a forlorn hope 极微的希望, 孤注一掷的举动, 敢死队
- Going to their rescue in a rowing-boat is a bit of a forlorn hope.
乘划艇去救他们, 希望不大. - Going to their rescue in a rowing-boat is a bit of a forlorn hope.
她看上去又可怜又孤独,对于答应来看她的朋友的到来已不抱希望。 - The Liberals have put up a candidate in the Prime Minister's constituency, but it must be a forlorn hope.
那些自由党党员们已推举一名参加首相选举的候选人,但是那必定是绝少成功希望的计划而已。
Forlorn \For*lorn"\, a. [OE., p. p. of forlesen to lose utterly,
AS. forle['o]san (p. p. forloren); pref. for- + le['o]san (in
comp.) to lose; cf. D. verliezen to lose, G. verlieren, Sw.
f["o]rlora, Dan. forloren, Goth. fraliusan to lose. See
{For-}, and {Lorn}, a., {Lose}, v. t.]
1. Deserted; abandoned; lost.
Of fortune and of hope at once forlorn. --Spenser.
Some say that ravens foster forlorn children.
--Shak.
2. Destitute; helpless; in pitiful plight; wretched;
miserable; almost hopeless; desperate.
For here forlorn and lost I tread. --Goldsmith.
The condition of the besieged in the mean time was
forlorn in the extreme. --Prescott.
She cherished the forlorn hope that he was still
living. --Thomson.
{A forlorn hope} [D. verloren hoop, prop., a lost band or
troop; verloren, p. p. of verliezen to lose + hoop band;
akin to E. heap. See {For-}, and {Heap}.] (Mil.), a body
of men (called in F. {enfants perdus}, in G. {verlornen
posten}) selected, usually from volunteers, to attempt a
breach, scale the wall of a fortress, or perform other
extraordinarily perilous service; also, a desperate case
or enterprise.
Syn: Destitute, lost; abandoned; forsaken; solitary;
helpless; friendless; hopeless; abject; wretched;
miserable; pitiable.