APAD: Cut to the quick.

Meaning: To cause deep emotional hurt.

 

Background: An archaic meaning of 'quick' is those that are living (thus

biblical references to 'the quick and the dead'). It has its roots in the Old

English word cwic, meaning living.

 

Modern usage of "to cut to the quick" is usually in references to causing a deep

emotional hurt, such as he was cut to the quick by her sharp comments. It can

also be used as an expression meaning to cut through the inconsequential and get

to the facts.

 

Usage of quick in this context lives on in reference to the tender flesh below

fingernails and toenails - if you cut a nail too low and expose this you have

cut it to the quick. Quickening is also used to describe the moment when a

mother first feels her baby moving in the womb.

 

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I first saw this meaning of quick three years ago in Pavel Tsatsouline's "The

Quick and The Dead," a book on strength training. This is just another old short

English word that Churchill and Orwell would love and the GRE and TOEFL would

ignore and of which I, a good exam-taker, came to the west, oblivious.

 

Google translator lists one entry: 活人. Not bad, but it sounds comic. I

wonder what the English-Chinese dictionaries say about the word.

所有跟帖： 

• “I, a good exam-taker, came to the west, oblivious.”好句！Me 2. -暖冬cool夏- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 10:15:15

• Learning every day! Thanks for sharing. -暖冬cool夏- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 10:15:53

• Thanks for reading. It's been fun :-) -7grizzly- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 10:57:03

• Learnt a new expression. Is it similar to cut to the chase? -godog- ♂ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 12:06:05

• I think so, in one sense. -7grizzly- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 14:41:38

• I'm more familiar with meaning "get to the facts" -waterfowl- ♂ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 13:50:47

• I didn't know either :-) -7grizzly- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 14:42:07

• 占位点赞，有空细看。 -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 15:08:18

• 哇，今天的PAPD好多知识点。学习了。总结如下： -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 18:12:05

• 1, the quick and the dead， 活人和死人 -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 18:12:36

• 2, "to cut to the quick "通常指造成深刻的情感伤害。 -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 18:13:41

• 3, 特定语境中，quick指的是下面的嫩肉。fingernails and toenails -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 18:15:20

• if you cut a nail too low and expose this you have cut it -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 18:15:48

• to the quick. -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 18:16:18

• 4，Quickening也被用来描述母亲在第一次感觉到胎儿在子宫内活动的时刻。 -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 18:18:21

• 盈盈有心再概括一次，加深了印象！ -暖冬cool夏- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/16/2023 postreply 20:52:02

• 我是向暖冬学习。学习你对老友记的总结。发现总结一下，记得更清楚了。学习效果翻倍，有没有？：）） -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/17/2023 postreply 03:33:02

• 盈盈谦虚啊。那是那是，ditto! -暖冬cool夏- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/17/2023 postreply 08:17:06

• ditto，ditto... -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/17/2023 postreply 19:16:58

• 学习了，赞各位的总结，尤其盈盈：）） -卫宁- ♂ (0 bytes) () 11/17/2023 postreply 07:38:57

• ＋ 100086 - 盈盈一笑间 -7grizzly- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/17/2023 postreply 14:53:43

• 哈哈，谢谢楼上二位的鼓励。 -盈盈一笑间- ♀ (0 bytes) () 11/17/2023 postreply 19:15:11