ABOUT THE SPEAKER
John Koenig - Writer
John Koenig is writing an original dictionary of made-up words.

Why you should listen

John Koenig has spent the last seven years writing an original dictionary of made-up words, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which fills gaps in the language with hundreds of new terms for emotions. This project seeks to restore sadness to its original meaning (from Latin satis, "fullness") by defining moments of melancholy that we may all feel, but never think to mention -- deepening our understanding of each other by broadening the emotional palette, from avenoir, "the desire to see memories in advance," to zenosyne, "the sense that time keeps going faster."

Each entry is a collage of word roots borrowed from languages all around the world. Some entries are even beginning to enter the language outright:

sonder n. The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own -- populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness -- an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you'll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.

His original YouTube series, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which he writes, edits and narrates himself, has drawn acclaim from John Green and Beyoncé to Michael from Vsauce. "Each episode is a soothing meditation on its subject, fortified by a hypnotic soundtrack and Koenig’s twistingly intelligent narration," writes The Daily Dot.

He currently works as a freelance video editor, voice actor, graphic designer, illustrator, photographer, director and writer. His writing has been published in countless tattoos, stories, song titles and band names, but never on paper -- though he is currently working on publishing a book adaptation. Originally from Minnesota and Geneva, Switzerland, John lives in Budapest with his wife.

More profile about the speaker
John Koenig | Speaker | TED.com
TEDxBerkeley

John Koenig: Beautiful new words to describe obscure emotions

约翰·凯尼格: 用优美的新词来描述复杂朦胧的情感

Filmed:
1,814,744 views

约翰·凯尼格喜欢为我们日常生活里的复杂情感赋予一个名字——比如说“Lachesism”,意思是对灾难的渴求,还有”sonder“,用来描述当我们意识到,所有人的生活都如同我们自己的生活,复杂而未知。在这里,他带我们一起思索了我们赋予单词含义的意义,和这些含义又是如何影响着我们。
- Writer
John Koenig is writing an original dictionary of made-up words. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:13
Today今天 I want to talk
about the meaning含义 of words,
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今天我想和大家谈谈单词的含义,
00:16
how we define确定 them
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我们是如何定义它们的,
00:17
and how they, almost几乎 as revenge复仇,
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反过来它们又是如何,像复仇一般的
定义了我们。
00:20
define确定 us.
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00:21
The English英语 language语言
is a magnificent华丽的 sponge海绵.
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英语语言就像是一块华丽的吸水海绵,
00:24
I love the English英语 language语言.
I'm glad高兴 that I speak说话 it.
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我喜爱英语,很高兴我会说英语。
但是,它依然有很多缺陷。
00:27
But for all that, it has a lot of holes.
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00:30
In Greek希腊语, there's a word, "lachesismlachesism"
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在希腊语中有一个词,“Lachesism",
00:32
which哪一个 is the hunger饥饿 for disaster灾害.
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意思是对灾难的渴求,
00:36
You know, when you see
a thunderstorm雷雨 on the horizon地平线
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就像是当你看到远方地平线的雷雨,
发现自己已对风暴做好了一切准备。
00:40
and you just find yourself你自己
rooting生根 for the storm风暴.
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00:44
In Mandarin普通话, they have a word "yù yī" --
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在中文里,有一个词 叫“yù yī ” ——
00:46
I'm not pronouncing发音 that correctly正确地 --
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不好意思,我发音不准——
意思是希望再次强烈体会到
00:48
which哪一个 means手段 the longing渴望
to feel intensely激烈 again
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当你还是个孩子时的感觉。
00:51
the way you did when you were a kid孩子.
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00:55
In Polish抛光, they have a word "jouskajouska"
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在波兰语里,他们有一个词叫“Jouska",
00:58
which哪一个 is the kind of
hypothetical假想 conversation会话
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形容一种假想的对话,
01:02
that you compulsively强制
play out in your head.
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在自己的脑海里被迫上演。
01:06
And finally最后, in German德语,
of course课程 in German德语,
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最后,在德语里,当然,是德语。
01:09
they have a word called "zielschmerzzielschmerz"
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他们有一个词叫做“Zielschmerz”,
01:12
which哪一个 is the dread恐惧
of getting得到 what you want.
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意思是害怕得到你想要的。
01:15
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
虽然最后实现了你毕生的梦想。
01:20
Finally最后 fulfilling履行 a lifelong终身 dream梦想.
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01:23
I'm German德语 myself,
so I know exactly究竟 what that feels感觉 like.
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我自己是个德国人,
所以很了解那是什么感觉。
01:27
Now, I'm not sure
if I would use any of these words
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在我的日常生活里,
不确定我会不会用这些词,
01:29
as I go about my day,
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但是我对这些单词的存在感到高兴。
01:31
but I'm really glad高兴 they exist存在.
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01:33
But the only reason原因 they exist存在
is because I made制作 them up.
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仅仅因为,我编造了它们。
01:37
I am the author作者 of "The Dictionary字典
of Obscure朦胧 Sorrows悲伤,"
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我是《自造词典》的创始人,
(The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows)
01:41
which哪一个 I've been writing写作
for the last seven years年份.
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这是我在过去七年里所编写的东西。
整个计划的目标,
01:44
And the whole整个 mission任务 of the project项目
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是为了找到语言情感里的漏洞,
01:46
is to find holes
in the language语言 of emotion情感
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去填补它们,
01:51
and try to fill them
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01:52
so that we have a way of talking
about all those human人的 peccadilloes瑕庛
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如此我们就有了一种全新的方式
去讨论人类情感里的
01:56
and quirks怪癖 of the human人的 condition条件
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种种小缺失,
01:58
that we all feel
but may可能 not think to talk about
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那种我们常常能感受,
却无法去形容的概念,
02:02
because we don't have the words to do it.
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因为我们没有适合的词去表达。
02:05
And about halfway through通过 this project项目,
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在我的计划进行了一半的时候,
我创造了一个词“Sonder”,
02:08
I defined定义 "sonderSONDER,"
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02:09
the idea理念 that we all think of ourselves我们自己
as the main主要 character字符
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这个点子是关于我们
把自己想象成世间的主角,
02:13
and everyone大家 else其他 is just extras演员.
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其他人都是临时演员。
02:15
But in reality现实,
we're all the main主要 character字符,
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但是在现实中,
你认为自己是主角,
可是你在其他人的故事中
却只是个配角罢了。
02:18
and you yourself你自己 are an extra额外
in someone有人 else's别人的 story故事.
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02:23
And so as soon不久 as I published发表 that,
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当我发表了这一想法时,
02:26
I got a lot of response响应 from people
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很多人来告诉我,
02:28
saying, "Thank you for giving voice语音
to something I had felt all my life
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“谢谢你,你为我一生都感觉到
却一直没能找到
02:32
but there was no word for that."
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合适的词去表达的感觉下了定义。”
这使得他们不再那么孤单。
02:35
So it made制作 them feel less alone单独.
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02:38
That's the power功率 of words,
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这就是文字的魅力,
02:40
to make us feel less alone单独.
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让我们不再孤独。
02:44
And it was not long after that
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在那不久以后,
我开始注意到Sonder这个词,
02:46
that I started开始 to notice注意 sonderSONDER
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很多人真的已经开始在
网络交谈中使用了,
02:47
being存在 used earnestly切实
in conversations对话 online线上,
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02:52
and not long after I actually其实 noticed注意到 it,
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就在我注意到这个没多久,
我就发现这个词已经用
在我身边人与人直接的交谈中了。
02:55
I caught抓住 it next下一个 to me
in an actual实际 conversation会话 in person.
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02:58
There is no stranger陌生人 feeling感觉
than making制造 up a word
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没有什么感觉比
自己造了一个单词,
03:01
and then seeing眼看 it
take on a mind心神 of its own拥有.
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然后发现它被所有人
所接受更奇怪了。
03:05
I don't have a word
for that yet然而, but I will.
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现在还没有能形容这种感觉的词,
但我会造一个出来的。
(笑声)
03:07
(Laughter笑声)
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我已经在想了。
03:09
I'm working加工 on it.
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03:11
I started开始 to think
about what makes品牌 words real真实,
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我开始想,到底是什么
让一个单词具象化,
03:15
because a lot of people ask me,
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因为很多人问过我,
我也最常听到的提问是,
03:17
the most common共同 thing
I got from people is,
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03:19
"Well, are these words made制作 up?
I don't really understand理解."
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“好吧,这些单词是造出来的?
我真的不明白。”
我也真的不知道该怎么解释,
03:22
And I didn't really know what to tell them
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因为一旦sonder开始流行起来,
03:24
because once一旦 sonderSONDER started开始 to take off,
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我又该跟谁说
哪些单词是真实的,哪些不是?
03:26
who am I to say what words
are real真实 and what aren't.
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03:30
And so I sort分类 of felt like Steve史蒂夫 Jobs工作,
who described描述 his epiphany顿悟
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我有点感觉像是乔布斯在描述他的顿悟,
03:34
as when he realized实现 that most of us,
as we go through通过 the day,
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当他意识到,我们中的很多人在生活中,
03:37
we just try to avoid避免
bouncing蹦蹦 against反对 the walls墙壁 too much
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都在为了避免给自己制造太多的麻烦,
只是希望一切都顺利。
03:40
and just sort分类 of get on with things.
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但是一旦你了解到那些人——
03:43
But once一旦 you realize实现 that people --
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03:48
that this world世界 was built内置
by people no smarter聪明 than you,
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了解到这个世界是由并不比
你聪明多少的人所建立的,
那么你就会试着去跨越这些高墙,
03:52
then you can reach达到 out
and touch触摸 those walls墙壁
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甚至会用手去推翻它们,
03:54
and even put your hand through通过 them
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你就会意识到,原来你也有
改变世界的力量。
03:55
and realize实现 that you have
the power功率 to change更改 it.
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03:59
And when people ask me,
"Are these words real真实?"
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当人们问我,“这些单词是真的吗?”
我曾经准备了很多答案。
04:02
I had a variety品种 of answers答案
that I tried试着 out.
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有些可以理解,有些却行不通。
04:04
Some of them made制作 sense.
Some of them didn't.
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04:07
But one of them I tried试着 out was,
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但是我的一个答案是,
“单词唯有你想要它是真的时候,
它才会变成真的。”
04:08
"Well, a word is real真实
if you want it to be real真实."
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04:12
The way that this path路径 is real真实
because people wanted it to be there.
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这条路之所以会存在,
是因为人们都想要它存在。
(笑声)
04:16
(Laughter笑声)
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04:18
It happens发生 on college学院
campuses校园 all the time.
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这种路在大学校园里随处可见,
我叫它“渴望之路“。
04:20
It's called a "desire欲望 path路径."
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(笑声)
04:21
(Laughter笑声)
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但是之后,当他们问
这个单词是否是真的,
04:22
But then I decided决定,
what people are really asking
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他们其实是在问,
04:25
when they're asking if a word is real真实,
they're really asking,
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“好吧,通过这个单词我
又能读懂几个人的内心呢?”
04:27
"Well, how many许多 brains大脑
will this give me access访问 to?"
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04:33
Because I think that's
a lot of how we look at language语言.
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因为我觉得这就是我们怎么看待语言的。
单词的本质就是一把钥匙,
04:35
A word is essentially实质上 a key
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一把开启人们内心的钥匙。
04:38
that gets得到 us into certain某些 people's人们 heads.
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如果这把钥匙只能走进你一个人心里,
04:41
And if it gets得到 us into one brain,
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04:44
it's not really worth价值 it,
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这真的不值得,
也没什么必要存在。
04:46
not really worth价值 knowing会心.
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如果能读懂两个人,
嗯,这要看另一个是谁。
04:47
Two brains大脑, eh, it depends依靠 on who it is.
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04:49
A million百万 brains大脑, OK, now we're talking.
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如果能走进千千万万的内心,很好,
这就是我们现在对话的意义。
04:52
And so a real真实 word is one that gets得到 you
access访问 to as many许多 brains大脑 as you can.
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所以一个真实存在的单词,
能帮助你了解很多人。
这就是一个单词的意义。
04:59
That's what makes品牌 it worth价值 knowing会心.
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顺便一提,用这种方式
获得的最真实的一个词是:
05:02
Incidentally顺便, the realest最真实 word of all
by this measure测量 is this.
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05:06
[O.K.]
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【O. K.】
05:08
That's it.
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就是这个。
这是我们最真实的单词。
05:09
The realest最真实 word we have.
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这就是我们最熟悉的单词。
05:11
That is the closest最近的 thing we have
to a master key.
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05:13
That's the most commonly常用
understood了解 word in the world世界,
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同时也是这个世界上
被最多人所熟知的词,
无论你来自哪里,
05:16
no matter where you are.
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问题是,
05:17
The problem问题 with that is,
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没人知道为什么要用这两个字母。
05:18
no one seems似乎 to know
what those two letters stand for.
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(笑声)
05:21
(Laughter笑声)
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这是不是有点不可思议?
05:23
Which哪一个 is kind of weird奇怪的, right?
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我猜它可能是
“All Correct”(都对)的错误拼写,
05:26
I mean, it could be a misspelling拼错
of "all correct正确," I guess猜测,
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或者是“Old Kinderhook”的错误拼写。
05:29
or "old kinderhook金德."
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似乎没人知道为什么,
但是这都无所谓了,
05:30
No one really seems似乎 to know,
but the fact事实 that it doesn't matter
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这说明了我们是如何
给词语赋予含义的。
05:34
says something about
how we add meaning含义 to words.
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05:38
The meaning含义 is not
in the words themselves他们自己.
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单词的含义不在于单词本身,
05:41
We're the ones那些
that pour ourselves我们自己 into it.
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而是在于那些赋予单词意义的人们。
05:45
And I think, when we're all searching搜索
for meaning含义 in our lives生活,
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而且我觉得,我们都在
寻找我们生命中的意义,
05:50
and searching搜索 for the meaning含义 of life,
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寻找生活的意义时,
我觉得单词和我们寻找的东西息息相关。
05:51
I think words have
something to do with that.
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05:56
And I think if you're looking
for the meaning含义 of something,
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我觉得你在寻找某些东西的含义时,
字典是一个开始寻找的好地方。
05:58
the dictionary字典 is a decent正经 place地点 to start开始.
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06:01
It brings带来 a sense of order订购
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字典为混沌的宇宙
带去了一丝秩序。
06:04
to a very chaotic混乱的 universe宇宙.
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06:06
Our view视图 of things is so limited有限
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我们对事物的了解十分有限,
06:09
that we have to come up
with patterns模式 and shorthands速记
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以至于我们不得不想出
一些规律或者速记的方法,
去尝试寻找该词的解释,
06:12
and try to figure数字 out
a way to interpret it
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让我们的生活得以继续。
06:14
and be able能够 to get on with our day.
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06:17
We need words to contain包含 us,
to define确定 ourselves我们自己.
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我们需要单词来蕴含自己,
来定义我们自己。
06:21
I think a lot of us feel boxed盒装 in
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我觉得我们中的很多人都感觉,
06:24
by how we use these words.
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被我们所用的词汇所束缚了,
06:25
We forget忘记 that words are made制作 up.
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我们忘了所有的单词都是编造出来的,
不光光是我用的词,
所有的词都是编造出来的,
06:28
It's not just my words.
All words are made制作 up,
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06:31
but not all of them mean something.
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但不是所有的词都有含义。
06:33
We're all just sort分类 of
trapped被困 in our own拥有 lexicons词典
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我们只是有点
被困在自己的字典里,
06:38
that don't necessarily一定 correlate关联
with people who aren't already已经 like us,
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而我们的字典和
其他人的字典并不全都一样,
06:42
and so I think I feel us drifting漂流 apart距离
a little more every一切 year,
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所以我觉得每一年我们都在变得疏远,
我们对用词也越来越认真。
06:47
the more seriously认真地 we take words.
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06:51
Because remember记得, words are not real真实.
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但是请记住,单词不是真的。
06:55
They don't have meaning含义. We do.
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它们本身没有任何意义,
是我们赋予了它们含义。
06:58
And I'd like to leave离开 you with a reading
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最后我想跟各位分享一段
07:01
from one of my favorite喜爱 philosophers哲学家,
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我最喜欢的一位哲学家,
07:04
Bill法案 Watterson沃特森, who created创建
"Calvin卡尔文 and Hobbes霍布斯."
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比尔·沃特森在《凯文的幻虎世界》中
说的,
07:06
He said,
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07:09
"Creating创建 a life that reflects反映
your values and satisfies满足 your soul灵魂
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“创造一个能反应你的价值
并充实你的灵魂的生活,
是一件了不起的成就。
07:12
is a rare罕见 achievement成就.
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07:14
To invent发明 your own拥有 life's人生 meaning含义
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去创造你自己生活的意义
07:17
is not easy简单,
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不容易,
但仍值得你去尝试,
07:18
but it is still allowed允许,
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07:20
and I think you'll你会 be
happier幸福 for the trouble麻烦."
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并且我觉得你会
因自找麻烦变得更快乐。“
谢谢。
07:23
Thank you.
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(掌声)
07:24
(Applause掌声)
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Translated by Yanyan Hong
Reviewed by Lipeng Chen

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
John Koenig - Writer
John Koenig is writing an original dictionary of made-up words.

Why you should listen

John Koenig has spent the last seven years writing an original dictionary of made-up words, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which fills gaps in the language with hundreds of new terms for emotions. This project seeks to restore sadness to its original meaning (from Latin satis, "fullness") by defining moments of melancholy that we may all feel, but never think to mention -- deepening our understanding of each other by broadening the emotional palette, from avenoir, "the desire to see memories in advance," to zenosyne, "the sense that time keeps going faster."

Each entry is a collage of word roots borrowed from languages all around the world. Some entries are even beginning to enter the language outright:

sonder n. The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own -- populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness -- an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you'll never know existed, in which you might appear only once, as an extra sipping coffee in the background, as a blur of traffic passing on the highway, as a lighted window at dusk.

His original YouTube series, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows, which he writes, edits and narrates himself, has drawn acclaim from John Green and Beyoncé to Michael from Vsauce. "Each episode is a soothing meditation on its subject, fortified by a hypnotic soundtrack and Koenig’s twistingly intelligent narration," writes The Daily Dot.

He currently works as a freelance video editor, voice actor, graphic designer, illustrator, photographer, director and writer. His writing has been published in countless tattoos, stories, song titles and band names, but never on paper -- though he is currently working on publishing a book adaptation. Originally from Minnesota and Geneva, Switzerland, John lives in Budapest with his wife.

More profile about the speaker
John Koenig | Speaker | TED.com

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