At Sixes and Sevens—— 混亂不堪

** a state of confusion, disarray, or disagreement

~~ 混亂不堪；亂七八糟；雜亂無章；七橫八豎

~~ in a mess; in confusion; in disarray; in chaos

!! The term likely originates from a 14th-century dice game called "hazard." The French terms "cinque" and "sice" (five and six) were the riskiest numbers to bet on, and players who bet on them were considered confused and disorganized. Over time, "cinque and sice" was misheard as "six and seven." Chaucer (mid-1380s) wrote "to set the world on six and seven" (to risk everything), and Shakespeare later wrote in Richard II: "all is uneven, and everything is left at six and seven."

這個字很可能起源於十四世紀名為“險注骰戲”的擲骰遊戲。法語詞彙＂cinque＂和＂sice＂（意為五和六點）是最具風險的點數，押注這些點數的玩家被認為是混亂且毫無條理。隨着時間演變，＂cinque and sice" 被誤聽成 "six and seven"。喬叟（十四世紀八十年代中期）曾寫下 "to set the world on six and seven"（意為賭上一切），莎士比亞後來在《理查二世》中寫道：“全部都不對勁，萬事都亂了套。”

>> With two wars in Iran and Ukraine still ongoing, global diplomacy is at sixes and sevens.

伊朗和烏克蘭兩場戰爭仍在持續，全球外交混亂不堪。

學勤教育中心英語專科導師 李啟文 教授