phlegm(名词):痰;呼吸道分泌的黏稠液体,常在感冒、咳嗽或感染时出现。(在较少见的用法中,也可指“冷静、沉着”,但这里以最常见的生理含义为主。)
/ˈflɛm/
There is phlegm in my throat.
我喉咙里有痰。
After the flu, he still coughed up thick phlegm every morning, which worried his family.
流感之后,他每天早晨仍会咳出浓痰,这让家人很担心。
phlegm 来自古希腊语 phlegma(意为“炎症、体液”),与古代“四体液学说”有关;在那套理论中,phlegm 是人体的一种“体液”,后来在现代英语里主要固定为“痰”的意思。