contortions(复数名词):指身体或脸部夸张、扭曲的姿势/动作;也可指牵强别扭的说法或“拐弯抹角”的做法(比喻义)。
/ kənˈtɔːrʃənz /
The clown made funny contortions to make the kids laugh.
小丑做出滑稽的扭曲动作来逗孩子们笑。
In a moment of pain, his face went through a series of contortions, revealing how hard he was trying to stay calm.
疼痛袭来时,他的脸一阵抽动扭曲,暴露出他正努力保持镇定的程度。
来自拉丁语 contorquere,由 **con-**(加强/一起)+ torquere(扭、拧、旋转)构成,原义与“把东西扭成不自然的形状”有关,后来引申到“表情/姿态的扭曲”以及“论证或做法的牵强别扭”。