impairment
障害
解説 Definition
身体や精神の機能が低下したり、障害を受けたりすることを意味します。能力の減少や損傷を指します。
Impairment is a condition in which part of the body or mind does not work fully or normally. It is often used in medical, legal, or social contexts to describe reduced ability, such as hearing, vision, or movement impairment. The word focuses on limitation, not the person.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
impairment は impair + -ment と見れば覚えやすい。まず動詞 impair「機能を損なう」を押さえ、-ment で「その状態・結果」を表す名詞になると考える。medical や legal な文脈で hearing impairment, visual impairment, cognitive impairment の形でよく出る。damage よりも『機能が落ちている』感じが強く、disability は生活上の制約まで含みやすいので、その一段手前の“機能低下”として整理すると定着しやすい。
See `impairment` as `impair + -ment`: first the action, then the result or condition. It often goes with functions like `hearing`, `vision`, or `memory`, so think of something working less well. That helps separate it from `damage`, which is broader, and `disability`, which is often a larger life condition.
例文
The accident caused serious hearing impairment.
その事故は深刻な聴覚障害を引き起こした。
Cognitive impairment can affect memory and decision-making.
認知障害は記憶や意思決定に影響を与える可能性があります。
He received treatment for his visual impairment.
彼は視覚障害の治療を受けた。
impairment の類義語・関連語
impairment の語源・成り立ち Etymology
impairment は impair「損なう」に接尾辞 -ment が付いた語で、impair は古フランス語を経てラテン語 pejorare「悪くする」にさかのぼります。pejorative も同語根で、核は「悪い方向へする」こと。単なる欠如でなく、状態が落ちる感じが語源に出ています。
Impairment is built from impair and the noun suffix -ment. Impair came into English through Old French and goes back to Latin pejorare, meaning "to make worse." The word originally carried the idea of worsening a condition, and that sense remains in English. A related word from the same root is pejorative.
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