Swine

swine







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n. (名詞 noun)[C][M]



          1.    豬

          2.    豬玀,下流坯

                      He realized what a swine he had been.

                      他認識到他做的事是多麼的不像話。





The Columbia Guide to Standard American English



swine (n.)   

 

is both singular and plural. 



When we refer to the group containing boars, sows, hogs, and little pigs, we say These are swine or These are pigs. If we refer to one female pig, we may say A sow is a female swine. 



And if we use the figurative sense meaning“a gross or contemptible person,”we refer to him (or rarely to her) as a swine: That swine was rude to my sister. 



Swine developed from the Old English word for sow, somewhat the same way that kine developed from the Old English word for cow. 



To call a person a pig is to criticize his or her greed or manners, but to call someone a swine is somehow much more insulting.