scourge

英 [skɜːdʒ] 美 [skɜːrdʒ]

n.灾难；祸患；鞭子 vt 鞭笞；折磨；使痛苦；严惩.

TOEFL GRE

◉Etymology

“Scourge” 这个单词的词源可以追溯到古法语和拉丁语。古法语中的 “escorgier” 意为 “鞭打”，而拉丁语 “excoriare” 意为 “剥皮” 或 “鞭打”。在英语中，“scourge” 的含义是指严厉惩罚或折磨，常用来形容严重的灾难、问题或折磨性的情况。

◉外刊例句

① The country is grappling with the twin scourges of poverty and disease.《卫报》 - 2023年8月

这个国家正在努力应对贫困和疾病这两大严重问题。

② The novel virus has become a major scourge to global public health, inflicting heavy blows on economies and societies worldwide. 《纽约时报》 - 2023年10月

新型病毒成为全球公共卫生的一大威胁，给各国经济和社会造成了沉重打击。

③ The prolonged drought has been a scourge severely affecting agriculture and the livelihoods of residents in the region. CNN - 2023年12月

持续的干旱已经严重影响了该地区的农业和居民的生活。

◉Usage Examples

(1) After the scourge of war came the scourge of disease.

(2) Inflation was the greatest scourge of society.

(3) The cruel captain used a scourge on his disobedient sailor.

(1) 战乱之后瘟疫又接踵而来。

(2) 通货膨胀是社会上的最大祸害。

(3) 那残忍的船长鞭打不服从命令的水手。

◉Usage Notes

A scourge is a whip — or anything else that is punishing and dreadful. You could confront "a scourge of corruption" or "a scourge of hunger."

As a verb, scourge means to cause suffering. Not surprisingly, it comes from the old French word meaning "to whip." A dictatorship could scourge and oppress its citizens, and an infectious disease could scourge an entire community. When you see scourge, think "suffering."

◉Colins

1[N-COUNT 可数名词]灾难；祸害 A scourge is something that causes a lot of trouble or suffering to a group of people. [oft N of n]

...the best chance in 20 years to end the scourge of terrorism...

20 年来消灭恐怖主义祸害的最佳机会

Drugs are a scourge that is devastating our society.

毒品是破坏我们社会的一大祸害。

2[VERB 动词]使痛苦；危害；折磨 If something scourges a place or group of people, it causes great pain and suffering to people. [V n]

Economic anarchy scourged the post-war world.

经济混乱使得战后的世界陷入水深火热之中。