VOA慢速英语--One of English's Most Beautiful Words

 

Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories.

Each week, we take a close look at words and expressions commonly used in American English.

But, let's be honest. Language is not fair. Some words are just more beautiful than others.

Take the word "moist," for example.

“Moist” was recently named one of the ugliest words in the English language. The word sounds dirty, and its meaning is not all that great. So, you could say it loses on both counts.

Some words sound beautiful but have ugly meanings.

Take, for example, the word “malevolent.” It may sound pleasant to the ear. But it means “having or showing a desire to cause harm to another person.”

On the other hand, there are words such as "serendipity¹."

Serendipity sounds beautiful and is fun to say. The adjective form of the word is even more fun to say -- "serendipitous²"!

Three words with similar meanings to "serendipity" are fate, chance and fortuitous. But none of those are as beautiful as serendipity.

The meaning is beautiful, too.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary website defines³ "serendipity" as "luck that takes the form of finding valuable or pleasant things that are not looked for." So serendipity is a happy accident. It comes from being in the right place at the right time.

For example, let's say you have a single friend who is perfectly⁴ happy living the life of a bachelor. He does not want to be in a relationship. One day on his way to work, he jumps onto the wrong train. There he meets the perfect woman for him and they marry a short time later. It was pure serendipity! Not only was he not looking for a relationship when he found one, he also wasn't supposed to be on that train.

The history of the word "serendipity" is also interesting.

The Encyclopedia⁵ Britannica website explains that Serendip is an ancient name for Sri Lanka, the island nation once called Ceylon. Word historians⁶ believe that Serendip comes from Arabic. They say the word was first used in the Arabic language more than 1,500 years ago. Some experts believe that Arab traders began using it after coming in contact with people from South Asia.

The first recorded use of the English word “serendipity” can be found in the letters of an 18th century English writer named Horace Walpole. Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary says that in the 1700s, Walpole used the word in a letter to his friend also named Horace -- Horace Mann.

In the mid-1700s, while researching a coat of arms, Walpole discovered something interesting but unrelated to his search. In a letter to his friend Mann, he wrote: "This discovery indeed is almost of that kind which I call Serendipity, a very expressive⁷ word …”

He goes on to write that explaining the origin of "serendipity" would be easier than defining⁸ it. Walpole says he made the word after reading a Persian story called "The Three Princes of Serendip." The heroes in this story, he writes, "were always making discoveries, by accidents" of things they were not looking for.

The website adds that Walpole's memory of the story may not have been correct. But that memory did give serendipity the meaning that we know today.

Now let’s hear two friends use the word serendipity.

Geoff! Long time no see!

Hi Josephine! What a coincidence! I was just talking about you last night. How are you?

I’m doing great! How about you? Still working in the finance⁹ world?

No. I left my job in finance.

Really?! What made you decide to do that?

Actually, it’s a funny story. Last year, my friend invited me to a party in his neighborhood. I wasn’t going to go. But at the last minute, I said, ‘Why not!’ So, I went and the party was … okay. But there were lots of kids. At one point, the younger kids started acting¹⁰ up. So, to settle them down, I sang some songs. Well, one parent really liked them.

What does this have to do with your finance job?

I’m getting to that. As it turns out, that parent produces children’s music! She invited me to her recording¹¹ studio and the next day I signed a three-year contract!

What an amazing story of serendipity!

That is the best way to describe it – serendipitous! I didn't plan on quitting my banking¹² job. But fate had other plans for me.

And that's Words and Their Stories.

Do you have a story of serendipity to share with us? You can do so do in the Comments Section.

I'm Anna Matteo.

Serendipity

A cosmic¹³ coincidence

Serendipity

The unfolding of events

Serendipity

They brought us to the moment that we're in…

Words in This Story

ugly – adj. unpleasant to hear or to look at

fate – n. a power that is believed to control what happens in the future

fortuitous – adj. happening by chance : having or showing good luck

bachelor – n. a man who is not married; especially a man who has never been married

online – adj. connected to a computer, a computer network, or the Internet

coat of arms – n. a special group of pictures that belong to a person, family, or group of people and that are shown on a shield

expressive – adj. showing emotions and feelings clearly and openly

coincidence – n. a situation in which events happen at the same time in a way that is not planned or expected

1 serendipity   

n.偶然发现物品之才能；意外新发现

参考例句：

• "It was serendipity all the way,"he says.用他的话说是“一直都很走运”。
• Some of the best effects in my garden have been the result of serendipity.我园子里最珍贵的几件物品是机缘巧合之下意外所得。

2 serendipitous   

adj.偶然发现的

参考例句：

• There was a serendipitous second advantage working with a library of equations. 利用方程库有个意外收获的附带好处。 来自互联网
• Strategic networking prepares us for serendipitous moments. 战略性人际交往让我们为不时之需做好准备。 来自互联网

3 defines   

规定( define的第三人称单数 )； 使明确； 精确地解释； 画出…的线条

参考例句：

• This name defines us all. 这个名字造就了我们。 来自演讲部分
• The range of incomes over which this happens defines the 'poverty trap'. 发生在这种情况的收入范围，称为“贫困陷阱。”

4 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

5 encyclopedia   

n.百科全书

参考例句：

• The encyclopedia fell to the floor with a thud.那本百科全书砰的一声掉到地上。
• Geoff is a walking encyclopedia.He knows about everything.杰夫是个活百科全书，他什么都懂。

6 historians   

n.历史学家，史学工作者( historian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Historians seem to have confused the chronology of these events. 历史学家好像把这些事件发生的年代顺序搞混了。
• Historians have concurred with each other in this view. 历史学家在这个观点上已取得一致意见。

7 expressive   

adj.表现的，表达…的，富于表情的

参考例句：

• Black English can be more expressive than standard English.黑人所使用的英语可能比正式英语更有表现力。
• He had a mobile,expressive,animated face.他有一张多变的，富于表情的，生动活泼的脸。

8 defining   

规定( define的现在分词 )； 使明确； 精确地解释； 画出…的线条

参考例句：

• You can customise the behavior of the Asynchronous Server and hence re-brand it by defining your own command set for invoking services. 通过定义自己调用服务的命令集，您可以定制自定义异步服务器的行为，通过为调用服务定义自己的命令集从而对它重新标记。
• This point can be put another way in defining poverty. 这一点还能从另一方面来加以说明以佐证贫困的涵义。 来自英汉非文学 - 新闻报道

9 finance   

n.财务管理，财政，金融，财源，资金

参考例句：

• She is an expert in finance.她是一名财政专家。
• A finance house made a bid to buy up the entire company.一家信贷公司出价买下了整个公司。

10 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

11 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

12 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

13 cosmic   

adj.宇宙的，广大无边的

参考例句：

• That is a cosmic law that must be respected.这是宇宙的法则必须遵守。
• This has all the appearance of a cosmic free lunch.这就产生了广泛的免费午餐。