bamboo: [16] Bamboo appears to come from a Malay word mambu. This was brought back to Europe by the Portuguese explorers, and enjoyed a brief currency in English from the 17th to the 18th century. However, for reasons no one can explain, the initial m of this word became changed to b, and it acquired an s at the end, producing a form found in Latin texts of the time as bambusa. This appears to have passed into English via Dutch bamboes, so the earliest English version of the word was bambos. As so often happens in such cases, the final s was misinterpreted as a plural ending, so it dropped off to give the new ‘singular’ bamboo.
1590s, from Dutch bamboe, from Portuguese bambu, earlier mambu (16c.), probably from Malay samambu, though some suspect this is itself an imported word.
双语例句
1. It is well known that bamboo shoots are a panda's staple diet.
竹笋是熊猫的主要食物，这是人所共知的。
来自柯林斯例句
2. Sadly, bamboo plants die after flowering.
可惜的是，竹子开花后便会枯死。
来自柯林斯例句
3. The panda's natural habitat is the bamboo forest.
大熊猫的天然栖息地是竹林。
来自《权威词典》
4. The bamboo whipped back and hit me in the face.
那竹子突然弹回打在我的脸上.
来自《简明英汉词典》
5. Each bamboo house was surrounded by a thriving orchard.
