large: [12] Latin largus, a word of unknown origin, meant ‘abundant’ and also ‘generous’. It retained the latter meaning when it came into English via Old French large (‘the poor King Reignier, whose large style agrees not with the leanness of his purse’, Shakespeare, 2 Henry VI 1593), but this now survives only in the derivative largesse [13]. ‘Abundant’, on the other hand, has provided the basis of the main modern English meaning ‘of great size’, which emerged in the 15th century.
c. 1200, "bountiful, inclined to give or spend freely," also, of areas, "great in expanse," from Old French large "broad, wide; generous, bounteous," from Latin largus "abundant, copious, plentiful; bountiful, liberal in giving," of unknown origin. Main modern meanings "extensive; big in overall size" emerged 14c. An older sense of "liberated, free from restraining influence" is preserved in at large (late 14c.). Adjective phrase larger-than-life first attested 1937 (bigger than life is from 1640s).
双语例句
1. These large institutions make — and change—the rules to suit themselves.
这些大机构总是随意制定规定，而且说变就变。
来自柯林斯例句
2. Wind turbines are large and noisy and they disfigure the landscape.
风力涡轮机个头大、噪音响，还会破坏周边风景。
来自柯林斯例句
3. Fiction takes up a large slice of the publishing market.
小说在出版市场上占了很大的份额。
来自柯林斯例句
4. He was in large part a journalist and propagandist.
他很大程度上是个新闻记者和宣传者。
来自柯林斯例句
5. The holes were sufficiently large to serve as nests.
