insensibly
無意識のうちに
解説 Definition
気付かないほど徐々に進む。知らず知らずのうちに。
Insensibly means in a way that happens so gradually or unconsciously that it is hardly noticed. It is often used when a change takes place little by little, or when someone acts without fully realizing it. In older or more formal use, it can also mean without physical feeling, but that sense is less common.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
insensibly は sensible「気づける・分別がある」に in- と -ly が付いた形だと見ると覚えやすいです。つまり「はっきり感知できる状態ではなく」→「本人も周囲も気づかないまま」。suddenly のような急変ではなく、少しずつ進む変化で使われやすく、grow insensibly, change insensibly なら「知らないうちにだんだん変わる」の感覚です。unconsciously が“無意識に行う”寄りなのに対し、こちらは“気づかないほど徐々に”に重心があります。insensitive と混同せず、副詞として変化の進み方を描く語だと押さえると残りやすいです。
See `in-` + `sensible` + `-ly`: not in a clearly noticeable way. This word often goes with slow change, like `grow insensibly` or `change insensibly`. Remember it as change happening so gradually that nobody really notices it.
例文
The change happened insensibly over many years.
その変化は何年もかけて気付かないうちに起こった。
He insensibly drifted away from his childhood friends.
彼は知らず知らずのうちに子ども時代の友人たちから遠ざかっていった。
The temperature insensibly rose as the sun moved across the sky.
太陽が空を横切ると、温度は知らず知らずのうちに上昇していった。
insensibly の類義語・関連語
insensibly の語源・成り立ち Etymology
insensibly は in-「〜でない」+ sensible「感じ取れる」+ -ly から成り、核にあるのはラテン語 sentire「感じる」です。sense や sensory と同根で、原義は「感知できないほどに」なので、そこから「気づかぬうちに、いつの間にか」という意味が自然に出ます。
Insensibly is built from in- "not," sensible "able to be felt or noticed," and -ly. At the center is Latin sentire, meaning "to feel" or "perceive," which also gave English sense and sensory. The word first meant "in a way that cannot be perceived," and from that it naturally developed the meaning "gradually" or "without anyone noticing."
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