| 释义 |
pigeonhole
I. \ˈ ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷ˌ ̷ ̷\ noun
Etymology: pigeon (I) + hole
1.
a. : a hole or small recess for pigeons to nest
b. : an excessively small room : cubbyhole
< hated the little pigeonhole where she had to work >
2.
a. : one of a series of holes usually in a wall or door for the passage of pigeons
b. : one of a set of holes for passage (as of gases in a furnace arch)
3. pigeonholes plural, obsolete : stock I 4
4. : excessive space between printed words
5. : a seat in the upper gallery of a theater or in the top row of the gallery
6. : a small open compartment usually in a desk, case, or cabinet especially for keeping letters or documents
7. : a storing place in the mind for a classified item or topic
8. : a place in a rigidly conventional pattern : a neat category
< they label or ticket our public men too patly, putting them into pigeonholes — Kiplinger Washington Letter >
II. transitive verb
(-ed/-ing/-s)
1. : to provide with or divide into pigeonholes
< the cabinet was conveniently pigeonholed for the tiny glass figures she collected >
2.
a. : to place in or as if in the pigeonhole of a desk
< accepted the papers and pigeonholed them in his desk — C.G.Norris >
b. : to put away as if in a place readily accessible or for future reference : to lay aside indefinitely : shelve
< find some polite formula for pigeonholing the whole idea — Denis Healey >
< any new projects and plans … will inevitably be pigeonholed to await better times — Grenville Manton >
3. : to assign to a proper class or category : arrange according to a logical scheme : analyze and classify : label
< life was neatly pigeonholed into compartments — Alan Moorehead >
< attempted to pigeonhole the new knowledge in the light of his experience >
III. adjective
Etymology: pigeonhole (I)
: based on a rigid system of classification
< pigeonhole theories of art — John Dewey >
< combat the static thinking that derives from pigeonhole diagnosis — E.A.Strecker > |