epistle: [14] Epistle has never really caught on in English as a general term for a ‘letter’ – too highfalutin – but in fact from a semantic point of view its origins are quite simple. It comes ultimately from Greek epistolé, which meant ‘something sent to someone’. This was a derivative of epistéllein, a compound verb formed from the prefix epí- ‘to’ and stellein ‘send’ (as in apostle, literally ‘someone sent out’).
English actually acquired the word for the first time during the Anglo-Saxon period, directly from Latin epistola, and it survived into the 16th century in the reduced form pistle. In the 14th century, however, it was reborrowed, via Old French, as epistle. => apostle
epistle (n.)
partly from Old English epistol and in part directly from Old French epistle, epistre (Modern French épitre), from Latin epistola "a letter," from Greek epistole "message, letter, command, commission," whether verbal or in writing, from epistellein "send to, send as a message or letter," from epi "to" (see epi-) + stellein in its secondary sense of "to dispatch, send" from PIE *stel-yo-, suffixed form of root *stel- "to put, stand," with derivatives referring to a standing object or place (see stall (n.1)). Also acquired in Old English directly from Latin as pistol. Specific sense of "letter from an apostle forming part of canonical scripture" is c. 1200.
雙語例句
1. He longed to put a little affection into his epistle.
他渴望在信里流露出點愛慕之情.
來自辭典例句
2. A reference to " natural law " can be found in the Epistle of Paul to the Romans.
在圣保羅致羅馬人的使徒書信中就已論及了 “ 自然法 ”.
來自辭典例句
3. The epistle deals therefore with the sovereign and universal principles.
這封書信講到了至尊的,最大的原則.
來自互聯網
4. I Tertius, who wrote this epistle, salute you in the Lord.
22我這代筆寫信的德丟, 在主里面問你們安.
來自互聯網
5. I, Tertius , who write this epistle, greet you in the Lord.