temperament

temperament
noun
  1. a person's or animal's nature, especially as it permanently affects their behaviour
    气质;性情,性格,禀赋
    she had an artistic temperament.
    她有艺术气质。
    ■[mass noun]the tendency to behave angrily or emotionally
    急躁脾气;容易兴奋(或激动)的性格;易变的性情
    he had begun to show signs of temperament.
    他开始显露出急躁的脾气。
  2. [mass noun]the adjustment of intervals in tuning a piano or other musical instrument so as to fit the scale for use in different keys; in equal temperament, the octave consists of twelve equal semitones
    调(音)律(在平均律中,8度音阶包含有12个均等的半音程)
语源
  1. late Middle English: from Latin temperamentum 'correct mixture', from temperare 'mingle'. In early use the word was synonymous with the noun temper
英语宝典
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