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TOEFL TEM8
外刊例句
- But if Mr Trump carries out his most extreme threats and whacks a 45% across-the-board tariff on Chinese goods, trade flows between the two giants—the world’s biggest bilateral trading relationship—would shrivel. Collateral damage to the global economy would be immense.
但倘若特朗普果真兑现了他最偏激的威吓之言，对中国商品全面征收45%的关税，那么中美两大国之间的贸易往来就会萎缩，这一全球最大的双边贸易关系的倒退会令全球经济连带遭受巨大损害。
——《经济学人》 - When humidity is very low, a wine's cork can dry out and shrivel, allowing more air into the bottle.
当湿度非常低时，葡萄酒的软木塞会变干并皱缩，从而使更多的空气进入瓶中。
——《纽约时报》
基本释义
[verb] wrinkle and contract or cause to wrinkle and contract, especially due to loss of moisture
[动词] 尤指因水分流失而（使）起皱或收缩
深入解读
Shrivel 一词词源不详，最早出现于16世纪60年代，用来表示“（使）枯萎、干枯、皱缩”，主要指因高温、水分流失、老化等而向内干燥收缩，通常会在表面起皱，比如：
- 一个干巴老头
a shrivelled old man - 酷热使树叶卷缩枯萎。
The leaves are shrivelled up by the sweltering heat.
从收缩这个概念出发， shrivel 很自然地就被用来引申指“缩小、萎缩”，多指变得比需要或想要的小得多，比如：
- 随着经济衰退的加剧，利润不断萎缩。
Profits are shrivelling as the recession gets worse.
而从枯萎蔫了的概念出发， shrivel 还可以进一步用来表示“使或变得束手无策、无能为力、无用或无效”或者“使感到渺小无能”，常意味着像缺水那般缺乏鼓励、刺激等令人振奋的影响而失去动力、意志或欲望，或者说变得空虚、无助或效率低下，比如：
- 他的精神枯萎了，他的才华萎缩了。
His spirit shrivelled and his talent atrophied.
名著用例
And it ever after he dared to presume she could give him one look of measured scorn that would make him shrivel up on the spot.
倘若今后他胆敢放肆，她就会从容冷静地对他投以轻蔑的一瞥，使他当场蜷缩作一团。
出自爱尔兰现代主义作家詹姆斯·乔伊斯（James Joyce）于1922年出版的长篇小说《尤利西斯》（Ulysses）。下载本书请点击：原版名著下载 | 尤利西斯（Ulysses）
同近义词
- wither: (of a plant) become dry and shriveled
- wrinkle: make or cause lines or folds in (something, especially fabric or the skin)
- shrink: become or make smaller in size or amount
