the writing on the wall
不吉な前兆
解説 Definition
差し迫った危険や悪い結末を示す明らかな前兆のこと。不吉な兆し。
The writing on the wall means clear signs that something bad is going to happen. It is used when the result seems obvious before it actually happens. The phrase often appears in business, politics, and difficult personal situations.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
この表現は「なんとなく嫌な予感」ではなく、失敗や破滅がかなりはっきり見えてきた段階で覚えると定着しやすいです。売上の急落、主力社員の退職、世論の悪化など、誰が見ても危ない材料が積み上がり、「もう結末は読める」という場面を思い浮かべてください。よく see / read the writing on the wall の形で使われ、warning sign よりも暗く、避けにくい結末を含みます。文字どおりの wall の話ではなく、明白な凶兆を指す比喩です。
This phrase is about signs that make a bad result look almost certain. Think of a warning written so clearly on a wall that everyone can see it. It often appears as `see the writing on the wall` or `read the writing on the wall`.
例文
The declining sales figures were the writing on the wall for the struggling retail chain.
売上の低下は、苦境にある小売チェーンにとって不吉な前兆だった。
Many employees could see the writing on the wall and began looking for new jobs before the layoffs.
多くの従業員は不吉な前兆を感じ取り、解雇の前に新しい仕事を探し始めた。
The writing on the wall was clear: without major reforms, the organization would not survive.
前兆は明らかだった。大きな改革なしには、その組織は生き残れないだろう。
the writing on the wall の語源・成り立ち Etymology
writing は古英語 writan「刻む・書く」、wall は古英語 weall でラテン語 vallum にさかのぼる。聖書ダニエル書の「壁に現れた文字」が源で、write, writ は同根語。もともと「壁に刻まれた避けがたい警告」だから、不吉な前兆を指す。
"Writing" comes from Old English writan, originally meaning "to cut" or "scratch," and "wall" comes from Old English weall, from Latin vallum. The full expression comes from the Biblical story in the Book of Daniel, where mysterious words appear on a wall as a warning of coming disaster. Because of that story, it came to mean a clear sign that something bad is going to happen.
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