今朝一番に同僚からもらったメールに、
This is just my two cents, but...
で始まる書き出しがありました。
恥ずかしながら、それまで私はこの表現を知らなかったのですが、辞書を引くと、
つまらないもの; (討論・議論などで)自分の意見、卑見
(ランダムハウス英和辞書)
と載っていました。
"two cents"は少額ですが、なるほど、と思いました。
アメリカ英語の口語表現だそうです。
Next time you are in a virtual meeting, look for an opportunity to toss the conversation over to a woman on your team and acknowledge her as an expert in a given topic: “Anyway, that’s my two cents, but Mary has way more experience in this area than I do. What do you think, Mary?” Or, notice when a talented woman hasn’t contributed to the conversation and ask her a specific question to pull her voice in: “I know Patrice has done work in this area before. I’d love to hear your thoughts, Patrice,” or “You always have such interesting perspectives on these questions, Tanya. I’m really curious what your take is.” Be authentic and say it because you mean it.
(4 Ways Men Can Support Their Female Colleagues — Remotely. Harvard Business Review. October 27, 2020.)
英語で"in my humble opinion..." (IMHO) というフレーズがありますが、それに近いですね。
ちなみにMerriam-Websterではこの表現について下記のような解説をしています。
In the early 1900s, two cents (or two cents' worth) was deposited in English as a word for an opinion offered on a topic under discussion. The idea behind this figure of speech is that the person is offering a contribution that could very well be significant or valuable or could be insignificant or valueless — either way at least they contributed. It is often used after offer or put in: "offer your two cents"; "put in your two cents' worth."
(Merriam-Websterオンラインより引用)
ある意味謙遜の表現ということになりますが、2セントが“はした金”とは言え、お金であることに変わりは無く、もらう側からすれば貴重でもあります。
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