| 释义 |
‖ difficile, -il, a. Obs. (exc. as Fr.)|dɪˈfɪsɪl, ˈdɪfɪsɪl|
[a. late OF. difficile (15th c. in Littré), ad. L. difficil-is, f. dif-, dis- + facilis able to be done, easy. Cf. Pr. difficil, Sp. dificil, It. difficile.]
The opposite of facile.
†1. Not easy, hard to do or accomplish, troublesome; = difficult a. 1 a, b (q.v. for constructions). Obs.
1477Earl Rivers (Caxton) Dictes 143 It is a difficile thing to a man to be long in helth. 1489Caxton Faytes of A. i. x. 29 Al thinges seme dyfficyle to the dysciple. 1500–25Dunbar's Poems (1803) 309 Thocht luve be grene in gud curage, And be difficill till asswage. 1533Bellenden Livy ii. (1822) 205 The Romanis..finalie wan the difficillest and maist strate parte of the said montane. 1566Painter Pal. Pleas. i. 45 b, To adventure anye hard and difficile exploit. 1573New Custom ii. ii. in Hazl. Dodsley III. 30 No matter so difficile for man to find out. 1621Burton Anat. Mel. ii. i. iv. ii. 302 They..make it most dangerous and difficill to be cured. 1663Butler Hud. i. i. 53 That Latine was no more difficile Than to a Blackbird 'tis to whistle. 1665Sir T. Herbert Trav. (1677) 88 Hope oft fancies that to be facile in the attainment, which reason in the event shews difficile.
†2. Hard to understand; = difficult a. 1 c.
c1546Joye in Gardiner Declar. Art. Joye (1546) p. xv, Isai prophecied of Christ that..he shoulde not be darke and dyffycyle or harde in his doctrine. 1552Abp. Hamilton Catech. (1884) 46 Ane exposition of difficil & obscuire placis. 1637Gillespie Eng. Pop. Cerem. iii. viii. 196 If the matter be doubtfull and difficille.
‖3. Of persons: Hard to persuade or satisfy; unaccommodating, making difficulties; awkward, troublesome to deal with; = difficult a. 2.
In modern use as nonce-wd. from French |difiˈsil|.
1536in Strype Eccl. Mem. I. App. lxxvi. 183 The Kings highnes..wold not shew himself very difficile. 1622Bacon Hen. VII, Wks. (Bohn) 448 This cardinal..finding the pope difficile in granting thereof. 1633J. Done Hist. Septuagint 146 Some race of Women are deficile and troublesome. 1855C. Fox Mem. Old Friends (1882) 301 The most difficile and bizarre body in Christendom. 1881Mallock Romance 19th Cent. I. 248 No jealousy..made her in the least cold or difficile. |