salient
英 ['seɪliənt] 美 ['seɪliənt]
adj.突出的；显著的；跳跃的 n.突出部分
◉Etymology
“Salient”源自拉丁语“saliens”，是动词“salire”（跳跃、突出）的现在分词形式，意为“跃起的”或“突出的”。“Salire”还衍生出“assail”（攻击）和“resilient”（有弹性的）等词，暗示一种动态的向外延伸或引人注目的特质。到16世纪，“salient”进入英语，最初用于军事术语，指堡垒或战线中向外突出的部分，后逐渐扩展为描述任何显著或重要事物的形容词。其语感带有一种鲜明的视觉性和强调意味。
◉外刊例句
① 《The Economist》 (2023年12月15日)
The salient issue in the election was not the economy, but immigration policy.
选举中最显著的问题不是经济，而是移民政策。
② 《National Geographic》 (2024年5月3日)
The salient feature of the landscape was a jagged peak piercing the horizon.
景观中最突出的特征是一座刺破地平线的锯齿状山峰。
◉经典名著
① 《傲慢与偏见》（Pride and Prejudice）——简·奥斯汀 (1813年)
Her salient charm lay not in beauty, but in the liveliness of her wit.
她最突出的魅力不在于美貌，而在于她机智的活力。
② 《了不起的盖茨比》（The Great Gatsby）——F·斯科特·菲茨杰拉德 (1925年)
The salient memory of that summer was not the parties, but his quiet longing.
那个夏天最显著的记忆不是派对，而是他无声的渴望。
◉Usage Notes
(1) The salient point of his plan is summed up in this report.
(2) Honesty is his most salient characteristic.
(3) The Germans withdrew to the partly prepared Hagen line at the base of the salient.
(1) 他的计划的要点在这个报告中酌此概括。
(2) 诚实是他最显著的特点。
(3) 德国的部分军队已经撤到哈根防线。
◉Usage Examples
If something stands out in a very obvious way, it can be called salient. It's time to find new friends if the differences between you and your current friends are becoming more and more salient.
Salient, from the Latin verb salire "to leap," was originally used in English to refer to leaping animals such as a frog or deer and may still be used this way. Often, however, it is used in math or geography to mean protruding. A salient angle juts outward rather than inward. Figuratively, it means noticeable or prominent. When giving an argument, make your most salient points at the beginning or the end.
◉Colins
1. [ADJ-GRADED 能被表示程度的副词或介词词组修饰的形容词]最重要的；显著的；突出的 The salient points or facts of a situation are the most important ones. [usu ADJ n] [FORMAL 正式]
① He read the salient facts quickly...
他快速浏览了重要的事实。
② Chronic fatigue is also one of the salient features of depression.
慢性疲劳也是抑郁症的显著特点之一。
salience
③ ...the salience of social reforms.
社会改革的重要性
2. [N-COUNT 可数名词]突出阵线，突出部(战线向敌人阵地推进的狭小范围) A salient is a narrow area where an army has pushed its front line forward into enemy territory. [usu sing] [MILITARY 军]
The soldiers had to remain in a deathtrap salient for most of the rest of the war.
随后的战争中，士兵们大部分时间只能呆在最危险的突出阵地里。
