single
Definitions
Only one; not one of several.
单一的；单个的。
Not married or not in a romantic relationship.
单身的；未婚的。
Intended for one person.
供一人用的（如单人房、单程票）。
A music recording of one main song released on its own.
（音乐）单曲。
To pick out one from a group (single out).
（single out）挑出，单独选出。
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedSingle is ūnus in disguise. Latin singulus meant 'one by one, separate,' built on unus (one), and came through Old French into English as single. So the everyday word for 'just one' is a hidden member of the uni- family — same 'one,' arrived by a different road.
Root un still carries 30 more wordsWhy It Means This
Single doesn't look like unit or union, but it shares the same Latin 'one.' Latin singulus ('one apiece') is a derivative of unus; French smoothed it into single. That hidden link explains why all its modern senses circle back to 'one': a single room (for one person), single (one, unmarried), a single (one song), and single out (pick one from the rest).
Common Collocations
- 1.single out挑出，单独选出
- 2.single parent单亲家长
- 3.single room单人房
- 4.every single每一个
Example Sentences
- 1.
Not a single person showed up to the meeting.
- 2.
She's been single since the breakup.
- 3.
The band just dropped their new single.
- 4.
The teacher singled out one student for praise.