喜樂美語
  1. 1八卦；小道消息（口語，偏美式）

    Scuttlebutt is gossip: stories about other people’s lives, especially ones that are or not true. It is informal, and it sounds a little American, like talk you catch around the office drinks machine.

    Scuttlebutt Scuttlebutt是 gossip八卦：stories about other people’s lives關於別人生活的傳聞，especially ones that are unkind or not true尤其是那些不厚道或不真實的。 It is它 informal非正式的，and it sounds a little American而且聽起來有點美式，like talk you catch around the office drinks machine就像你在辦公室飲水機旁聽到的閒聊。

    Though actually the first scuttlebutt was not talk at all. On a ship, a butt was a wooden of drinking water, and a scuttle was a hole cut in it so sailors could dip a cup. Men stood around that the way office workers stand around a water cooler, and the chat they shared took the barrel’s name.

    Though actually不過其實 the first scuttlebutt最早的scuttlebutt was not talk at all根本不是指說話這件事。 On a ship在船上，a butt一個butt是 a wooden cask of drinking water一個裝飲用水的木桶，and a scuttle而一個scuttle是 a hole cut in it桶上鑿出的一個洞，so sailors could dip a cup好讓水手能舀水喝。 Men站在那個木桶旁的人 stood around that cask就像站在辦公室飲水機旁的上班族一樣 the way office workers stand around a water cooler，and the chat they shared而他們分享的閒聊 took the barrel’s name就借用了這個木桶的名字。

    So “What’s the scuttlebutt?” means “What are people saying?” — not “Where is the water?” You will hear it more in US English than in careful British English, and it can feel a bit old-fashioned in a friendly way. There is also a verb, from the noun, meaning to spread that kind of talk.

    So所以 “What’s the scuttlebutt?”「What’s the scuttlebutt？」 means意思是 “What are people saying?”「大家在說什麼？」 — not “Where is the water?”而不是「水在哪裡？」 You will hear it你會聽到它 more in US English than in careful British English在美式英語裡比在講究的英式英語裡更常見，and it can feel a bit old-fashioned in a friendly way而且會帶點親切的老派感。 There is also也有 a verb一個動詞，from the noun從這個名詞衍生出來，meaning to spread that kind of talk意思是散播這種閒話。

core核心畫面

組成scuttle (“to cut a hole through something”) + butt (“wooden cask”). Sailors gathered at that cask to drink and talk; the gossip sense comes from that. The verb comes from the noun.

同家族的字

  • scuttleto cut a hole in something, especially to sink a ship
  • buttan old word for a large wooden barrel

原始詞典資料4 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。

scuttlebuttnoun/ˈskʌtəlbʌt/

  • 1

    nauticaltransportOriginally (now chiefly historical), a cask with a hole cut into its top, used to provide drinking water on board a ship; now (by extension, informal), a drinking fountain on a modern ship.

    • [S]o they continue to fire as directed, until they are either sent down to the cock-pit themselves, or have a momentary respite from their exertions, when, choaked with smoke and gunpowder, they go aft to the scuttle-butt, to remove their parching thirst.
    • In this way, with an occasional break by relieving the wheel, heaving the log, and going to the scuttle-butt for a drink of water, the longest watch was passed away; […]
  • 2

    slangnauticaltransportGossip, idle chatter; also, rumour.

    • "That's the scuttlebutt," Bronson said defiantly. "You got some pet coolie down there you want to put in Chien's place." / "Who told you that?" / "It's just scuttlebutt." / "Scuttlebutt travels on words." Holman's voice was shaking. "You tell me one man you heard say that, or I'll beat your fat face in!"
    • His resolve not to worry about unfounded scuttlebutt lasted about two minutes.

scuttlebuttverb/ˈskʌtəlbʌt/

  • 1

    rareslangTo spread (information) by way of gossip or rumour.

    • The Pentagon rumor factory hasn't been very busy lately, but some reports are being scuttlebutted about that the U.S. military chiefs are being downgraded in the pecking order and that their military advice has been bypassed or ignored by the Carter Administration.
    • [B]ased on information coming back to the community after the initial review at the regional level, a concern that there was someone or some entity at the regional office that—who had a purposeful intent of scuttlebutting the Summit sale.
  • 2

    slangTo chat idly or gossip; also, to spread rumours.

    • During the fighting for Manila, it was scuttle-butted among the troops that they must never put pin-up pictures on the walls of the Manila Hotel because Mrs. [Douglas] MacArthur owned fifty per cent of the property and Brigadier General Courtney Whitney, of MacArthur's staff, owned the other half.
    • Could that picture (of the water skiier taking a spill in the April issue) possibly be the latest development in the "one man helicopter" which is currently scuttlebutting around the aviation underground?

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。