形容词(adjective):指怀有报复心理的,记仇的,出于报复目的的。形容一个人心存怨恨,倾向于对他人进行报复。
/vɪnˈdɪk.tɪv/
She became vindictive after being betrayed by her closest friend.
在被最亲密的朋友背叛后,她变得十分记仇。
The critic wrote a vindictive review that seemed motivated more by personal grudges than by any honest assessment of the novel's literary merit.
那位评论家写了一篇充满报复意味的书评,看起来更多是出于个人恩怨,而非对小说文学价值的真实评价。
vindictive 源自拉丁语 vindicta,意为"报复、惩罚",而 vindicta 又来自动词 vindicare,意为"声索、报仇、惩罚"。该词在16世纪进入英语,最初含有"正义惩罚"之意,后来逐渐偏向"出于私怨的报复"这一负面含义。与之同源的词还有 vindicate(为……辩护)和 revenge(复仇)。