英语词汇pigeonhole的起源、历史背景-英语词源词典

pigeonhole. In the mid or late 19th century side-by-side compartments in old-fashioned rolltop desks were called pi- geonholes because of their resemblance to the holes in dove- cotes or pigeon houses, which were made to enable pigeons to walk in and out. Since papers were filed in these compartments, to pigeonhole became a way of saying “to file away for future reference.” But papers filed away in pigeonholes were often ig- nored because they presented a problem or the prospect of too much work, so the term to pigeonhole was humorously extend- ed to mean filing something away with the intention of forget- ting about it or doing nothing about it.

词汇	pigeonhole
词源	pigeonhole. In the mid or late 19th century side-by-side compartments in old-fashioned rolltop desks were called pi- geonholes because of their resemblance to the holes in dove- cotes or pigeon houses, which were made to enable pigeons to walk in and out. Since papers were filed in these compartments, to pigeonhole became a way of saying “to file away for future reference.” But papers filed away in pigeonholes were often ig- nored because they presented a problem or the prospect of too much work, so the term to pigeonhole was humorously extend- ed to mean filing something away with the intention of forget- ting about it or doing nothing about it.
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