| 释义 |
on the tip of one's tongue on the tip of (one's) tongueAlmost able to be recalled. Her name is on the tip of my tongue. Just give me a minute, I'll remember it. I had the answer on the tip of my tongue, but couldn't think of it in time.See also: of, on, tip, tongueon the tip of one's tongueReady to utter something but unable to remember it at the moment, as in I met him last year and his name is on the tip of my tongue-it'll come to me in a minute . [Early 1700] See also: of, on, tip, tongueon the tip of one's tongueReady to say something but unable to remember it precisely. This graphic image was stated early in the eighteenth century by Daniel Defoe (Moll Flanders, 1722): “She had arguments at the tip of her tongue.” However, a similar term that is even older had quite a different meaning: at one’s tongue’s end meant that one could not keep from saying something but blurted it out. Thus, “Having always at her tongue’s end that excellent proverb” (Henry Fielding, Amelia, 1751) meant she could not stop repeating it. This version is obsolete, but “on the tip of the tongue” has been a cliché since about 1850.See also: of, on, tip, tongue |