contemporary

将“contemporary”分解为“con”和“tem-porary”。想象时间被压缩到了“con”（连续）之中，成为了一种持续存在的“tem-porary”（暂时的）状态，即表示与现在同时代的。这样，单词“contemporary”就可以被记忆为同时代的、当代的。

contemporary 同时代的

con-, 强调。-temp, 时间，词源同temporary.

contemporary (adj.)

1630s, from Medieval Latin contemporarius, from Latin com- "with" (see com-) + temporarius "of time," from tempus "time" (see temporal (v.)). Meaning "modern, characteristic of the present" is from 1866.

contemporary (n.)

"one who lives at the same time as another," 1630s, originally cotemporary, from co- + temporary; modified by influence of contemporary (adj.). Replacing native time-fellow (1570s).

1. Contemporary African cinema has much to offer in its vitality and freshness.

当代非洲电影在活力和新颖性上颇足称道。

2. They still get treated differently from almost every other contemporary British band.

他们所得到的待遇仍然与当代几乎所有其他英国乐队都不同。

3. He is probably the most reviled man in contemporary theatre.

他可能是当代戏剧界骂声最多的人。

4. This comedy of contemporary manners is told with compassion and acid humour.

这部当代风尚喜剧杂糅了悲悯的情怀和尖酸的幽默。

5. I had mentioned that I didn't really like contemporary music.

我说过，我其实并不喜欢当代音乐。

【modern, present, up-to-date, contemporary, current, recent】
这组词都有“现代的，当代的”的意思，其区别是：
modern: 指现代或近代，时期可长可短。也可指新颖、时髦的。
present: 是这些词中语气最强的一个。指现在正发生、起作用的。
up-to-date: 一般用于非正式场合，指很时新、能反映当前的最新发展。
contemporary: 仅指当今这个时代，不涉及任何过去的时代。但可表示不同的人或物存在于同一时代。
current: 指目前存在和发生的。
recent: 表示新近的，最近的，时间的长短依据所修饰的人或物而定。