Ombudsman (Noun)

Definition 1: A government official in Scandinavia who investigates grievances from the public against government officials; any person who mediates directly between aggrieved parties, especially between the public and corporate or government officials.

[@more@]

Usage 1: Today's word is borrowed from Swedish, along with the concept of someone who cuts through red tape and takes a complaint from a citizen directly to the official against whom that person is complaining. Some feminists have recently introduced "ombudsperson." We recommend avoiding this form since -man now functions as suffix referring to both sexes in English. Notice the accent falls on the initial syllable. The activity of an ombudsman is called "ombudsmanship" with no movement of the accent.

Suggested usage: "Ombudsman" today is used to refer to a mediator, especially one who can cut through red tape or settle a very complex dispute: "Sven has hired an ombudsman to mediate his dispute with the federal ombudsman who refuses to investigate his complaint against the Swedish government." It is, however, also used more broadly to refer to a mediator in a tense and tangled situation, "Since severely beating the ombudsman sent by their relatives to help settle their dispute, Carol and Carroll's only real option has been divorce."

Etymology: Swedish, from Old Norse umbodhsmadhr "plenipotentiary" based on umbodh "charge, commission" (from um "about" + bodh "command") + madhr "man, person." The preposition "um" is akin to Latin ambi "around" found in "ambidextrous," "ambulance," and "amphibious." This word probably goes back to an ancient *ant-bhi "from both sides." Old English ymbe "around." has fallen to the wayside. "Bodh" is akin to English "bid" and "Buddha," derived from Sanskrit bodhati, "he awakes, becomes aware" and bodhih "perfect knowledge." "Man" is related to Sanskrit manu "man," German "Mensch," and Russian muzh "husband" and muzhik "peasant," both deriving from *mongyo. (Thanks to Walter F. Croft of Atlanta, Georgia for bringing this unusual Swedish loanword to our attention.)

来自 “ ITPUB博客 ” ，链接：http://blog.itpub.net/7826932/viewspace-900878/，如需转载，请注明出处，否则将追究法律责任。

转载于:http://blog.itpub.net/7826932/viewspace-900878/