《剑桥词典》日前宣布，2021年度词汇是perseverance¹（毅力）。该词的当选得益于美国宇航局的火星探测器“毅力号”。《剑桥词典》的编辑认为，该词也反映出过去一年来人们面对新冠疫情和气候危机带来的挑战所展示出的耐力。

 

Cambridge Dictionary's word of the year for 2021 has been revealed as "perseverance".

《剑桥词典》日前公布2021年度词汇为“毅力”。

 

The word was inspired by Nasa's mission to Mars, as data showed that users across the globe searched for the word online more than 243,000 times throughout the year.

该词的当选得益于美国宇航局的火星任务，数据显示，全球用户从年初至今对“毅力”一词的网络搜索量超过了24.3万次。

 

The dictionary found there was a surge in searches for the meaning of "perseverance" between 18 and 24 February, after Nasa's Perseverance Rover landed on Mars.

《剑桥词典》发现，在美国宇航局的“毅力号”探测器登陆火星后，2月18日至24日期间网友对“毅力”含义的搜索量激增。

 

"Perseverance" is defined in the Cambridge Dictionary as a “continued effort to do or achieve something, even when this is difficult or takes a long time".

《剑桥词典》将“毅力”一词定义为“不断努力地做某事或实现某个目标，无论有多困难或需要花多长时间”。

 

The word is "almost always a positive word that expresses our admiration² for people who keep going in difficult situations", wrote the editors.

编辑写道，这个词“几乎总是正面的，用来对不怕困难坚持不懈的人表达敬佩之情”。

 

They added that people had shown the meaning of the word "in the face of challenges and disruption to our lives from Covid-19 and other problems".

他们还表示，人们“面对疫情和其他问题给生活带来的挑战和挫折”展示出了“毅力”一词的内涵。

 

Wendalyn Nichols, Cambridge Dictionary publishing manager, said it "made sense" that searches for the word spiked³ after the descent of the Mars Rover.

《剑桥词典》的出版经理温达琳·尼克尔斯说，在火星探测器着陆后该词的搜索量暴增是“合理的”。

 

"Cambridge Dictionary is the top website in the world for learners of English, and perseverance is not a common word for students of English to have in their vocabulary," she said.

她说：“剑桥词典官网是世界一流的英语学习网站，很多英语学习者都不知道perseverance这个单词是什么意思。”

 

"We often see spikes⁴ in look-ups of words associated with current events when those words are less familiar."

“当时事新闻中出现不常见的单词时，通常会出现搜索量激增。”

 

She said editors felt it was an appropriate word for the year, given the challenges of 2021.

她表示，编辑们认为考虑到2021年的种种挑战，“毅力”很适合做年度词汇。

 

"Just as it takes perseverance to land a rover on Mars, it takes perseverance to face the challenges and disruption to our lives from Covid-19, climate disasters, political instability and conflict," said Nichols.

尼克尔斯说：“正如让探测器登陆火星需要不懈的努力，面对新冠疫情、气候灾难、政治动荡和冲突给我们生活带来的挑战和挫折也需要毅力。”

 

Other words that can be used as synonyms⁵ for "perseverance" include "determination", "persistence⁶", "doggedness", "tenacity⁷", "resolve", and "will".

 

Perseverance的同义词包括determination（决心）、persistence（坚持）、doggedness（顽强）、tenacity（坚韧）、resolve（决心）和will（意志）。

 

Last year, Cambridge Dictionary named "quarantine" as word of the year, after it became one of the most highly searched for words online.

去年，《剑桥词典》选出的年度词汇是“隔离”，该词是当年网络搜索量最高的词汇之一。

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