| 词源 |
parsnip. Parsnip derives from the Latin words pastinare, “to dig or trench the ground,” and napus, “turnip,” in reference to the fact that it was thought to be a kind of turnip that the ground had to be trenched for (so that it would grow straight). Incidentally, the Russian word for parsnip is pasternak, so the Nobel Prize–winning Russian poet’s name translates as Boris Parsnip! The proverbial saying fine words butter no parsnips (words can’t change anything) is quoted by Sir Walter Scott in his novel A Legend of Montrose (1819): “But my lord, there is a Southern proverb—fine words butter no parsnips.” However, Weekley traces the saying far back to the 17th century, quoting John Clarke’s Paroemiologia (1639), which makes the proverb fair words butter no parsnips. |