied to the lesser yellow trefoil, Trifolium minus, which is the plant most frequently worn as an emblem on St. Patrick's Day.
α1571Campion Hist. Irel. i. vi. (1633) 18 Shamrotes, Water-cresses, Rootes, and other hearbes they feede upon. 1610Holland Camden's Brit. ii. 147 They feed willingly upon..Mushromes, Shamroots and rootes. 1613Wither Abuses Stript i. viii. Juvenilia (1633) 61 In no more cloathing than a mantle goe; And feed on Sham-rootes as the Irish doe.
β1577Stanyhurst Descr. Irel. viii. 28/1 in Holinshed, Water cresses, which they terme shamrocks, rootes and other herbes they feede vpon. 1596Spenser State Irel. Wks. (Globe) 654/2 Yf they founde a plotte of water-cresses or sham-rokes, there they flocked as to a feast for the time. 1597Gerarde Herbal ii. cccclxxvii. 1018 Medow Trefoile is called..in Irish Shamrockes. 1617Moryson Itin. iii. 163 They willingly eate the hearb Schamrock. 1627J. Taylor (Water-P.) Armado C 1 b, Their fare being many times shamrookes, oaten-bread, beanes and butter-milke. 1630Dekker 2nd Pt. Honest Wh. iii. i. E 2 b, Worse then damnation, a wild Kerne,..Longed you for Shamocke? 1682Piers Descr. West-Meath (1770) 121 Butter, new cheese, and curds and shamrocks, are the food of the meaner sort all this season. 1775Sheridan St. Patrick's Day i. i, I put a great shammock in his hat this morning. 1781C. Johnston Hist. J. Juniper I. 28 He marked our young hero on the left breast with a shamroque. 1813T. Moore Oh the Shamrock! 16 Chosen leaf Of Bard and Chief, Old Erin's native Shamrock! 1856O. W. Holmes For Meeting Burns Club 52 We drink a triple health,—the Rose, The Shamrock, and the Thistle! 1901Daily Express 18 Mar. 5/7 Covent Garden sent King Edward a four-leaved shamrock on Saturday.
γ1611Speed Theat. Gt. Brit. iv. i. 138/2 Feeding vpon water-cresses, rootes, mushromes, shamrogh, butter tempered with oate-meale. 1622J. Taylor (Water-P.) Sir Greg. Nonsence Wks. 1630 ii. 4/2 Whilst all the Hibernian Kernes in multitudes Did feast with Shamerags stew'd in Vsquebagh. 1632Holland Cyrupædia i. i. 4 margin, Cresses..of which the Irish Shamrogth are a kinde. 1643J. Taylor (Water-P.) Preter-pluperfect 4 Some Bookes also of Irish Rebellion were devoured as they had been Shamrogs [misprinted Shamroys]. 1681Dineley in Jrnl. Kilkenny Archæol. Soc. (1858) I. 183 The 17nth day of March yeerly is St Patricks, an immoveable feast, when..the vulgar superstitiously wear shamroges, 3 leav'd grass. 1699E. Lhwyd in Phil. Trans. (1712) XXVII. 506 Their Shamrug is the common Clover. 1712Steele Spect. No. 455 ⁋2 The Scotch Thistle, the Irish Shambrogue. 1741Gentl. Mag. XI. 438/1 Go little Shamrogge, and adorn My pretty Flavia's breast this morn.
b. to drown the shamrock: to drink, or go drinking, in honour of the shamrock, on St. Patrick's day.
[1726C. Threlkeld Syn. Stirpium Hibern. s.v. Trifolium, This Plant is worn by the People..upon..St. Patrick's Day. It being a current Tradition, that by this Three Leafed Grass, he emblematically set forth to them the Mystery of the Holy Trinity. However that be, when they wet their Seamar-oge, they often commit Excess in Liquor, which is not a right keeping of a Day to the Lord.] 1888Daily Tel. 22 Mar. (Farmer), An Irishman..on Saturday last resolved to drown the shamrock in the orthodox fashion. 1901Ibid. 18 Mar. 10/6 The oportunities for ‘drowning the shamrock’ were commendably abbreviated by the law.
2. Applied with defining word to some other plants (see quots.).
1884W. Miller Plant-n. 124/2 Shamrock, Blue-flowered. Parochetus communis... Shamrock, Indian. Trillium latifolium. 1889J. H. Maiden Usef. Native Plants 143 Trigonella suavissima..is the ‘Australian shamrock’ of Mitchell. 1898Morris Austral Eng., Shamrock, Native, a forage plant, Lotus australis.
3. attrib. and Comb.: shamrock pea, Parochetus communis (Miller, Plant-n. 1884); † shamrockshire, a jocular name for Ireland.
1581J. Derricke Image of Irelande (1883) 8 My soule dooeth detest their wilde shamrocke manners. 1689Irish Hudibras 80 Which..Makes Wit so scarce in Shamrogeshire. 1724Moffet Hesperi-neso-gr. (1755) 3 Priests in Shambroghshire, they say, Can women kiss, as well as pray. 1900Daily News 9 Apr. 5/6 The same shamrock-embroidered bonnet. |