The world' s first clowns were performers in ancient Greek and Roman theater. They were known as " rustic fools " — poor, simple characters with the mind of a child, who would play for the audience' s joy. The actual word " clown " didn' t appear in English until 1560. This word referred to a farmer who performed to please the rich. Court jesters, for example, were entertainers who were hired to perform a variety of tricks to keep royalty happy and lift their moods.
世界上最早的小丑是古希臘和羅馬劇院的表演者。他們被稱為「鄉村傻瓜」─ 可憐、簡單的人物，有著孩子的心智，會為了取悅觀眾而表演。「小丑（clown）」這個詞直到 1560 年才出現在英語中。這個詞指的是為取悅富人而表演的農民。例如，宮廷小丑是受僱表演各種雜技以保持皇室快樂和振奮心情的表演者。
生活必備字詞：
performer n. 表演者
refer to. . . 意指 ∕ 指的是. . .
lift one' s mood 讓某人心情愉快
John is trying to lift Mary' s mood since she is crying.
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本文節錄自《常春藤生活英語》雜誌，完整內容請見十一月號。
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