ガム
解説 Definition
gum は、かむためのガム、または歯ぐきという意味です。日本語の「ガム」は主にチューインガムを指しますが、英語では文脈によって歯ぐきの意味にもなります。
Gum in this sense is a soft, flavored substance that is chewed but not swallowed. It is commonly sold in small pieces or sticks and gradually loses its flavor while being chewed.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
日本語の「ガム」と同じく chewing gum を指し、mint gum、a piece of gum、gum loses its flavor などで使う。英語の gum には「歯ぐき」や「粘着性の樹脂」という別義もあるため、食べ物の文脈では「かむガム」と判断する。歯ぐきは通常複数形 gums で表すことが多い。
Connect gum with the familiar Japanese loanword ガム, but remember that English gum has more than one meaning. In food contexts, mint gum, a piece of gum, and chewing gum all refer to the soft substance that people chew without swallowing. Sentences about buying it, leaving it under a desk, or losing flavor clearly signal this meaning. In a dental context, gum means the tissue around a tooth and is often used in the plural, gums, when referring to a person’s mouth generally.
例文
I bought mint gum at the store.
店でミント味のガムを買った。
Please do not leave gum under the desk.
机の下にガムを残さないでください。
This gum loses its flavor quickly.
このガムはすぐに味がなくなる。
gum の類義語・関連語
gum の語源・成り立ち Etymology
古英語 gōma（口蓋・歯茎）に由来し、ラテン語 gingīva（歯肉）とも関連。もとは「歯茎」の意味で、後に樹脂を噛む習慣から「噛むもの＝ガム」へ拡大。関連語：gingiva（歯肉）、gummy（粘着質の）。口の中で噛むものという原義が現代の意味に繋がる。
The chewing-substance sense of gum comes from a historical word for a sticky plant secretion or resin, transmitted into English through French and Latin from Greek kommi. Chewing gum was originally made from chewable natural gums and resins, so the material name became the product name. The separate anatomical sense referring to tissue around the teeth comes from Old English goma and has a different historical origin.
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