密歇根新闻广播 harp on 为啥是贬义词

 

While harps² make beautiful music, most of us would agree there's nothing beautiful about someone harping³ on something.

Our listener Kalen Oswald recently asked, If the harp¹ is historically famous for its soothing⁴ music, going all the way back to the Old Testament⁵, then why do we say someone is harping on us when we are being nagged⁶ or irritated?

Like the noun harp, the verb to harp is quite old, going all the way back to Old English. Back then, it simply meant to play the harp. One harped⁷ the harp, so to speak.

By the 1500s, people started using this verb metaphorically⁹. The metaphor⁸ comes from the idea of someone harping on one string. In other words, playing the same note repeatedly. That could get annoying fast, right?

From there, harping extends to someone who's dwelling¹⁰ on an issue, a statement or a topic in a way that's tiresome¹¹ or monotonous¹².

Typically, we see the preposition on alongside this verb. You might say something like, My parents are always harping on the importance of a good night's sleep.

However, while on is most common, about, upon, and at are also in the mix. Sometimes you hear two in the same sentence: I'm always harping on my kids about getting to bed early.

By the way, if you're an actual harpist, we take full responsibility for any puns that come your way as a result of this segment.

1 harp   

n.竖琴；天琴座

参考例句：

• She swept her fingers over the strings of the harp.她用手指划过竖琴的琴弦。
• He played an Irish melody on the harp.他用竖琴演奏了一首爱尔兰曲调。

2 harps   

abbr.harpsichord 拨弦古钢琴n.竖琴( harp的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She continually harps on lack of money. 她总唠叨说缺钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He could turn on the harps of the blessed. 他能召来天使的竖琴为他奏乐。 来自辞典例句

3 harping   

n.反复述说

参考例句：

• Don't keep harping on like that. 别那样唠叨个没完。
• You're always harping on the samestring. 你总是老调重弹。

4 soothing   

adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的

参考例句：

• Put on some nice soothing music.播放一些柔和舒缓的音乐。
• His casual, relaxed manner was very soothing.他随意而放松的举动让人很快便平静下来。

5 testament   

n.遗嘱；证明

参考例句：

• This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
• It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明，编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。

6 nagged   

adj.经常遭责怪的；被压制的；感到厌烦的；被激怒的v.不断地挑剔或批评（某人）( nag的过去式和过去分词 )；不断地烦扰或伤害（某人）；无休止地抱怨；不断指责

参考例句：

• The old woman nagged (at) her daughter-in-law all day long. 那老太婆一天到晚地挑剔儿媳妇的不是。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She nagged him all day long. 她一天到晚地说他。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 harped   

vi.弹竖琴（harp的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The teacher harped on at the student for being late. 老师因学生迟到而喋喋不休。 来自互联网
• She harped the Saint-Saens beautifully. 她用竖琴很完美地演奏圣桑的作品。 来自互联网

8 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。

9 metaphorically   

adv. 用比喻地

参考例句：

• It is context and convention that determine whether a term will be interpreted literally or metaphorically. 对一个词的理解是按字面意思还是隐喻的意思要视乎上下文和习惯。
• Metaphorically it implied a sort of admirable energy. 从比喻来讲，它含有一种令人赞许的能量的意思。

10 dwelling   

n.住宅，住所，寓所

参考例句：

• Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
• He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。

11 tiresome   

adj.令人疲劳的，令人厌倦的

参考例句：

• His doubts and hesitations were tiresome.他的疑惑和犹豫令人厌烦。
• He was tiresome in contending for the value of his own labors.他老为他自己劳动的价值而争强斗胜，令人生厌。

12 monotonous   

adj.单调的，一成不变的，使人厌倦的

参考例句：

• She thought life in the small town was monotonous.她觉得小镇上的生活单调而乏味。
• His articles are fixed in form and monotonous in content.他的文章千篇一律，一个调调儿。