| 词组 | callous, callus |
| 释义 | callous, callus The main point on which usage writers agree about these words is that callus is a noun and callous is an adjective. Beyond that point they start to differ. Rather than describe the ins and outs of their opinions, we will concentrate here on how these words are really used. Taken together, callous and callus have use in three parts of speech and with two general categories of meaning, which we may label "physical" and "emotional." Both words come to us from the same Latin word callus, though callous took a slightly circuitous route through Middle French to arrive. It is not too surprising, then, that these two words, which sound alike, look very similar, and have the same source, should be the cause of some confusion. Let's examine them according to their function as parts of speech. As a noun, callus is the predominant spelling, and physical meanings are the predominant ones: • ... connecting cambium in the callus —H. J. Fuller & O. Tippo, College Botany, 1950 • ... bunions, corns and calluses —Harper's Bazaar, November 1979 • Callus is an unorganized meshwork of woven bone —Heather Smith Thomas, Chronicle of the Horse, 2 Nov. 1984 The spelling callous is an infrequent one (at least in edited prose) for the physical sense of the noun: • ... the thumb of my left hand, where the callous had formed —Charles Spielberger, Partisan Rev., Summer 1946 • ... a callous formed there large as a bowl —Pearl Buck, The Good Earth, 1931 Extended uses of the noun occur with either spelling but are quite rare. • ... these moral callouses which she simply could not understand —Gilbert Knox, The Land of Afternoon, 1924 • ... a protective callus of cynicism —Martin Levin, N.Y. Times Book Rev., 17 Aug. 1975 Now for the adjective: callous is the spelling used, almost exclusively with emotional meaning. • ... a callous disregard for human rights —William O. Douglas, Being an American, 1948 • ... her elegant and callous mother —John Cheever, The Wapshot Chronicle, 1957 • ... the callous murder of one good man —Martin Booth, British Book News, October 1984 • ... the presence of callous ulcers —JAMA, 18 Aug. 1962 Callus is not used as an adjective, but both calloused and callused are. Calloused usually has emotional connotations, and callused always has physical ones. • ... had become so stupid and calloused about the birds —Ernest Hemingway, "Miss Mary's Lion," 1956 • ... thought it calloused to prolong the war —Irving Howe, N. Y. Times Mag., 19 Sept. 1982 • The tree wound was heavily calloused —Sandra L. Anagnostakis, Science, 29 Jan. 1982 • His hands were rough, callused, competent —Russell Baker, Growing Up, 1982 Lastly, the verb: callous and callus in purely verbal uses (which are uncommon) parallel the uses of the adjectives in -ed; callous is usually emotional and callus is physical. • ... long association with the police had utterly calloused him to human misery —Erie Stanley Gardner, The Case of the Crooked Candle, 1944 • ... these men don't ... actually sweat and callous their hands —Alan Paton, Cry, The Beloved Country, 1948 • ... let ends [of a broken tuber] callus over before you plant —Sunset, May 1982 In summary, emotional meanings are almost entirely confined to callous, regardless of part of speech. Physical meanings are usually spelled callus, sometimes spelled callous. |
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