英语词汇xyz affair的起源、历史背景-英语词源词典

XYZ affair. In 1797 President John Adams sent three repre- sentatives to France to negotiate a maritime treaty that would prevent French pirates from attacking American ships. But three of Talleyrand’s agents (identified only as X, Y, and Z) in- tercepted them and demanded a $1-million “loan” for France before they would be received by the French government. The agents refused to negotiate on these terms and returned home. One of them, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, allegedly uttered the slogan “Millions for defense, sir, but not one cent for trib- ute.” Pinckney, however, always claimed he only said: “No, no, no! Not a single sixpence!”

词汇	xyz affair
词源	XYZ affair. In 1797 President John Adams sent three repre- sentatives to France to negotiate a maritime treaty that would prevent French pirates from attacking American ships. But three of Talleyrand’s agents (identified only as X, Y, and Z) in- tercepted them and demanded a $1-million “loan” for France before they would be received by the French government. The agents refused to negotiate on these terms and returned home. One of them, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, allegedly uttered the slogan “Millions for defense, sir, but not one cent for trib- ute.” Pinckney, however, always claimed he only said: “No, no, no! Not a single sixpence!”
随便看	thereby hangs a tale the red one there-s a one-eyed man in the game there-s as good fish in the sea as ever came out of it there-s a sucker born every minute there-s many a slip twixt between cup and lip there-s no love lost between them there-s no there there there-s nothing in the middle of the road but yellow stripes and dead armadillos there-s nothing new under the sun there-s the rub there was a little girl there were giants in the earth in those days the rich are different from you and me the richest corpse in the graveyard thermos the rock thersitical the same dog bit me thesaurus the scene opens the schilder technique the screw plot the second city of the world the sensation is momentary and the position ridiculous