Infirm

分析词义

“Infirm” 意为“虚弱的”。

身体虚弱：特指由于长期患病或年老导致的体力不支、行动不便。
意志薄弱/不坚定：(较少用) 形容决策或信念犹豫不决。

列举例句

“Her grandmother has become increasingly infirm over the past few years.” (她的祖母在过去几年里身体变得越来越虚弱。)
“The hospital provides special care for the aged and infirm.” (医院为年老体弱者提供特殊护理。)
“He was of an infirm purpose, always changing his mind.” (他意志薄弱，总是改变主意。)

词根分析

词根：firm (坚固的，结实的)。
前缀：in- (不)。
逻辑：不坚固的 -> 虚弱的。

词缀分析

前缀：in- (不)。
词根：firm (坚实的)。

文化背景

在社会福利和医疗体系中，“the infirm” 经常作为一个集合名词，指代那些需要长期照顾的衰弱人群。这个词比 “weak” 更有同情色彩，也更正式，通常与衰老联系在一起。

单词变形

名词形式: infirmity (虚弱, 疾病), infirmary (医务室)
副词形式: infirmly (虚弱地)

记忆辅助

in (不) + firm (坚固)。如果你不 “firm”，你就是 “infirm”。联想一下 firm (公司/坚固) 的反义词。

助记故事

“The old soldier was now infirm and relied on a wooden cane to walk. However, when children asked him about the Great War, his eyes would light up, and his voice would lose its tremor. For a few moments, he wasn’t infirm at all; he was the brave young man he had once been.” (这位老兵现在身体虚弱，依靠一根木拐杖走路。然而，当孩子们问起那场大战时，他的眼睛会亮起来，声音也不再颤抖。在那一刻，他一点也不虚弱；他又是曾经那个勇敢的年轻人了。)