| Change log entry 90680 | |
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| Processed by: | kbaiko (2025-07-09 11:45:24 UTC) |
| Comment: |
<< review queue entry 82838 - submitted by 'richwarm' >> I agree with DeepSeek, especially on points 2 and 3. Why "Not on the Cards" Fails 1. Cultural Misalignment: The English idiom implies fate/destiny (Western card-reading tropes), while 未卜 refers specifically to East Asian divination (e.g., oracle bones, turtle shells). 2. Tonal Clash: "Not on the cards" is colloquial/casual, but 未卜 is classical/literary. 3. Semantic Drift: "Not on the cards" suggests impossibility ("will never happen"), whereas 未卜 means "not yet known" (could still occur). END OF QUOTE Ex. 面對渡海的吉凶未卜 但至今前途未卜。 「挑撥政府和人民之間的感情」入獄，將近十年生死未卜， 香港新主人的龐然陰影越逼越近，台港關係前景未卜，在港台商心裡的不安也在加劇。 and with the prospects for the future of Hong Kong-Taiwan relations uncertain, the worries of Taiwanese business people in Hong Kong are growing more and more acute. |
| Diff: |
- 未卜 未卜 [wei4 bu3] /not foreseen/unpredictable/not on the cards/ + 未卜 未卜 [[wei4bu3]] /(literary) not yet divined; (of outcomes) uncertain; unknowable/ |