riddle

なぞなぞ

工夫された答えを考えて当てる質問や短い説明。

やさしい英語で： A question or short description with a clever answer that you must work out.

• Can you answer this riddle?
• The children told riddles on the bus.
• He gave us a tricky riddle to solve.

類義語： puzzle, brain teaser

よく使う表現： tell a riddle, answer a riddle, a tricky riddle

謎

理解したり説明したりするのが難しい事柄。

やさしい英語で： Something confusing or difficult to understand or explain.

• His disappearance remains a riddle.
• Scientists are trying to solve the riddle of this disease.
• Her strange behavior was a riddle to us.

使い方： riddle of something (They investigated the riddle of the missing ship.)

類義語： mystery, puzzle

よく使う表現： solve a riddle, riddle of something, remain a riddle

蔓延する

問題や有害なものが全体にはびこること。

やさしい英語で： To fill something with harmful things or problems, usually used as “be riddled with”.

• The report is riddled with errors.
• Corruption riddled the whole organization.
• Their plan was riddled with practical problems.

使い方： be riddled with something (The software was riddled with bugs.)

類義語： pervade

よく使う表現： riddle something with errors, riddle something with flaws

穴だらけにする

主に銃で撃って、物にたくさんの穴を開ける。

やさしい英語で： To make many holes in something, usually by shooting at it.

• Bullets riddled the door.
• The gunfire riddled our parked car.
• The soldiers found a truck riddled with bullet holes.

使い方： riddle something with something (The attackers riddled the wall with bullets.)

類義語： perforate, pepper

よく使う表現： riddle something with bullets, riddle the target

解く、答える

難しい質問や謎の答えを見つけたり、説明したりする。

やさしい英語で： To answer or explain a difficult question or puzzle.

• Riddle me this: why did she leave?
• The old man could riddle every question they asked.
• Can you riddle the mystery of the locked room?

使い方： riddle me this (Riddle me this: how did the key get outside?)

類義語： solve, answer, explain

よく使う表現： riddle me this, riddle this question

ふるいにかける

穴のある道具に材料を通し、大きな粒と小さな粒を分ける。

やさしい英語で： To pass material through a tool with holes to separate large and small pieces.

• Riddle the soil before planting.
• He riddled the gravel to remove larger stones.
• The worker riddled the ash through a metal screen.

使い方： riddle something through something (She riddled the sand through a fine mesh.)

類義語： sift, sieve

よく使う表現： riddle the gravel, riddle the soil, riddle something through something