| 释义 |
▪ I. pleasant, a. (adv.)|ˈplɛzənt|
Forms: α. 4–7 ples-, 5 plays-, pleys-, 5–8 plais-, 6 Sc. pleis-, 6– pleas-; 4– -ant, (4–7 -ante, -aunt(e, 5 -awnt, 7 Sc. -ent). β. (chiefly Sc.) 4–6 plesand, 5–6 pleasand, -ande, (5 -aund, -ond, plessand, 6 pleis-, pleysand).
[ME. a. OF. plais-, pleisant (12th c. in Littré, Hatz.-Darm.), prop. pr. pple. of plaisir = mod.F. plaire to please; see please v. In the β forms identified with the north. and Sc. pr. pple. in -and1, and thus really a northern variant of pleasing ppl. a.]
A. adj.
1. Having the quality of giving pleasure; originally synonymous with pleasing, but now used more vaguely: Agreeable to the mind, feelings, or senses; such as one likes.
1375Barbour Bruce i. 10 And suth thyngis that ar likand Tyll mannys heryng, ar plesand. Ibid. 208 Horse, or hund, or othir thing, That plesand war to thar liking. 1390Gower Conf. III. 42 And thus what thing unto his pay Was most plesant, he lefte non. 1460J. Capgrave Chron. (Rolls) 27 Pilgrime ful rich was he [Abraham] and plesaunt to God. 1483Cath. Angl. 283/2 Plesande, acceptus, gratus. 1484Caxton Fables of æsop i. i, This fayre and playsaunt book. 1509Fisher Fun. Serm. C'tess of Richmond Wks. (E.E.T.S.) 305 A pleasaunt & a swete lyfe..a lyfe full of ioye & pleasure. 1552Abp. Hamilton Catech. (1884) 3 Na thing culd be to God mair plesand. 1576Fleming Panopl. Epist. 252 It is vnto mee the pleasauntest thing in the world vniuersall. 1639in Proc. Soc. Antiq. Ser. ii. XIV. 373 The other 2 [marble pillars]..very pleasaunt and strounge. 1762Kames Elem. Crit. ii. § 6 (1833) 59 Pleasant and painful are qualities of the emotions we feel. 1863Kingsley Water-Bab. i, The pleasantest time of all the twenty-four hours.
2. Of persons or their attributes: Having pleasing manners, demeanour, or aspect; agreeable, cheerful, good-humoured.
1560J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 347 b, Jhon Cardinall of Lorayne..had bene all his life time a most pleasaunt gest and companion. 1604T. Wright Passions v. §4. 239 Our Lord loveth a pleasant giver. 1642H. More Song of Soul i. ii. cxlii, A jolly Swain Methought he was; meek, chearfull, and pleasant. 1705Stanhope Paraphr. I. 115 Content and even pleasant under Hardships. 1831Sir J. Sinclair Corr. II. 385 One of the liveliest and pleasantest men I ever met with, was the Marquis del Campo. 1873Black Pr. Thule ii, A clever woman is always a pleasanter companion than a clever man.
†3.
a. Humorous, jocular, facetious; merry, gay. to make pleasant, to be festive, make merry. Obs.
1530Palsgr. 321/1 Pleasante propre, galliarde. 1545Primer Hen. VIII in Three Primers (1848) 502 Arise, Lord.., let..the righteous and Christ's disciples make pleasant and merry. 1555Eden Decades 134 When the pleasaunt wanderer perceaued that the Christians ceased to pursue hym. 1581G. Pettie Guazzo's Civ. Conv. i. (1586) 45 Which kinde of men, a pleasant writer scoffing at, sayth, That that meate is vnpleasant in tast, which smelleth of the smoake. c1670Hobbes Dial. Com. Laws (1681) 24 All..the Contentments and Ease which some pleasant men have related of the land of Cocquany. 1710Steele Tatler No. 246 ⁋9 Dick Reptile, who does not want Humour, is very pleasant at our Club when he sees an old Fellow touchy at being laughed at for any Thing that is not in the Mode. 1782Cowper Gilpin 169 Now Gilpin had a pleasant wit.
b. Hilarious or excited from drink; tipsy. rare.
1596Raleigh Discov. Gviana 55 Some of our captaines garoused of his wine till they were reasonable pleasant, for it is very strong with pepper. 1680Burnet Rochester (1692) 12 The natural heat of his fancy being inflamed by wine made him..so extravagantly pleasant that [etc.]. 1853‘C. Bede’ Verdant Green iv, He comes home pleasant at night from some wine-party.
†4. Amusing, laughable, ridiculous, funny. Obs.
1583T. Stocker Civ. Warres Lowe C. i. 15 With such other like pleasant iestes. 1604E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies i. xiv. 47 From our Peru..they might well bring gold, silver, and pleasant monkies. 1688S. Penton Guard. Instruct. (1897) 43 It was pleasant to see how my Son trembled to see the Proctour come in. 1716Addison Freeholder No. 9 ⁋13 The most pleasant Grievance is still behind. 1760Foote Minor ii. Wks. 1799 I. 260 They took him off at the play-house some time ago; pleasant, but wrong. Public characters shou'd not be sported with.
5. Comb., chiefly parasynthetic, as pleasant-faced, pleasant-featured, pleasant-looking, pleasant-mannered, pleasant-minded, pleasant-natured, pleasant-sounding, pleasant-spirited, pleasant-spoken, pleasant-tongued, pleasant-witted adjs.
1586W. Webbe Eng. Poetrie (Arb.) 67 Which all I will referre to the consideration of euerie pleasant headded Poet in their proper gifts. 1597Hooker Eccl. Pol. v. lxxiv. §3 It is no great disgrace though they suffer pleasant witted men, a little to intermingle with zeale scorne. 1599Shakes. Much Ado ii. i. 355 By my troth a pleasant spirited Lady. 1653R. Sanders Physiogn. 279 This various, yet pleasant relisht Doctrine. 1685Dryden Daphnis Misc. Poems ii. 119 A pleasant sounding name's a pretty thing. 1843Dickens Christmas Carol 145 He is the pleasantest-spoken gentleman. 1853Mrs. Gaskell Cranford viii. 153 Lady Glenmire..who had been very pretty in the days of her youth, and who was even yet very pleasant-looking. c1863T. Taylor in M. R. Booth Eng. Plays of 19th Cent. (1969) II. 93 Ah, there's a pleasant looking party yonder. 1873‘Mark Twain’ & Warner Gilded Age xx. 187 Senator Dilworthy was..a pleasant spoken man, a popular man with the people. 1877Mrs. Forrester Mignon I. 2 There is one pleasant-faced, cheery mannered Divine. 1896Peterson Mag. Jan. 97/1 He is very pleasant-spoken, and invited me to come and spend the night with him. 1959T. S. Eliot Elder Statesman i. 22 A foreign person By the looks of him. But talks good English. A pleasant-spoken gentleman. 1978R. Ludlum Holcroft Covenant xiv. 162 He was in his early thirties, Noel guessed, and pleasant-looking.
†B. as adv. = pleasantly. Obs.
1553T. Wilson Rhet. (1580) 140 More..then the pleasaunt disposed man is willyng fullie to set forthe. 1604E. G[rimstone] D'Acosta's Hist. Indies ii. xiv. 115 They might live at the Indies very pleasant and happily. 1609Bible (Douay) Exod. xx. Comm., How pleasant eloquent is that Gregorie, called the great.
▪ II. † ˈpleasant, n. Obs.
Also 7 plaisant.
[a. F. plaisant (16th c.), n. use of plaisant pleasant a.]
A jester, fool, clown.
1595Duncan App. Etym. (E.D.S.), Morio, a pleasand, a playfoole. 1606Holland Sueton. 250 Whereupon one of these plaisants [quidam urbanorum] came out with a pretie conceit. 1617in 3rd Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. 409/1 Archibald Armstrong his Majesties pleasant quha come to this burght with the Inglishe Knichtis. 1632Holland Cyrupædia 42 Why should not they more truely be called, merry conceited Pleasants rather than Boasters?
▪ III. ˈpleasant, v. rare.
[In trans. use f. pleasant a.; in intr. ad. F. plaisanter to jest, f. plaisant pleasant.]
†1. trans. To please by indulgence; to indulge.
1627–77Feltham Resolves i. xiii. 20 He sings, and reuels, and pleasants his spleen.
†2. To spend in pleasure. Obs.
1633Earl of Manchester Al Mondo (1636) 83 Some pleasant their lives, as if the world should alwayes laugh upon them.
3. intr. To joke, indulge in pleasantry.
1845Bachelor Albany (1848) 263 Adelaide had that very night been pleasanting with Laura on the subject of the bachelor. |