X.mas
n.Usage Problem (名词)【用法疑难】 Christmas.圣诞节
来源:From X [the Greek letter chi] 源自 X [希腊字母chi] abbreviation of Khristos [Christ] * see Christ Khristos的缩写 [耶稣] *参见 Christ
Xmas has been used for hundreds of years in religious writing, where theX is understood to represent a Greek chi, the first letter of &S{C}&S{i}&S{s}&S{t}&S{o}&S{z}, .Christ.;in this use it is parallel to other forms likeXtian, .Christian.. But the letterX, or especially x, is nowadays more frequently interpreted as a mathematical variable than as a Greek letter, as indicated by the common pronunciation of the formXmas as (μks.m…s). Thus, while the word is etymologically innocent of the charge that it omits Christ from Christmas,it is now generally understood only as an informal shortening.In an earlier survey 88 percent of the Usage Panel rejected the use ofXmas in writing. Xmas 在宗教作品中已用了几百年, X 用来表示希腊字母chi, 是&S{C}&S{i}&S{s}&S{t}&S{o}&S{z}的第一个字母,意为.耶稣.;在这种用法中,它与其他形式相似,如Xtian, .教会的.。 但是字母X, 尤其是 x, 现在更常见的是当作数学变量,而不是希腊字母, 因为该符号Xmas 发音已普遍为(μks.m…s)。 因此,当这个单词从词源学上把Christ从Christmas中省掉是合乎规则的,现在该词已被广泛看作一个非正式的缩写形式。在早期的调查问卷中,有百分之八十八的用法使用小组成员拒绝在作品中用Xmas