with a pinch of salt
割り引いて聞く
解説 Definition
情報や主張をそのまま信じず、疑いの目を持って受け止めること。鵜呑みにしない。
If you take something with a pinch of salt, you do not fully believe it and think it may not be completely true. It is often used for rumors, stories, or information from uncertain sources. This expression is especially common in British English.
覚え方のコツ Memory Tip
"with a pinch of salt" は、話をそのまま飲み込まず、料理で塩をほんのひとつまみ加えて味を調整する感覚で覚えると残りやすい。pinch は「ひとつまみ」なので、全面否定ではなく「少し疑いながら受け取る」が核心。take ... with a pinch of salt の形で非常によく出て、rumor, advice, claims など裏取りが弱い情報と相性がいい。doubt や distrust ほど強く切り捨てず、「聞くが、鵜呑みにはしない」という距離感を意識すると定着しやすい。米語では with a grain of salt もほぼ同じ意味で頻出。
A `pinch` is a very small amount, so the phrase suggests adding a little doubt, not complete disbelief. Imagine hearing a story and sprinkling a little salt on it before you accept it. You often see `take it with a pinch of salt` for rumors, advice, or big claims.
例文
You should take his claims with a pinch of salt, as he tends to exaggerate.
彼は大げさに言う傾向があるので、彼の主張は割り引いて聞いた方がいい。
The survey results should be taken with a pinch of salt because the sample size was very small.
サンプルサイズが非常に小さかったので、その調査結果は鵜呑みにしない方がいい。
I always take online reviews with a pinch of salt since some of them may be fake.
偽物もあるかもしれないので、ネットのレビューはいつも割り引いて受け止めている。
with a pinch of salt の語源・成り立ち Etymology
pinch は古フランス語由来で「指でつまむ」、salt は古英語 sealt、さらに印欧祖語 *sal- にさかのぼります。ラテン語系の cum grano salis 「塩ひと粒と共に」が背景で、話を少し薄めて受け取る感覚です。関連語は salary、saline。
Pinch came through Old French and means a small amount held between the fingers, while salt comes from Old English sealt and goes back to an ancient Indo-European root. The phrase is linked to the Latin expression cum grano salis, literally 'with a grain of salt.' Its sense developed into taking something less fully or less seriously, with some doubt. Related words from the salt root include saline and salary.
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