单词 | arthur |
释义 | Arthurn. 1. Astronomy. In the genitive, forming names for the distinctive group of seven bright stars in the constellation Ursa Major called the Plough (also the Big Dipper), and also for the constellation itself; as †Arthur's harp (obsolete rare), Arthur's plough, Arthur's wain (also Arthur's chariot). Cf. Charles's Wain n., also Arthur's hufe n. Cf. Arcturus n. ΚΠ c1425 J. Lydgate Troyyes Bk. (Augustus A.iv) i. 682 (MED) Schipmen þat ben discrete and wyse..haue suffisaunce y-nowe To guye her passage by Arthouris Plowe [L. Maioris Urse]. 1805 W. Scott Lay of Last Minstrel i. xvii. 19 Arthur's slow wain his course doth roll, In utter darkness, round the pole. 1855 C. M. Yonge Hist. Sir Thomas Thumb 141 The Great Bear has often been called Arthur's Wain... It is called by St. Aldhelm, Arthur's war chariot, and by Lydgate, Arthur's plough. 1857 B. Poste Britannia Antiqua iii. 130 We hear in this or that part of Europe of the constellation of ‘Arthur's Harp’, and elsewhere of ‘Arthur's Plough’, and the like. 1875 Notes & Queries 27 Feb. 171 He then prattles about Arthures, or King Arthur's, wain, ‘though I have never met with Arthur's wain in any book or map.’ 1895 M. Trevelyan Land of Arthur p. v The stars called by the English country-people ‘Charles's Wain’ are known to the old folk of Wales as Arthur's Plough. 1899 R. H. Allen Star Names 426 The people of Great Britain long called it [sc. Ursa Major] Arthur's Chariot or Wain. 1935 M. E. Houtzager Unconscious Sound- & Sense-assimilations 40 Arthur's wain ‘the Great Bear’, ‘Charles' Wain’, from arcturus ‘bear’, by association with Arthur. 1962 Folklore 73 157 They stand for the sanths of the Great Bear... Accordingly, the Worthies have been identified variously with the constellation, which is known as Arthur's Chariot, Charlemagne's Wain, David's Chariot. 1996 P. Carr-Gomm & S. Carr-Gomm Druid Animal Oracle ii. 30 We see the Pole Star shining brightly above the constellation of the Plow, also known as the Great Bear or Arthur's Plow. 2. slang (originally New Zealand). Contrasted with Martha as either of two things which are inherently or completely different; usually in phrases implying confusion, as not to know whether one is Arthur or Martha and variants. In later use often with reference to gender or sexual orientation; (hence also) a man, a masculine person, or a heterosexual. Cf. Martha n. 2. ΚΠ 1964 M. Williams Stone Age Island viii. 229 Poor Johnny Teosin doesn't know whether he is Arthur or Martha. 1971 W. Taylor Plekhov Place 22 We've been here a fair stretch and..they've not cared to find out whether we're Arthur or Martha. 1982 R. R. Daly & P. Stiff Selous Scouts (ed. 2) viii. 633 Unsure..if we were Arthur or Martha..—we were also more often unsure if we were Army or Special Branch. 1994 Sydney Morning Herald (Nexis) 7 Jan. 26 The weather isn't quite sure whether it's Arthur or Martha. 2004 Sun (Nexis) 17 Feb. There are no such problems if you want to be turned from Arthur into Martha, or have your boobs pepped up a bit. This is a new entry (OED Third Edition, December 2008; most recently modified version published online December 2021). < |
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