那些“母亲”演化的词

 本周日（5月13日）就是“母亲节”了，你想好用什么方式向母亲表达爱意了吗？要是还没想好，不如就跟小编一起学几个由mother（母亲）一词演化出来的英语单词吧。然后讲给妈妈听，妈妈看到这么好学的孩子一定很开心的！ 

　　Metropolis¹ 大都市 

　　Nowadays, it refers to a large city — particularly an important one. 

　　这个词现在多指大都市，尤其是地位比较重要的城市。 

　　In ancient Greece, metropolis referred to the mother city of a colony. Metropolis comes from the Greek mētēr ("mother") + polis ("city"). 

　　在古希腊，metropolis指殖民地的宗主城市。Metropolis一词源于希腊语的mētēr（母亲）和polis（城市）。 

　　Matrix 母体，背景，模型 

　　The term originates² in the Latin mater, meaning "mother." 

　　这个词源于拉丁语中的mater一词，意为“母亲”。 

　　The original (now-archaic) meaning of matrix was "uterus." Today the word usually refers to a situation or set of conditions in which something develops or forms. 

　　Matrix一词最早的意思为“子宫”（如今该用法已弃用）。现在，这个词通常指形势或者事物发展或成形的条件。 

　　Alma Mater 母校 

　　Alma mater refers either to a school one attended, or to that school’s song. 

　　Alma mater指“母校”或者母校的校歌。 

　　The ancients used alma mater as a title for such goddesses as Ceres, the Roman goddess of the growth of food plants, and Cybele, who was worshipped as the universal mother of gods, humans, and animals. 

　　古代的人用alma mater来指代谷神星（古罗马掌管谷物生长的女神）和希比利神（亦称“众神之母”，是宇宙中一切神、人类和动物之母）。 

　　Matrimony 婚姻 

　　Matrimony joins two people, but that pairing is rooted in one word: mother. 

　　婚姻让两个人走到一起，不过这种联姻源自于一个词：mother（母亲）。 

　　Matrimony comes from mater, Latin for "mother." This reflects the traditional role of marriage in legalizing motherhood – allowing women to produce legitimate³ children and heirs⁴. 

　　Matrimony也源自于拉丁语中的mater（母亲）一词。这也反应了母系合法化过程中婚姻的传统地位，即婚姻让女人能够繁衍合法的子嗣。 

　　Matter 物质 

　　The fact of the matter is this: the Latin word for "mother," mater, is this word’s distant ancestor. 

　　Matter一词怎么会出现在这里？事情是这样的，拉丁语中的mater（母亲）一词是matter一词的远祖。 

　　Mater was shaped into materia, meaning "physical substance" or "matter." Materia eventually developed into matter. 

　　Mater一词后来演化成materia，即“物质”。而materia一词最终演化成了matter这个词。 

　　Why did mother lead to matter? The connection is uncertain, but perhaps it’s because matter is the substance from which something is made; and it is mother from which we all are made. 

　　“母亲”和“物质”之间有什么因果关系呢？答案尚不明确。或许因为物质是构成所有事物的成分，也是我们所有人成形之源头吧。

1 metropolis   

n.首府；大城市

参考例句：

• Shanghai is a metropolis in China.上海是中国的大都市。
• He was dazzled by the gaiety and splendour of the metropolis.大都市的花花世界使他感到眼花缭乱。

2 originates   

v.起源于，来自，产生( originate的第三人称单数 )；创造；创始；开创

参考例句：

• The theory of relativity originates with Albert Einstein. 相对论是爱因斯坦创立的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All knowledge originates from labour. 一切知识起源于劳动。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

4 heirs   

继承人( heir的名词复数 )； 后嗣； （工作或传统的）继承者； 承袭者

参考例句：

• The socialists saw themselves as true heirs of the Enlightenment. 社会主义者认为自己是启蒙运动的真正继承者。
• He distributed his possessions among his heirs. 他把自己的财产分给继承人。