This troubled Thomas Jefferson.He was also a naturalist, as well as a farmer, an inventor, a historian, a writer and a politician.He had seen the natural wonders of Europe.To him, they were no more important than those of the New World.
In 1788, Thomas Jefferson wrote about his home state, Virginia.While writing, he thought of its natural beauty and then of the words of Comte de Buffon.At that moment, Jefferson created a new word — belittle.He said, “Comte de Buffon believes that nature belittles her productions on this side of the Atlantic.”
Noah Webster,
the American word expert, liked this word.He put it in the English language dictionary in 1806, “Belittle — to make small, unimportant.”
Americans had already accepted Jefferson's word and started to use it.In 1797, the Independent Chronicle used the word to describe a politician the paper supported.“He is an honorable man,” the paper wrote, “so let the opposition try to belittle him as much as they please.”
In 1872, a famous American word expert decided that the time had come to kill this word.He said, “Belittle has no chance of becoming English.And as more critical writers of America, like those of Britain, feel no need of it, the sooner it is forgotten, the better.”
This expert failed to kill the word.Today, belittle is used where the English language is spoken.
【2017届高考英语一轮课时跟踪检测:(六)《Cultural relics》(人教版必修2)】相关文章:
★ 【人教版】2014届高考英语一轮复习指导考点针对练:选修6 unit4《Global warming》
★ 【浙江专用】2014届高考英语一轮复习课时作业(三十七)选修8Unit 2《Cloning》
★ 2014届高考英语一轮复习课时作业(三十八)选修7Module 2《Highlights of My Senior Year》(外研版)
★ 【北京专用】2014届高考英语一轮复习方案课时作业:选修6 Unit 3 A healthy life
★ (安徽专用)2014届高考英语一轮复习方案 作业手册(23)模块8 《Unit 23 Conflict》(含解析) 北师大版必修1
★ 2014届高考英语一轮复习课时作业(三)必修1Module 3《My First Ride on a Train》(外研版)
★ 2017届高考英语二轮复习书面表达限时测验:4(含解析)
★ 【浙江专用】2014届高考英语一轮复习课时作业(十)必修2Unit 5《Music》
最新
2017-04-24
2017-04-24
2017-04-24
2017-04-24
2017-04-21
2017-04-21