topple

基本释义

[verb] overbalance or become unsteady and fall slowly
[动词] 失去平衡或变得不稳定而缓慢倒下

深入解读

看到 topple 一词,小站的老铁们难免会联想起小站(微信公众号:田间小站)之前推送过的与之结尾相同的 cripple, grapple, supple 等来。而即便是对其不熟悉的小伙伴,也很容易猜到该词源自熟词 top ,由 top + 反复后缀 -le 构成。

Topple 最早于16世纪40年代出现在英语,最初本用来表示“翻滚、滚动”,等到了16世纪80年代开始发展为现在的基本含义指“(使)倒塌、倒下”,主要指(使)物体失去平衡或稳定而缓慢地落下,比如:

  • 那个男人经过时蹭了她一下,使她从凳子上摔了下来。然后他醉醺醺地踉跄着走出了酒吧。他喝了两杯就醉了。
    The man brushed past, toppling her from her stool. Then he lurched drunkenly out of the pub. Two drinks muddled him.
  • 那个身体灵活的女孩失去平衡,往后趔趄了一下,撞到栏杆摔倒了。
    The supple girl lost her balance, staggered back against the rail and toppled over.

不过平时看国际新闻时遇到更多的可能是 topple 从这个概念引申出来的含义指“推翻、颠覆、打倒”某个政权或某个领导人等,也就是迫使其失去权力或权威,尤其是非民选的政府或领导人,比如:

  • 他们精心策划了一个推翻总统的阴谋。
    They contrived a plot to topple the President.

权威用例

我们经过北伐战争、土地革命战争、抗日战争、解放战争,以武装的革命反对武装的反革命,推翻帝国主义、封建主义、官僚资本主义三座大山,建立了人民当家作主的中华人民共和国,实现了民族独立、人民解放。
Through the Northern Expedition, the Agrarian Revolutionary War, the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, and the War of Liberation, we fought armed counter-revolution with armed revolution, toppling the three mountains of imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucrat-capitalism and establishing the People’s Republic of China, which made the people masters of the country.

出自习总书记在庆祝中国共产党成立100周年大会上的讲话。

外刊例句

  • JD.com has adopted an expensive “asset-heavy” business model akin to Amazon’s in America. Thus far, its vast investments in warehouses, logistics and couriers have not come anywhere near toppling Alibaba.
    京东采取了成本很高的“重资产”商业模式,与美国的亚马逊类似。到目前为止,京东在仓储、物流和快递方面的庞大投资还远不足以掀翻阿里巴巴。
    ——《经济学人》
  • I was a boy when the Taliban were toppled in 2001, growing up here as new life was injected into the ruins of a capital that had been deeply scarred by civil war.
    塔利班政权在2001年被推翻时,我还是个孩子。我在这里成长的过程中,饱受内战创伤的首都废墟也被注入了新生。
    ——《纽约时报》

常见短语

词义: “topple” 是一个动词,意味着推倒、颠覆或摇摇欲坠。

常见短语:

  1. Topple a government: 推翻一个政府
  2. Topple a dictator: 打倒一个独裁者
  3. Topple a regime: 推翻一个政权
  4. Topple a statue: 推倒一座雕像
  5. Topple a tower: 倾倒一座塔
  6. Topple a dominos: 推倒多米诺骨牌
  7. Topple over: 倾倒、翻倒
  8. Topple from power: 被推翻、下台
  9. Topple into chaos: 陷入混乱
  10. Topple like a house of cards: 轻而易举地倒下
  11. Topple the status quo: 颠覆现状
  12. Topple the balance: 打破平衡
  13. Topple an opponent: 打败对手
  14. Topple a monopoly: 打破垄断
  15. Topple an empire: 推翻一个帝国
  16. Topple an argument: 驳倒一个论点
  17. Topple a tradition: 颠覆一个传统
  18. Topple expectations: 打破期望
  19. Topple the hierarchy: 推翻等级制度
  20. Topple a stronghold: 攻破一个据点

同近义词

tumble: (typically of a person) fall suddenly, clumsily, or headlong
overturn: tip (something) over so that it is on its side or upside down
tip: overbalance or cause to overbalance so as to fall or turn over

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