large: [12] Latin largus, a word of unknown origin, meant ‘abundant’ and also ‘generous’. It retained the latter meaning when it came into English via Old French large (‘the poor King Reignier, whose large style agrees not with the leanness of his purse’, Shakespeare, 2 Henry VI 1593), but this now survives only in the derivative largesse [13]. ‘Abundant’, on the other hand, has provided the basis of the main modern English meaning ‘of great size’, which emerged in the 15th century.
large (adj.)
c. 1200, "bountiful, inclined to give or spend freely," also, of areas, "great in expanse," from Old French large "broad, wide; generous, bounteous," from Latin largus "abundant, copious, plentiful; bountiful, liberal in giving," of unknown origin. Main modern meanings "extensive; big in overall size" emerged 14c. An older sense of "liberated, free from restraining influence" is preserved in at large (late 14c.). Adjective phrase larger-than-life first attested 1937 (bigger than life is from 1640s).
雙語例句
1. These large institutions make — and change—the rules to suit themselves.
這些大機構總是隨意制定規定，而且說變就變。
來自柯林斯例句
2. Wind turbines are large and noisy and they disfigure the landscape.
風力渦輪機個頭大、噪音響，還會破壞周邊風景。
來自柯林斯例句
3. Fiction takes up a large slice of the publishing market.
小說在出版市場上占了很大的份額。
來自柯林斯例句
4. He was in large part a journalist and propagandist.
他很大程度上是個新聞記者和宣傳者。
來自柯林斯例句
5. The holes were sufficiently large to serve as nests.