harmonica
ハーモニカ
解説 Definition
harmonica は、息を吹いたり吸ったりして音を出す小さな楽器、ハーモニカという意味です。日本語の「ハーモニカ」とほぼ同じ意味で、ブルースやフォーク音楽などでもよく使われます。
A harmonica is a small musical instrument held to the mouth and played by blowing or drawing air through a row of reeds. It is especially common in blues, folk, and country music.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
日本語の「ハーモニカ」と同じ楽器を指す。harmony（調和）や harmonic（和声の）と結び付け、手のひらサイズの楽器を口に当て、息を吹く・吸うことで旋律や和音を出す場面を思い浮かべるとよい。典型表現は play the harmonica で、楽器でも通常 play を使う。
Connect harmonica with the familiar words harmony and harmonic. Picture a small, hand-held instrument producing a melody or chords as the player alternately blows air out and draws it in. This two-way airflow is a useful feature for distinguishing a harmonica from many other wind instruments. Learn it with the common phrase play the harmonica, as in “My grandfather plays the harmonica every evening.” Although Japanese uses nearly the same loanword, remember the English stress and its usual use with the article a or the.
例文
My grandfather plays the harmonica every evening.
祖父は毎晩ハーモニカを吹きます。
She bought a small harmonica at the music shop.
彼女は楽器店で小さなハーモニカを買いました。
The song began with a soft harmonica melody.
その曲はやわらかなハーモニカの旋律で始まりました。
harmonica の類義語・関連語
harmonica の語源・成り立ち Etymology
ギリシャ語の「調和」harmoniaに由来し、接尾辞-icaが付いて「調和する楽器」の意となりました。同じ語根の単語にharmony（調和）やharmonic（和音の）があります。息を吹き込んで美しい和音（調和）を生み出す仕組みから、この名前が付いたと納得が深まりますね。
Harmonica ultimately belongs to the word family of Greek harmonia, meaning “joining, agreement, or harmony.” The instrument name was formed in modern European usage and became established in English during the nineteenth century. It shares its historical base with harmony and harmonic. The ending does not need to be interpreted as a productive suffix by modern learners; the whole word names the small free-reed instrument.
同じレベルの英単語をもっと
外部辞書で調べる
この単語を英単語クイズで覚えよう