喜樂美語

You can picture the original meaning hiding inside the word: a finger. 'Digital' comes from the same root as 'digit' — both a finger and a single number 0-9 (the numbers you can count on your fingers). So the deep picture is counting on separate fingers: discrete, whole steps, one-two-three, rather than a smooth slide.

可以想成一根手指。digital 跟 digit(數字)同源,而 digit 本來就指「手指」——因為人最早是扳著手指一根一根數數的。所以這個字底層的畫面,是「用手指一格一格地數」:一、二、三,是分開的、整數的、一跳一跳的,而不是平滑連續地滑過去。從這根會數數的手指,長出了現代「用 0 和 1 這些分立數字來記錄資訊」的意思。

From the word’s history

From Latin 'digitus' = finger, toe. The same root gave 'digit' (a single number 0-9), because people counted on their fingers; the modern computing sense ('digital') grew from 'expressed in discrete numbers'.

源自拉丁文 digitus,意為「手指、腳趾」。因為人用手指數數,同一個字根也生出 digit(0-9 的單個數字);現代電腦的「數位」義,正是從「用分立的數字來表示」延伸而來。

Online Etymology Dictionary (etymonline.com), 'digital' / 'digit' < Latin digitus 'finger'

登入就可以看每一支怎麼連回核心畫面。

同家族的字

意思相近

finger-relatedelectronicmanualcomputerizedonlinenumeric

意思相反

analogueanalogphysicalprinted

原始詞典資料9 筆記錄

以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，摘錄並精簡格式，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。

digitaladj/ˈdɪd͡ʒɪtl̩/

  • 1

    Having to do with digits (fingers or toes); especially, performed with a finger.

    • digital palpation
    • digital examination
  • 2

    Property of representing values as discrete, often binary, numbers rather than a continuous spectrum.

    • digital computer
    • digital clock
  • 3

    Of or relating to computers or the Information Age.

    • Near-synonyms: computerized, electronic, digitized, virtual
    • Digital payment systems are replacing cash transactions.

digitalnoun/ˈdɪd͡ʒɪtl̩/

  • 1

    businessfinanceA digital option.

  • 2

    Digital equipment or technology.

    • He moved to digital for the first time, using a Sony camera.
  • 3

    entertainmentlifestylemusicAny of the keys of a piano or similar instrument.

    • Beginning with the keyboard, direct attention to the grouping of the black digitals, and show that though at the outer edge of the keyboard the white digitals look as if they were all equally close neighbours, yet, […]
  • 4

    A finger.

    • […] turning round as he reached the door, he placed his digitals in close proximity to his proboscis, saying—“I guess there an't anything green about this child!' and left the Professor in utter astonishment […]
    • […] with grave complacency wiggles his digitals, and turns away with a scornful smile playing upon his countenance.

這個拼法也被記錄為下列字的變化形：

  • digital watch
  • digital art

摘錄自 英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary，已精簡格式；依 CC BY-SA 4.0 授權使用，改動後的內容同樣以此授權提供。