英语词汇checkmate的起源、历史背景-英语词源词典

checkmate; chess. Chess was already an ancient game when the Persians introduced it to the Arabs. The Arabs retained the Persian word shah for the king, the most important piece in the game, and when the shah (pronounced “shag” by the Arabs) was maneuvered into a helpless position, ending play, they ex- claimed shah mat, “[your] king is dead.” Soon after the Arabs introduced chess into Spain in the eighth century this expres- sion became xague mate, from which derived the French eschec mate and finally the English checkmate. For many years check- mate was restricted to chess, but by the 14th century Chaucer and other writers were using it in the figurative sense of “to thwart, defeat, or frustrate.” Our word chess comes from a shortening of the French eschis, the plural of eschec, so the game’s name really means “kings.” By a similar process the king in the game, the shah that became the French eschec, is also the source of every use of the word check in English, from bank checks to security checks. See also checkmark.

词汇	checkmate
词源	checkmate; chess. Chess was already an ancient game when the Persians introduced it to the Arabs. The Arabs retained the Persian word shah for the king, the most important piece in the game, and when the shah (pronounced “shag” by the Arabs) was maneuvered into a helpless position, ending play, they ex- claimed shah mat, “[your] king is dead.” Soon after the Arabs introduced chess into Spain in the eighth century this expres- sion became xague mate, from which derived the French eschec mate and finally the English checkmate. For many years check- mate was restricted to chess, but by the 14th century Chaucer and other writers were using it in the figurative sense of “to thwart, defeat, or frustrate.” Our word chess comes from a shortening of the French eschis, the plural of eschec, so the game’s name really means “kings.” By a similar process the king in the game, the shah that became the French eschec, is also the source of every use of the word check in English, from bank checks to security checks. See also checkmark.
随便看	cleanliness is next to godliness clean one-s plow cleanse the augean stables clean sweep clean up cleanup spot clear the decks clematis cleopatra cleopatra-s needles cleopatra-s nose cleopatra-s pearl clerical collar clerihew clerk cleveland cleveland indians clicketing client cliff dwellers cliffs notes climate climax climb a sour apple tree clink