a blessing in disguise
不幸中の幸い
解説 Definition
最初は不幸に見えたが、結果的には良い結果をもたらした出来事のこと。
A blessing in disguise is something that seems bad or unlucky at first but later turns out to be good. It is used when a negative experience leads to a better result. This idiom often expresses a change in how a situation is understood.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
blessing＝祝福・ありがたいもの、disguise＝正体を隠した姿。合わせて『祝福が嫌な出来事の姿に変装して現れた』と捉えると覚えやすいです。単なる good luck ではなく、at first は損や失敗に見えたのに、あとで振り返ると良かったと言う表現です。in disguise は『〜に化けて』という型なので、見かけは bad、中身は good という反転をセットで記憶すると定着します。
Think of a blessing wearing a disguise. It looks bad at first, but later you see something good was hidden inside. Remember the pattern: outside bad, inside good.
例文
Losing that job turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as it led me to a better career.
あの仕事を失ったことは不幸中の幸いで、より良いキャリアにつながった。
The flight cancellation was a blessing in disguise because we discovered a charming town nearby.
飛行機の欠航は不幸中の幸いで、近くの魅力的な町を発見した。
Her injury was a blessing in disguise — it gave her time to rethink her priorities.
彼女のけがは不幸中の幸いだった。優先順位を見直す時間ができたからだ。
a blessing in disguise の語源・成り立ち Etymology
a blessing in disguise は bless の古英語 bletsian と、disguise の古仏語 desguiser に由来します。dis-『離れて』+ guise『見かけ』で『姿を変える』ことから、blessed や guise を思うと、『災いの姿の恵み』だと分かります。
"Blessing" comes from Old English "bletsian," while "disguise" comes from Old French "desguiser," meaning to change someone's appearance. The French word is built from elements meaning "away" and "appearance" or "style." Together, the phrase developed the idea that something may seem negative on the surface but carry a hidden good. "Guise" is a related English word.
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