| 词汇 | bee |
| 词源 | bee. Spelling bee is among the last survivors of a large number of bees relating to social gatherings (bees being busy, coopera- tive, social animals) “for performing some task in common.” These are American in origin—the first one recorded is a 1769 spinning bee in Taunton, Massachusetts, though the term was in use before that. Later came bees prefixed by apple, building, candy, checker, chopping, drawing, housecleaning, husking, knitting, logging, paring, picking, political, quilting, raising, sew- ing, shingle, shooting, shouting, shucking, spinning, squirrel, stone, tailor, and wood. There were even rattlesnake bees, where “the venomous reptiles . . . were summarily excised by fire and lethal weapons”; kissing bees, parties for young people; whipping bees, where toughs beat someone; and lynching bees. The affairs, sometimes called “frolics,” were often followed by parties. |
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