otter: [OE] The otter is etymologically the ‘wateranimal’. Its name goes back ultimately to an Indo-European *udros, source also of Greek húdrā ‘water-snake’ (the best-known example of which in English is the many-headed Hydra killed by Hercules). This was a derivative of the same base as produced English water. Its Germanic descendant was *otraz, which has become otter in German, Dutch, and English. => water
otter (n.)
Old English otr, otor "otter," from Proto-Germanic *otraz (cognates: Old Norse otr, Swedish utter, Danish odder, Dutch otter, Old High German ottar, German Otter), from PIE *udros, literally "water-creature" (cognates: Sanskrit udrah, Avestan udra "otter;" Greek hydra "water-serpent," enydris "otter;" Latin lutra, Old Church Slavonic vydra, Lithuanian udra, Old Irish odoirne "otter"), from root *wed- (1) "water" (see water (n.1)). Sea otter attested from 1660s, also known as sea-ape.
雙語例句
1. Since 1977 otter hunting has been illegal.
捕獵水獺1977年以后就被列為非法了。
來自《權(quán)威詞典》
2. Von Otter was superb both in the darkly dramatic songs, and in the lighter ones.