waif

IPA/weɪf/
KK[wˈef]IPA/weɪf/

waif — 名詞

  • waifsingular
  • waifsplural

1. a child, or sometimes a stray animal, that looks thin, dirty, and uncared for be

1.名詞C2
釋義

流浪兒

無家可歸且瘦弱髒亂，也可指流浪動物

a child, or sometimes a stray animal, that looks thin, dirty, and uncared for because it has no safe home.

例句

The shelter worker wrapped the waif in a wool blanket by the heater.

收容所員工把那名流浪兒裹進羊毛毯裡，放在暖爐旁。

waif as a child needing protection

A volunteer fed the waif after spotting the puppy beside the rubbish bins.

志工在垃圾桶旁發現那隻流浪狗後，先餵了牠。

waif used for a stray animal

同義詞
  • street child

    a modern and more neutral phrase for a homeless child

  • stray

    mainly used for animals; much less often for people

  • orphan

    focuses on parents being dead, not on homelessness or neglect

  • foundling

    usually a baby or child who was abandoned and later found

文法句型

a waif sleeping in a doorway

rescue a waif

a little waif from the streets

用法筆記

Usually appears in literary or emotional descriptions rather than neutral everyday speech. It most often refers to a child, but writers sometimes extend it to a thin stray animal.

常見錯誤

❌The camp welcomed many waifs from nearby villages.
✅The camp welcomed many homeless children from nearby villages.
💡Waif is old-fashioned and highly emotional, so it sounds odd in neutral reporting.

2. a girl or young woman whose body is unusually thin and who has a fragile or deli

2.名詞C2
釋義

瘦弱少女

極瘦且帶脆弱感的年輕女子

a girl or young woman whose body is unusually thin and who has a fragile or delicate look.

例句

The photographer posed the waif in an oversized coat beside the window.

攝影師讓那名瘦弱少女穿著寬大的外套，站在窗邊擺姿勢。

fashion description of a very thin young woman

Reviewers described Sofie as a dark-eyed waif with sharp cheekbones.

影評人把 Sofie 形容成一名眼神深邃、顴骨分明的瘦弱少女。

同義詞
  • skinny girl

    a plainer phrase that states the thinness without the literary tone

  • slip of a girl

    old-fashioned and emphasises a very small, fragile build

  • gamine

    a literary or fashion word for a slim, youthful look with more liveliness

文法句型

look like a waif

a dark-eyed waif

describe someone as a waif

用法筆記

This sense often appears in fashion, film, or literary writing and can sound judgmental or romanticized. It suggests unusual thinness together with a delicate, almost childlike appearance.

常見錯誤

❌The gym helped her become a waif.
✅The gym helped her become slim.
💡Waif suggests fragile or unhealthy thinness, not a positive result of exercise.