身を隠す
解説 Definition
危険や脅威を感じたときに身を守るために安全な場所に隠れることを表す句動詞。避難訓練や急な天候変化の場面で命令形としても使われ、素早く動く必要があることを伝える。比喩的には心理的な圧力を避けたいときにも使われる。
To take cover means to move quickly to a safe place to protect yourself from danger. It is commonly used in situations involving attack, bad weather, or other sudden threats.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
take は「取る」だけでなく「行動をとる」、cover は「覆う・守る」。合わせて「守ってくれる覆いの下へ動く」とイメージすると覚えやすいです。雨・銃声・爆発・攻撃など、危険を感じた瞬間に Take cover! と命令形でよく出ます。単なる hide が「隠れる」なのに対し、take cover は「危険回避のためにとっさに身を守る」感じが強め。cover には seek cover, under cover でも共通して「身を守る覆い」の核があります。
Think of "take" here as "take action," not just "take a thing." "Cover" is protection, so "take cover" means move fast into something that can shield you. It often appears in danger situations like storms, gunfire, or explosions, especially as the warning "Take cover!"
例文
When the storm hit, everyone took cover beneath the bridge.
嵐が来たとき、みんな橋の下に身を寄せて避難した。
During the tornado drill, students take cover in the hallway.
竜巻の訓練中、生徒たちは廊下で身を伏せて避難する。
take cover の類義語・関連語
take cover の語源・成り立ち Etymology
takeは古英語tacanから、coverはラテン語cooperire（co-完全に＋operire覆う）が古フランス語covrir経由で英語に入った。「覆いの下に身を置く」が原義で、軍事用語として砲火から身を守る意味が定着した。関連語：discover（覆いを取る→発見する）、recover。
"Take" comes from Old English "tacan," while "cover" came into English through Old French from Latin "cooperire," meaning "to cover completely." Related English words include "discover" and "recover," which share the same Latin root. "Take cover" originally meant putting yourself under a covering, and it later became a fixed military and emergency expression for protecting yourself from danger.
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