piranha
ピラニア
解説 Definition
南米の川に生息する小さくても凶暴な肉食魚です。非常に鋭い歯を持っています。
A piranha is a kind of freshwater fish from South America with very sharp teeth. It is often mentioned in contexts about rivers, wildlife, and dangerous animals. The word usually refers to the fish itself, not a metaphorical meaning.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
shark のような「海の大型捕食魚」ではなく、piranha は「川にいる小型の肉食魚」と対比で覚えると残りやすい。英語では sharp teeth, flesh-eating fish, a school of piranhas など、鋭い歯・肉食・群れのイメージと結びつけるとよい。小さいのに危険、南米の川、集団で獲物に向かう、という3点をひとまとまりにすると、名前を見た瞬間に特徴まで思い出せる。
Remember `piranha` as the opposite image of a big sea predator like a shark. A piranha is small, lives in rivers, and is linked with sharp teeth and moving in groups. Keep the picture together: small but dangerous, South American rivers, and a school of piranhas.
例文
The piranha is a dangerous freshwater fish.
ピラニアは危険な淡水魚です。
Piranhas hunt in schools and are very aggressive.
ピラニアは群れで狩りをし、非常に凶暴です。
A school of piranhas can strip a fish clean in minutes.
ピラニアの群れは数分で魚を完全に食べ尽くします。
piranha の類義語・関連語
紛らわしい語
piranha の語源・成り立ち Etymology
piranha はポルトガル語経由でトゥピ語 pira「魚」+ anha「歯」に由来し、文字どおり「歯のある魚」です。piraya や pirarucu と同じく pira を含む語で、名の中にすでに鋭い歯への畏れが刻まれていると分かります。
Piranha came into English through Portuguese from Tupi, an Indigenous language of Brazil. It is usually explained as pira, meaning "fish," plus anha, meaning "tooth." The name originally meant something like "toothed fish," and it kept that strong image as it entered European languages. Other fish names such as piraya and pirarucu share the Tupi element pira.
外部辞書で調べる
この単語を英単語クイズで覚えよう