snicker
意味一覧 (2件)
くすくす笑う
解説 Definition
snicker は、笑い声をこらえきれず鼻や口元から短く漏らす動作を表します。相手の失敗、奇妙な発言、内輪だけで通じる冗談に反応して、本人に面と向かって大笑いせず、陰で少し意地悪く笑う感じです。
To snicker is to laugh quietly in a short, half-hidden way, often through the nose or with the mouth only slightly open. It is usually used when someone reacts to another person's mistake, strange comment, or a joke that only a few people understand. A snicker is not a big, open laugh; it can sound a little mean or disrespectful, especially when it happens behind someone's back.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
freight を「運送料」の意味で覚えるときは、shipping cost より業務的で物流・貿易向きの語だと考えるとよいです。freight charge, freight rate, freight bill のように、見積書や請求書で「商品を運ぶためにかかる金額」を表す場面に出やすい語です。cargo は運ばれる品物、fee は料金全般なので、商業輸送の費用なら freight と結びつけましょう。
If you learn freight as meaning "shipping cost," it helps to think of it as a more businesslike word used in logistics and trade than shipping cost. It often appears in phrases like freight charge, freight rate, and freight bill when talking about the money needed to move goods. Cargo is the thing being transported, and fee is a general charge, so for the cost of commercial transport, connect it with freight.
例文
The kids tried not to snicker when he mispronounced the word.
彼がその単語を言い間違えたとき、子どもたちはくすくす笑うのをこらえようとした。
A few people in the back snickered at her strange suggestion.
後ろの数人は、彼女の変わった提案にくすくす笑った。
He gave a quiet snicker when his friend told an inside joke.
友人が内輪だけの冗談を言うと、彼は小さくくすくす笑った。
くすくす笑い、忍び笑い
(意味 2)解説 Definition
snicker の名詞は、場の端から一瞬聞こえる「クスッ」という忍び笑いそのものを指します。発した人の動作より、静かな教室や会議に小さく混じる音・反応に焦点があり、軽いからかい、不謹慎さ、我慢し損ねた笑いを含みます。
A quiet, half-suppressed laugh, often showing amusement, disrespect, or secret pleasure. It usually refers to a small laugh made when someone is trying not to laugh openly. The tone is often slightly rude or childish.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
名詞では a snicker / snickers のように、数えられる短い笑い声として捉えます。重要なのは「誰が笑ったか」より、その場に落ちた小さな音や空気の変化です。serious speech の途中で客席から漏れる一声、廊下で聞こえる含み笑いなどを想像すると、普通の laughter ではなく、控えめで少し失礼な反応として区別できます。
Place `snicker` among other laugh words. A `smile` is silent, `giggle` is light, and `snicker` is a small, half-hidden laugh, often a bit mean. Think of people `snickering at` someone's mistake instead of laughing openly. That picture helps the word stay in memory.
例文
The children tried to hide their snicker when the teacher mispronounced a word.
先生が単語を言い間違えたとき、子どもたちはくすくす笑いを隠そうとした。
I heard a snicker from the back of the room during the serious presentation.
まじめな発表の最中、部屋の後ろから忍び笑いが聞こえた。
She could not suppress a snicker at his awkward attempt to dance.
彼のぎこちない踊りを見て、彼女はくすくす笑いを抑えられなかった。
snicker の語源・成り立ち Etymology
snicker はオランダ語・低地ドイツ語系の snikken「すすり泣く、鼻を鳴らす」に通じるとされます。息や鼻から漏れる小さな音の感覚が、声を抑えて笑う意味につながりました。
Snicker is thought to be related to Dutch and Low German words such as snikken, meaning "to sob" or "to make a sound through the nose." The idea of a small sound coming from the breath or nose later developed into the meaning of a suppressed, quiet laugh.
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