Word · Frequency #22344
quail
胆怯；气馁；（勇气等）消退
核心释义
to lose heart or courage; to be daunted or fearful; (of courage, faith, etc.) to weaken or give way
- 1.
消瘦；枯萎,凋谢
To waste away; to fade, to wither.
- 2.
失去勇气或信心；感到畏惧
To lose heart or courage; to be daunted or fearful.
- 3.
勇气、信念等减弱,屈服
Of courage, faith, etc.: to slacken, to give way.
- 4.
退缩,如因恐惧或痛苦
draw back, as with fear or pain
畏缩；退缩；衰弱；枯萎；衰退；消瘦；枯萎,凋谢；失去勇气或信心；感到畏惧；勇气、信念等减弱,屈服
用法In use
He quailed at the sight of the angry dog.
用法提示：这里 "quailed" 表示因恐惧而退缩。
She quailed before the judge's stern gaze.
用法提示："quailed" 表示因害怕而退缩。
The soldiers did not quail in the face of danger.
用法提示："quail" 表示因恐惧而退缩，这里用了否定形式。
quail at sth
at 后接令人恐惧或不安的事物，常用于“一想到……就害怕”的表达。
She quailed at the thought of speaking in front of the whole school.
一想到要在全校面前讲话，她就畏缩了。
quail before sb/sth
before 强调面对某人或某种威势时失去勇气、向后退缩。
The young soldier quailed before the angry officer.
相关词与表达Connections
搭配Collocations
- quail at something
- 对某事感到畏惧；一看到某事物就退缩
- She quailed at the sight of the angry dog.她看到那条愤怒的狗就退缩了。
- quail before somebody
- 在某人面前畏缩
- Even the bravest warriors quailed before the king's fury.即使最勇敢的战士在国王的盛怒面前也畏缩了。
- quail in fear
- 因恐惧而发抖退缩
- The children quailed in fear at the loud thunder.孩子们听到响雷，吓得直发抖。
- quail under pressure
- 在压力下胆怯退缩
- A true leader does not quail under pressure.真正的领导者在压力下不会退缩。
- quail from doing something
学习提示Learner notes
记忆技巧Memory Tip
把quail联想成小鹌鹑：鹌鹑遇险缩头，人遇恐惧畏缩。
语境与语域Context & Register
语域：formal 常见场景：正式写作、文学描写 该词作动词时较为正式，多用于书面或文学语境中，日常口语中较少使用。常表示因恐惧或痛苦而畏缩、失去勇气。
语法说明Grammar Note
常用于 quail at/from sth. 结构，表示因恐惧或痛苦而退缩
发音与拼写Pronunciation & Spelling
发音提示：quail /kweɪl/ 与以上单词都押韵，均为单音节，末尾发 /eɪl/。注意拼写相似的 quill /kwɪl/（羽毛笔）和 quilt /kwɪlt/（被子）不押韵，它们的元音是短 /ɪ/。
用法优先级Usage priority
Collins 词频等级为 1，建议结合例句记忆，而不是只背中文释义。
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Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.