mealy-mouthed的词源

英文词源

mealy-mouthed (adj.)

"afraid to say what one really thinks," 1570s; first element perhaps from Old English milisc "sweet," from Proto-Germanic *meduz "honey" (see mead (n.1)), which suits the sense, but if the Old English word did not survive long enough to be the source of this, perhaps the first element is from meal (n.2) on notion of the "softness" of ground flour (compare Middle English melishe (adj.) "friable, loose," used of soils).

中文词源

mealy-mouthed：不直爽的，拐弯抹角的

mealy,粉状的，mouth,嘴。比喻用法。

该词的英语词源请访问趣词词源英文版：mealy-mouthed 词源，mealy-mouthed 含义。