crater
クレーター
解説 Definition
crater は、火山の噴火口や隕石の衝突でできた丸いくぼみという意味です。日本語の「クレーター」とほぼ同じ意味で、月面や地表の大きなくぼみによく使います。
A crater is a large, usually round depression in the surface of the earth, the moon, or another celestial body, formed by volcanic activity, an explosion, or the impact of a meteorite.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
日本語の「クレーター」と同じく、火山の噴火口や隕石衝突による円形のくぼみを指す。語源は大きな混酒杯で、杯のように縁があり中央が深い形を結び付けると覚えやすい。volcanic crater、impact crater、crater floor の組み合わせも押さえる。
Connect crater with the image of a huge bowl-shaped hollow. The word originally referred to a large vessel used for mixing wine and water, and the similar shape later inspired its geological use. Picture a raised rim surrounding a deep center on a volcano or the moon. Common combinations reinforce the meaning: a volcanic crater forms around a volcanic opening, while an impact crater is produced when an object strikes a surface. Unlike a simple hole, a crater is typically broad, round, and associated with an eruption, explosion, or impact.
例文
We saw a large crater near the volcano.
私たちは火山の近くで大きなクレーターを見ました。
The moon has many visible crater marks.
月には目に見えるクレーターの跡がたくさんあります。
Scientists measured the depth of the crater.
科学者たちはそのクレーターの深さを測りました。
crater の類義語・関連語
crater の語源・成り立ち Etymology
ギリシャ語 kratēr（混ぜる大杯）から。krasis「混合」と同根で、古代ギリシャで酒と水を混ぜる大きな鉢を指した。火山や月面の凹地の形が杯に似ることから転用された。関連語: idiosyncrasy（特異体質、krasis由来）。
Crater entered English through Latin crater from Greek kratēr, the name of a large bowl in which wine and water were mixed. The vessel’s wide, hollow shape provided the basis for the later geological sense. From the seventeenth century onward, the word was applied to the bowl-shaped hollow at a volcano’s summit and was subsequently extended to similar depressions on the moon and other surfaces, especially those created by impacts or explosions.
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