近日, 中国与南太平洋岛国“所罗门群岛”签署安全协议, 震动西方世界。

有在《纽约时报》翻到这么一处报道摘录:

The security deal between China and the Solomon Islands did not materialize【out of thin air】, China has ramped up its presence and extended its influence across the Pacific over the past decade, and as it has done so, Beijing has been on the hunt for a military base in the region, which would allow it to project power outward and further influence the politics across the Indo-Pacific region. (中国与所罗门群岛之间的安全协议并不是凭空产生的, 中国在过去十年中加强了其在太平洋地区的存在感和影响力, 与此同时, 中国一直寻求在该地区建立军事基地, 使其能够向外投射力量, 进一步在印太地区施加影响) —— The New York Times

此处“did not materialize out of thin air”其实等同于“did not materialize from nothing”, 表示“不是凭空产生”。

其中“out of thin air”指的就是“凭空”, 再来看一个示例:

I can't come up with €10,000 out of thin air.
我不能凭空拿出1万欧元。

#自娱笔记# 语料积累。