idea

アイデア、考え

何をするか、どうするかについて思いついた考え。

やさしい英語で： A thought about something you could do or how you could do it.

• I have an idea for lunch.
• She suggested a clever idea to save money.
• Which of these ideas should we try first?

使い方： idea for something (Do you have an idea for dinner?); idea of doing something (I like the idea of sharing an office.)

類義語： plan, thought, suggestion

よく使う表現： good idea, idea for something, have an idea, idea to try

考え、見解

物事がどうであるか、どうあるべきかについての考え。

やさしい英語で： A belief or opinion about what something is like or how it should be.

• Our ideas about work are different.
• Travel changed his ideas on education.
• She has strong ideas about how families should live.

使い方： ideas about/on something (They have different ideas about raising children.)

類義語： view, opinion, belief

よく使う表現： idea about something, idea of something, different idea

概念、理念

自由や愛のように、触れられないが頭で考えられるもの。

やさしい英語で： Something you can think about, such as freedom or love, rather than something you can touch.

• Freedom is an important idea.
• The book explores ideas about beauty and truth.
• Can an abstract idea change the world?

使い方： idea of something (The idea of equality matters to many people.)

類義語： concept, notion

よく使う表現： abstract idea, idea of freedom, idea of justice

目的、意図

何かをすることで実現しようとしていること。

やさしい英語で： What you are trying to achieve by doing something.

• The idea is to save time.
• What’s the idea behind this new rule?
• We changed the route, but the basic idea stayed the same.

使い方： the idea is to do something (The idea is to make shopping easier.); idea behind something (The idea behind the scheme is to reduce waste.)

類義語： aim, purpose, intention

よく使う表現： idea is to, idea behind something, whole idea

イメージ、心像

頭の中に思い描く人や物の姿。

やさしい英語で： A picture of someone or something that you have in your mind.

• I have a clear idea of her face.
• The description gave me an idea of the room’s appearance.
• His idea of the garden was brighter than the real thing.

使い方： idea of what someone/something looks like (I have a vague idea of what the house looks like.)

類義語： mental image, picture, image

よく使う表現： idea of someone, clear idea, vague idea