| 单词 | 用法中 |
| 释义 | 〔gender〕Traditionally,gender has been used primarily to refer to the grammatical categories of "masculine,” "feminine,” and "neuter"; but in recent years the word has become well established in its use to refer to sex-based categories,as in phrases such asgender gap and the politics of gender. This usage is supported by the practice of many anthropologists,who reservesex for reference to biological categories, while usinggender to refer to social or cultural categories. According to this rule,one would sayThe effectiveness of the medication appears to depend on the sex (not gender ) of the patient, butIn peasant societies, gender (not sex ) roles are likely to be more clearly defined. This distinction is useful in principle,but it is by no means widely observed,and considerable variation in usage occurs at all levels.传统地，gender 已被主要用来指“阳性”、“阴性”和“中性”的语法类别， 自近年来，这个单词已被人们普遍接受为指基于性别区分的类别，例如在词组性别差异 和 性别政治 中， 这种用法被许多人类学家所支持，他们把sex 局限为生物类别， 而用gender 来指社会和文化方面的类别。 根据这种规则，我们应该说医疗的有效性似乎取决于 （而不是 gender ） 病人的性别， 但是在农业国家中，性别的 （不是 sex ） 角色易于有更清楚的定义。 这种区分在原则上是有用的，但无法被人们广泛注意，而且大量变体出现于在不同水平的用法中〔input〕The nouninput has been used as a technical term for about a century in fields such as physics and electrical engineering, but its recent popularity grows out of its use in computer science,where it refers to data or signals entered into a system for processing or transmission.In general discourseinput is now widely used to refer to the transmission of information and opinion, as inThe report questioned whether a President thus shielded had access to a sufficiently varied input to have a realistic picture of the nation or The nominee herself had no input on housing policy. In this last sentence the meaning of the term is uncertain:it may mean either that the nominee provided no opinions to the policymakersor that she received no information about housing policy.This vagueness in the nontechnical use ofinput may be one reason that some critics have objected to it (including, in an earlier survey, a majority of the Usage Panel). Though the usage is well established,care should be taken not to use the word merely as a way of pretending to a scientific precision unwarranted by the facts of the case.名词input 作为一个专业名词在象物理和电子工程领域已经被用了大约一个世纪， 但是它在计算机科学上的最新流行超出了原来的用法，在计算机科学上它指输入系统进行运行或传送的信息和信号。总的来说，input 广泛地用来指信息和观点的传送， 就象在报告怀疑这样保护起来的总统是否能获得接近足够多样信息的机会，从而有一幅这个国家的现实图景 或 被提名人自己没有关于房产政策的任何信息 。 在后一句中单词的定义是不确定的：它既可以指被提名人未向决策者提供任何建议，也可以指她未收到任何有关房产政策的信息。这种模糊在input 的非专业用法中有可能是一些批评家反对它（在一个早期调查中，其中包括大部分用法专题小组成员）的一个原因。 尽管这种用法已完全确立，用这个词时也应谨慎，不能把这个词仅仅用来伪装一种科学的精确性，而在这样的情况下，如此的精确性是不被事实所证明的〔gay〕The wordgay is now standard in its use to refer to the American homosexual community and its members;in this use it is generally lowercased.Gay is distinguished from homosexual in emphasizing the cultural and social aspects of homosexuality.Many writers reservegay for male homosexuals, but the word is also used to refer to homosexuals of both sexes;when the intended meaning is not clear in the context,the phrasegay and lesbian should be used. Like the other names of social groups that are derived from adjectives (e.g.,Black ), gay may be regarded as offensive when used as a noun to refer to particular individuals, as inThere were two gays on the panel; here a phrase such asgay people should be used instead. But there is no objection to the use of the noun in the pluralto refer to the general gay community,as inGays have united in opposition to the policy. See Usage Note at homosexual 单词gay 其用法已被普遍接受， 指的是美国的同性恋团体及其成员；在这种用法中，它一般小写。Gay 区别于 homosexual， 前者强调同性恋者的文化和社会方面。许多作家把gay 限定于男性同性恋者， 但这个单词也可用于指两种性别的同性恋者，当上下文的言外之意不太明确时，词组同性恋男性和同性恋女性 可以被使用。 就象其他从形容词派生来的社会群体名词一样（如，黑人 ）， gay 如果当作为一个名词使用，指一些特殊的个体时，可能会被认为带有攻击性， 如在There were two gays on the panel； 在此处应该用词组gay people 来代替。 但是并没有人反对其名词的复数形式，指一般的同性恋团体，如句子同性恋者们已经团结起来对抗政策 参见 homosexual〔pan〕"But Dr. Brett cautioned that what sounds exciting from the Moon does not always pan out in the laboratory"(London Daily Telegraph, December 14, 1972). If Dr. Brett had been talking about hunting for gold on the moon,there would be a solid connection between his use of the expressionpan out and its original use in gold mining. Pan out, like the verb pan itself, comes from the noun pan in the sense "a shallow circular metal vessel used in washing gold from gravel.”The expressionpan out was used in a variety of senses, including "to wash gold-bearing earth in a pan"; "to obtain gold by washing ore in a miner's pan";and with reference to a mine or mineral-bearing soil, "to produce gold or minerals.”From such literal usagespan out was transferred to other situations. In Frederick Whymper'sTravel and Adventure in the Territory of Alaska, published in 1868, we are told that “‘It panned out well’ means that ‘it gave good returns.’”All these uses occurred first in American English,making the expression a true Americanism.“可是布莱特博士告诫说来自月球的听起来令人激动的消息并不总会在实验室获得成功”(伦敦每日电讯报 1972年12月14日）。 如果布莱特博士谈论的是关于在月球上寻找金子，那么，在他表达panout 这个用法和这个短语在金矿开采方面的原始用法就会有一种固定的联系。 Pan out 象动词 pan 本身一样来源于名词 pan ， 意思是“一个浅而且圆的金属器皿，用来从矿砂中淘洗金子”。pan out 的表达用在各种意思中， 包括“在淘金盘中淘洗含金的泥土”，“在矿工的淘金盘里淘洗矿砂得到金子”，并且与矿井或含矿土壤有关，“产金子或矿物”。在这样的文学用法中，pan out 被借用于其它情况。 在弗雷德里克·怀姆坡1868年出版的在阿拉斯加旅游历险 中， 我们得知"It panned at well"意思是“得到好的回报”。所有这些用法都首先出现在美国英语中，表达了一种真正的美国主义〔if〕With all deference to the traditional rules governing the use of the subjunctive,it should be noted that a survey of the prose of reputable writers over the past 200 years would reveal a persistent tendency to use the indicativewas where the traditional rule would require the subjunctive were. A sentence beginningIf I was the only boy in the world, while not strictly correct, is wholly unremarkable. But the corresponding practice of using the subjunctive in place of the indicative may be labeled a hypercorrection. ·In spoken Englishthere is a growing tendency to usewould have in place of the subjunctive in contrary-to-fact clauses, as inif I would have been the President, but this usage is still widely considered incorrect.See Usage Note at doubt ,should ,wish 在与指导虚拟语气使用方法的传统规则相冲突的一系列不同用法中，我们应注意到一项对过去200年散文作家的调查显示，在传统语法要求使用虚拟式的were 的情况下，有一种持久的使用直陈式 was 的趋势。 一句用假如我是世界上唯一的男孩 开头的句子不会引起人们的注意。 而一定要把其中的直陈式换成虚拟式就显得矫正过了头。在英语口语中，在与事实相反的从句中，使用would have 一词的趋势有所增加， 例如如果我会是总统， 但这种用法仍然被大多数人认为是不正确的 参见 doubt,should,wish〔nor〕The traditional rule requires thatnor be used following neither in expressions in which the negation is carried over to the second element:He is neither able nor (not or ) willing to go. Noris likewise required when a negation is carried over into the second of two independent clauses, in which caseit also triggers inversion of the subject and the auxiliary verb in the second clause: 传统规则要求nor 用于 neither 后面， 在这种表达中，否定放在第二个部分：他既不能也 （不用 or ) 不愿走。 Nor在当两个独立句子中的第二个也被否时被用， 在这种用法中，它也引起第二个句子主语和助动词的转变： 〔protagonist〕Theprotagonist of a Greek drama was its leading actor, of whom there could be but one in any play.This is an etymological nicety that many modern writers continue to observe when using the word to refer to the main character of a drama or other fiction.Thus when the members of the Usage Panel were asked "How many protagonists are there inOthello ?” the great majority answered "One"and offered substitutes such asantagonist, villain, principal, and deuteragonist to describe Desdemona and Iago. But there is reputable precedent from the 17th century on for usingprotagonist to mean simply "important actor" or "principal party,”with no implication of uniqueness,as inThere are three protagonists in this sluggish novel. Smith and Jones were the protagonists in the struggle over the future of the computer company. Thus, while some writers may prefer to confine the word to a singular sense in their own usage,it is pedantic to insist that the looser use is incorrect. ·The use ofprotagonist to refer to a proponent has become common only in the 20th century and may have been influenced by a misconception that the first syllable of the word represents the prefixpro-, "favoring.” In sentences such asHe was an early protagonist of nuclear power, this use is likely to strike many readers as an errorand can usually be replaced byadvocate or proponent with no loss of sense.希腊戏剧的protagnist 是主角， 且在任何戏剧中仅有一个主角。许多现代作家在用这个词时都注意使它指代戏剧或其他小说的主要人物，因此当用法专题小组成员被问及“在奥赛罗 里有几个主要人物?”时， 大部分人回答“一个”，而且用如antagonist、villain、principal 和 deuteragonist 等词来描述苔丝德蒙娜和雅各。 但是从十七进纪开始，有一个使用protagonist 的规范惯例， 仅表示“重要的演员”或“首要的政党”，而丝毫没有独一无二的暗示，象在句子在这部文风拖沓的小说中有三个人物。 史密斯和琼斯是为计算公司的未来而奋斗的主角中一样。 因此，当某些作家可能在他们自己的用法中偏于把这个词限制在一个简单的含义中时，仍强调自由用法不正确就是卖弄学问的了。用protagonist 来指代建议者或支持者仅在20世纪开始变得常见， 而且被对于代表意为“支持的”前缀pro- 的该词第一个音节的误解所影响。 在句子他是核武力的早期支持者 中， 这种用法可能会使读者认为是个错误，而且常被advocate 或 proponent 所替代， 同时也不会有任何意思的遗漏〔fat〕Portly andstout are sometimes used as polite terms to describe fatness. In stricter applicationportly refers to a person whose bulk is combined with a stately or imposing bearing, andstout, to a person with a thickset, bulky figure: Portly 和stout 有时用作描述肥胖的礼貌用词。 在更严格的用法中，portly 指身体与一种庄严的或强加的忍耐力联系在一起的人， 而stout 指身材矮胖、粗壮的人： 〔parallel〕In its mathematical usageparallel is an absolute term— two lines either do or do not intersect—and as such does not admit of qualification as to degree.Some grammarians have arguedthat this restriction should apply as well to nontechnical uses of the word.According to this logic,one may not sayThe two roads have been made more parallel, except perhaps as a loose way of saying what is rendered more precisely by expressions such asmore nearly parallel. Like the analogous objection that has been made to the comparison ofequal, the point betrays a misconception about the relation between mathematical concepts and their ordinary-language equivalents.Applied to objects in the world,parallel can only denote a rough approximation to a geometric ideal. A pair of rails or parked cars cannot be truly parallel in the mathematician's sense of the termbut only more or less so,just as a road or shelf cannot be truly straight in the geometric sensebut nonetheless may be described as very straight or relatively straight.The grammarians' compunctions make even less sense when applied to metaphorical uses ofparallel, as inThe difficulties faced by the Republicans are quite parallel to those that confronted the Democrats four years ago, in which the intended meaning has nothing to do with the possibility of intersectionbut instead suggests the structural correspondence of two distinct situations.In this sense, parallelism is clearly a matter of degreeand the wordparallel can be modified accordingly. See Usage Note at equal ,perfect ,unique 在数学用法中，parallel 是一个绝对的表达法—— 两条线要么相交，要么就不相交——它既没有限定性也没有程度差别。一些语法学家曾提出，这种限制也应该适用于该词在非科技方面的用法，按照这种逻辑，人们不能说这两条路已被修得更加平行了， 除非作为用例如更接近于平行 这样的表达方法更精确地表示的东西的不够精确的说出方法。 象对equal 的比较所做的类似反对一样， 这个观点使数学概念与普通用语中等价词之间的关系引起误解。当运用到世间的实物时，parellel 仅能指与几何理想状态大致接近的状况。 一对铁轨或停放的车辆不可能按数学家对于这个术语的理解来真正地相互并行，而不过是大致平行而已，正如公路和架子不可能是真正几何意义上的笔直，但仍可被描绘成很直的或相对而言的笔直。在用到parallel 的比喻用法时，语法学家的不安就更显得意义不大了， 例如：共和党人所面临的重重困难与四年前民主党人遇到的困难十分相似， 在这句话中，该词的引申意义与相交的可能性毫无关系，然而它暗指了两种不同情况结构上的一致。在此意义上，相似性明显是程度的问题，相应地，parallel 一词也能被其它词限定修饰了。 参见 equal,perfect,unique〔Philistine〕It has never been good to be a Philistine.Samson, Saul, and David in the Bible helped bring the Philistines into prominence because they were such prominent opponents.Even though the Philistines have long since disappeared,their name has lived on in the Old Testament.The English name for them,Philistines, which goes back through Late Latin and Greek to Hebrew, is first found in Middle English,wherePhilistiens, the ancestor of our word, is recorded in a work composed before 1325. Beginning in the 17th centuryphilistine was used as a common noun usually in the plural to refer to various groups considered the enemy,such as literary critics.In Germany in the same centuryit is said that in a memorial at Jena for a student who had been killed in a town-gown quarrel,the minister preached a sermon from the text "Philister über dir Simson! [The Philistines be upon thee, Samson!],”the words of Delilah to Samson after she attempted to render him powerless before his Philistine enemies.From this usage it is said that German students came to usePhilister, the German equivalent of Philistine, to denote nonstudents and hence uncultured or materialistic people.Both usages were picked up in English in the early 19th century.做非利士人从来没有好处。《圣经》中的参孙、索尔和大卫使非利士人出名是因为他们是很优秀的对手。尽管非利士人已消失很久了，他们的名字却仍存在于《旧约》当中。他们的英文名称Philistines 可由晚期拉丁语和希腊语追溯到希伯来语， 是在中世纪英语中首先发现的，其中我们所用词的前身Philistines 记载在一部1325年前的著作中。 17世纪以来，Philistine 被用作普通名词并且常以复数形式出现， 意指被认为是敌人的各种团体，如文学批评家。在同一世纪的德国，据说在耶拿举行的纪念一名在市民和大学生争执中被杀的学生的纪念会上，牧师从“［非利士人比你强，参孙!］”中选取了一段做布道，就是迪莱勒在试图使参孙在他的非利士手面前变得软弱无力后说的那些话。这段话的用法中可见德国学生开始使用philister 作为 philistine 的德语替代语， 意指不是学生因此也就是没有文化以及不务实的人。这两种用法在19世纪早期的英语中均能找到〔graduate〕The verbgraduate has denoted the action of conferring an academic degree or diploma since at least 1421, as inShe was graduated from Yale in 1980. This earlier pattern of use is still defensible,if slightly old-fashioned,and is acceptable to 78 percent of the Usage Panel.In general usage,however, it has largely yielded to the much more recent active pattern (first attested in 1807): 动词graduate 最晚从1421年起便指授予学位或毕业证书的行为， 如1980年她毕业于耶鲁大学。 最早的使用方式仍然受到辩护，即使有些过时，仍为语言用法专题使用小组百分之七十八的成员所接受。在一般的用法中，该词毕竟已经变为现在更活跃的方式（已证明最早在1807年）： 〔aggress〕Aggress has occasionally been unjustly maligned as an upstart back-formation, that is, as having been created by people who incorrectly thought thataggression was formed from the verb aggress. As used in the field of psychologyaggress may be a back-formation from aggression, butaggress has been in general use since the 16th century and in fact antedates aggression. Aggress 有时被错误地认为是新的逆构词， 也就是说是由那些错误地认为aggression 是从动词 aggress 变来的人创造的。 在心理学领域的用法中，aggress 可能由 aggression 逆构而成， 但是aggress 从16世纪起就已经通用，事实上早于 aggression 的使用 〔shambles〕The original sense ofshambles to denote a meat market is by now so obscurein American usage that it must be counted the height of pedantry to insist,as a few critics continue to do,that the word should be used metaphorically only to refer to a scene of carnage.作为指肉市的单词shambles 的原始意义， 现在已很模糊，以致在美语用法中认为这个词只能隐喻地指屠杀情景，若还象一些批评家继续做的那样，准会被看作是极度迂腐的做法〔peruse〕Peruse has long meant "to read thoroughly" and is often used loosely when one could use the wordread instead. The worst that can be said about the latter use is that it is excessively literary or precious.However, common misuse of the word in the sense "to glance over, skim,” as inI only had a moment to peruse the manual quickly, was unacceptable to 66 percent of the Usage Panel. Peruse 很久一直意指“详尽地阅读”， 经常在能用read 这个词时不严谨地用来取代它。 能够提及的后一种用法中最差的一种便是极端文学或过分矫揉造作的。然而，对于百分之六十六的惯用法研究小组成员来说，意为“浏览或略读”的该词的通常错误用法是不能接受的，如在句我只有一会儿时间来迅速浏览这本手册 中 〔religious〕 Sanctimonious in its modern usage always implies a hypocritical pretense of sanctity: Sanctimonious 在现代的用法中常意味着伪善假装的神圣： 〔presently〕An original meaning ofpresently was "at the present time; currently.” That sense is said to have disappeared from the literary language in the 17th century,but it has survived in popular usage and is widely found nowadays in literate speech and writing.Still, there is a lingering prejudice against this use.In the most recent surveythe sentenceGeneral Walters is . . . presently the United States Ambassador to the United Nations was acceptable to exactly 50 percent of the Usage Panel. presenthy 的一个原始意为“现在，目前”。 那种意义据说在17世纪时从文学性语言中消失，但在大众用法中仍旧存在并且现今广泛存在于受过教育人的口头语和书面语之中，然而反对这一用法的成见仍然存在。在最近的调查中华特士将军…最近是美利坚合众国驻联合国大使 这句话的接受率在词语惯用法小组里正好为百分之五十。 〔that〕The standard rule isthatthat should be used only to introduce a restrictive (or "defining") relative clause, which serves to identify the entity being talked about;in this useit should never be preceded by a comma.Thus, we sayThe house that Jack built has been torn down, where the clausethat Jack built tells which house was torn down, orI am looking for a book that is easy to read, wherethat is easy to read tells what kind of book is desired. Onlywhich is to be used with nonrestrictive (or "nondefining") clauses, which give additional information about an entity that has already been identified in the context;in this use,which is always preceded by a comma. Thus, we sayThe students in Chemistry 10 have been complaining about the textbook, which (not that ) is hard to follow. The clausewhich is hard to follow does not indicate which text is being complained about; even if it were omitted,we would know that the phrasethe textbook refers to the text in Chemistry 10. The use ofthat in nonrestrictive clauses like this, though once common in writing and still frequent in speech,is best avoided in formal style. ·Some grammarians have argued that symmetry requires thatwhich should be used only in nonrestrictive clauses, asthat is to be used only in restrictive clauses. Thus, they suggest that we should avoid sentences such asI need a book which will tell me all about city gardening, where the clausewhich will tell me all about city gardening indicates which sort of book is needed. Such use ofwhich is useful where two or more relative clauses are joined by and or or, as inIt is a philosophy in which the common man may find solace and which many have found reason to praise. Which is also preferred to introduce a restrictive relative clausewhen the preceding phrase itself contains athat, as inI can only give you that which I don't need (not that that I don't need ) or We want to assign only that book which will be most helpful (preferred tothat book that will be most helpful ). · That may be omitted in a relative clause when the subject of the clause is different from the referent of the phrase preceding the clause. Thus, we may say eitherthe book that I was reading or the book I was reading, where the subject of the clause (I ) is not the referent of the phrase the book. Omission ofthat in these cases has sometimes been described as incorrect, but the practice is extremely common and has ample precedent in reputable writing. ·There have also been occasional objections to the omission ofthat in its use to introduce a subordinate clause, as inI think we should try again. But this usage is entirely idiomatic and is in fact favored with some of the verb phrases that can introduce such clauses:thus, one would more normally write 标准规则中，that 应只被用于引导限定性（或“确定的”）关系从句， 这些从句用于明确正被谈论的实体；在这种情况下，前面决不能有逗号。因此，我们说杰克建的房子已经拆毁了 ， 在这里，从句杰克所建的 指明哪幢房子被拆毁了， 或者我正在找一本易读的书 ， 在这里，易读的 指明哪类书是需要的。 只有which 用于非限定性（或“不确定的”）从句中， 为已经在上下文中定义的实体提供附加信息；在此用法中，which 之前总有逗号。 因此，我们说化学10班的学生一直在抱怨这课本，实在 （不是 that ) 是太难懂了 。 从句which is hard to follow 并不指明哪一课本被抱怨； 即使它被省略，我们也知道the textbook 指化学10班的课本。 That 象这样用于非限定性从句中， 虽然在写作中曾很普遍而且在口语中依然频繁出现，但在正式文体中最好避免使用。一些语法学家认为对称性要求which 应只用于非限定性从句中， 就象that 只用于限定性从句中。 因此，他们建议我们应该避免诸如我需要一本关于城市园艺的书 这样的句子， 这里从句which will tell me all about city gardening 指明需要何种书。 当两个或多个关系从句被and 或 or 连接时， which 的这种用法很有用， 如是哲学使普通人找到慰藉并使许多人有理由去称颂。 Which 也用作引导限定性关系从句，在当前置短语中含有that 时， 如我只能给你我不需要的东西 （不是 that that I don't need )或 我们只想分发那本最用的书 （好于that book that will be most helpful )。 当从句主语与从句前短语所指不一致时，that 在关系从句中可以省略。 因此，我们可以说the book that I was reading 或者 the book I was reading 。 在这里，从句主语(I )和短语 the book 的主语不同。 在这些情况下，that 的省略有时被认为是错误的， 但是这在实际中极普遍而且在规范写作中有充分的先例。对于that 用于引导从句时被省略偶然持有异议， 如在我认为我们应该再试一次 中。 但这种用法完全符合语法而且实际上有一些引导这样从句的短语支持；因此，可以正常应用 〔who〕The traditional rules that determine the use ofwho and whom are relatively simple: who is used for a grammatical subject, where a nominative pronoun such as I or he would be appropriate, andwhom is used elsewhere. Thus, we writeThe actor who played Hamlet was there, sincewho stands for the subject of played Hamlet; andWho do you think is the best candidate? where who stands for the subject of is the best candidate. But we writeTo whom did you give the letter? sincewhom is the object of the preposition to; andThe man whom the papers criticized did not show up, sincewhom is the object of the verb criticized. ? Considerable effort and attention are required to apply the rules correctly in complicated sentences.To produce correctly a sentence such asI met the man whom the government had tried to get France to extradite, we must anticipate when we writewhom that it will function as the object of the verb extradite, several clauses distant from it.It is thus not surprising that writers from Shakespeare onward should often have interchangedwho and whom. And though the distinction shows no signs of disappearing in formal style,strict adherence to the rules in informal discourse might be taken as evidence that the speaker or writer is paying undue attention to the form of what is said, possibly at the expense of its substance.In speech and informal writingwho tends to predominate over whom; a sentence such asWho did John say he was going to support? will be regarded as quite natural, if strictly incorrect. By contrast, the use ofwhom where who would be required, as inWhom shall I say is calling? may be thought to betray a certain linguistic insecurity. ? When the relative pronoun stands for the object of a preposition that ends a sentence,whom is technically the correct form: the strict grammarian will insist onWhom (not who ) did you give it to? But grammarians since Noah Webster have argued that the excessive formality ofwhom in these cases is at odds with the relative informality associated with the practice of placing the preposition in final position and that the use of who in these cases should be regarded as entirely acceptable. ? The relative pronounwho may be used in restrictive relative clauses, in which case it is not preceded by a comma, or in nonrestrictive clauses, in which case a comma is required.Thus, we may say eitherThe scientist who discovers a cure for cancer will be immortalized, where the clausewho discovers a cure for cancer indicates which scientist will be immortalized, orThe mathematician over there, who solved the four-color theorem, is widely known, where the clausewho solved the four-color theorem adds information about a person already identified by the phrase the mathematician over there. ? Some grammarians have argued that onlywho and not that should be used to introduce a restrictive relative clause that identifies a person. This restriction has no basis either in logic or in the usage of the best writers;it is entirely acceptable to write eitherthe man that wanted to talk to you or the man who wanted to talk to you. ? The grammatical rules governing the use ofwho and whom apply equally to whoever and whomever. See Usage Note at else ,that ,whose 确定用法的传统规则who 和 whom 相对简单： who 语法上用作主语，同 I 或 he 等主格代词的位置相同， 而whom 用于别处。 这样，我们写The actor who played Hamlet was there （演哈姆雷特的演员在那边）， 因此who 代表的是 played Hamlet 的主语。 在句子Who do you think is the best candidate? （你认为谁是最好的候选人?）中 who 代表 is the best candidate 的主语。 但是我们说To whom did you give the letter? （你把信给谁了?）， 因为whom 是介词 to 的宾语； 在句子The man whom the papers criticized did not show up, （报纸上批评的那个人没有来）， 因为whom 是动词 criticized 的宾语 。在复杂的句子里，正确应用这些规则需要相当的努力和注意。正确地造出如I met the man whom the government had tried to get France to extradite （我遇到了政府曾努力让法国引渡的那个人）这样的句子， 在写whom 之前我们必须预知它将作动词 extradite 的宾语， 尽管两个词离得很远。这也就难怪自莎士比亚以来的作家经常把who 和 whom 交换使用了。 尽管在正式文体中两者区别仍然存在，但如果在非正式的交谈中严格地遵守这些规则会被认为说话者或作者可能不顾内容而过分注视说话的形式。在口语和非正式书面语中，who 趋向于代替 whom; 人们会认为象Who did John say he was going to support? （约翰说他将支持谁?）这样句子很自然，尽管严格来说它是不正确的。 相反，在应该用who 的地方用 whom 则显出一种语言上的不稳定， 如Whom shall I say is calling? （我说是谁在打电话?）。 当关系代词替代句尾的介词宾语时，whom 在理论上是正确的形势： 严格的语法坚持Whom （而不是 who ) did you give it to?（你把它给谁了？） 但从诺·韦伯斯特以来的语法学家认为whom 在这种情况下过分正式，而把介词放在句尾相对来说又不正式，这就有了矛盾，所以在这种情况下用 who 完全可以接受。 关系代词who 可以用在限定关系从句中，前面不要加逗号， 也可用在非限定关系从句中，则需要加逗号。所以我们既可以说The scientist who discovers a cure for cancer will be immortalized （发现治愈癌症的方法的科学家将会因此而不朽）， 在此处从句who discovers a cure for cancer 指这样的科学家将会不朽， 也可以说The mathematician over there, who solved the four-color theorem, is widely known （在那边的数学家非常出名，他解决了四色定理）， 从句who solved the four-color theorem 给已经由短语 the mathematician over there 确定了的人增加了一些有关他的信息。 有些语法学家认为只有who 而不是 that 可以连接表示人的限定性关系从句。 这种限制在逻辑上没有根据，在最优秀作家的用法中也未有根据；无论说the man that wanted to talk to you （想要跟你说话的那个人）或 the man who wanted to talk to you 都是完全可以接受的。 有关who 和 whom 的语法规则同样适用于 whoever 和 whomever 参见 else,that,whose〔tight〕Tight is used as an adverb following verbs that denote a process of closure or constriction, assqueeze, shut, close, tie, and hold. In this useit is subtly distinct from the adverbtightly. Tight denotes the state resulting from the process,whereastightly denotes the manner of its application. As such,tight is more appropriate when the focus is on a state that endures for some time after the activity has ended. The sentenceShe closed up the house tight suggests preparation for an impending blizzard. By the same token, it is more natural to sayThe windows were frozen tight than The windows were frozen tightly, since in this case the tightness of the seal is not likely to be the result of the manner in which the windows were frozen.With a few verbstight is used idiomatically as an intensive and is the only possible form: sleep tight; sit tight. Tight can be used only following the verb:The house was tightly (not tight ) shut. Tight 作副词用在表示关闭或压迫过程的动词后， 如squeeze，shut，close，tie 和 hold 。 在这种用法中，它与副词tightly有细微的差别。 Tight 表示过程导致的状态，而tightly 表示使用这些动作的方式。 因此，当焦点放在动作结束后仍然能持续一段时间的状态时，用tight 更为恰当。 句子她把房子的门窗紧紧地关起来 中表示准备迎接即将来到的暴风雪。 同样，我们说The windows were frozen tight 比 The windows were frozen tightly 更为自然， 因为这里的密封不大可能是窗子被冻上的结果。tight 还与几个动词结合惯用为加强语气的成分，且是唯一可能的形式： sleep tight； sit tight。 Tight 只能用于动词后：房子紧紧地 （而非 tight ) 关闭着 。 〔infinite〕Infinite is sometimes grouped with absolute terms such asunique, absolute, and omnipotent, since in its strict mathematical sense it allows no degree modification or comparison;one quantity cannot be more infinite than another (though technically one infinite set can be larger than another).Unlike other absolute terms, however,infinite also does not permit modification by adverbs such as nearly and almost; mathematically, infinity is not approached by degrees.In nontechnical usage, of course,infinite is often used metaphorically to refer simply to an unimaginably large degree or amount, and here the comparison of the word is unexceptionable: Infinite 有时被一些表示绝对意义的词修饰， 如unique ， absolute 和 omnipotent ， 由于在其严格的数学意义上它不允许表示程度的修饰或比较，一个数不可能比另一个数“更加无穷大”（虽然以技术上讲一个无穷集可以比另一个集更大）。但是，与其它表示绝对意义的词不同，infinite 也不能用 nearly 和 almost 这一类副词来修饰； 以数学上讲，无穷大是不能逐步接近的。当然，在非技术性的用法中，infinite 常常隐喻地仅指明一个难以想象的大程度或数量， 在这种用法下，仍然不能使用比较： 〔plus〕This observation has suggested to some thatplus should be regarded as a preposition in these uses, on the model of expressions such astogether with or in addition to. But the phrases introduced byplus do not behave like prepositional phrases in other respects. They cannot be moved to the beginning of the sentence, for example.We do not sayPlus the bad weather, the construction slowdown has made for a weak market (contrast the acceptable sentence beginning withTogether with the bad weather ). What is more,subjects containing two noun phrases connected byplus are usually singular even when the first noun phrase is plural: 对有些人来说上面这句话会暗示plus 在这类用法中应被视为一个介词， 如在together with 或 in addition to 这样的表达模式中。 但由plus 引导的短语在其它方面并不象介词性短语。 例如它们不能放到句首。我们并不说加之糟糕的天气，施工的减少会导致市场不景气 （试比较用Together with the bad weather 开头的可被接受的句子）。 此外，即使由plus 联结的两个名词性短语中第一个名词性短语为复数，主语通常仍为单数： 〔every〕Every is representative of a large class of English words and expressions that are singular in formbut felt to be plural in sense.The class includes, for example, noun phrases introduced byevery, any, and certain uses of some. These expressions invariably take a singular verb;we say Every car has (not have ) been tested. Anyone is (not are ) liable to fall ill. But when a sentence contains a pronoun whose antecedent is introduced byevery, grammar and sense pull in different directions.The grammar of these expressions requires a singular pronoun, as in Every car must have its brakes tested, but people persist in using the plural pronoun,as in Every car must have their brakes tested. Although the latter pattern is common in the speech of all groups,it is still widely regarded as grammatically incorrect in writing. ·The effort to adhere to the grammatical rule leads to various complications, however.The first is grammatical.When a pronoun refers to a phrase containingevery or any that falls within a different independent clause, the pronoun cannot be singular.Thus it is simply not English to sayEvery man left; he took his raincoat with him. Nor can one sayNo one could be seen, could he? Writers unwilling to use plural forms in these examples must find another way of expressing their meaning,either by rephrasing the sentence so as to get the pronoun into the same clause (as inEvery man left, taking his raincoat with him ) or by substituting another word forevery or any (as in All the men left; they took their raincoats with them. ) · The second complication is political.When a phrase introduced byevery or any refers to a group containing both men and women, what shall be the gender of the singular pronoun?This matter is discussed in the Usage Note athe. See Usage Note at all ,any ,each ,either ,he 1neither ,none Every 是一大类英语单词和短语的代表， 它们在形式上是单数的，但在意义上感觉起来却是复数。例如，这一类词中所包括的由every，any 和某些用法中的 some 所引导的名词短语。 这些短语毫无例外的跟单数动词，我们说每辆车都已 （不是 have ） 被测试过。 每个人都（不是 are ） 会生病 。 但是当一个句子中包括一个由先行词every 引导的代词时， 从句法和意义上就要区分不同的情况了。象每一辆车必须测试它的制动器 这样的表达法在语法上要求使用一单数代词， 但人们总习惯于用复数代词，象Every car must have their brakes tested 这样。 虽然后面这种形式在各种团体的讲话中非常普遍，但它在写作中仍广泛地被认为是语法上的错误。无论如何，坚持语法规则的努力总会导致各种各样的复杂问题。首先是语法上的复杂性。当一个代词指代一个短语，而这个短语中包括every 或 any 属于另一个与此代词所在子句不同的独立子句中时， 这个代词不能用单数形式。因此很容易理解英国人为何不说每个人离开时，都拿着各自的雨衣 ， 也不说没有人会被看到，不是吗？ 。 不愿意在这些例子中用复数形式的书写者必须找到另外一种表达他们意思的方法，或者可以通过重新改变句子的说法以使代词与其指代的短语同属一个从句中（如Every man left， taking his raincoat with him ）， 或者通过以另一个词代替every 或 any 的方法（如 All the man left；they took their raincoats with them ）。 第二是政治上的复杂性。当一个被every 或 any 引导的短语指代的一个团体中既有男人又有女人时， 单数代词的词性怎么确定呢？这个问题在单词he的用法说明中将被讨论 参见 all,any,each,either,he1neither,none〔doodle〕One might wonder what, if any, connection exists amongYankee Doodle, a doodlebug, and the doodle that one draws when one is bored or abstracted. The worddoodle in the latter two uses may come from a Low German word meaning "fool.”"Fool,” the first (and now probably obsolete) sense of the worddoodle to be recorded in English (1628),would seem naturally to have been used inYankee Doodle, the name of a tune composed in 1755 to mock the American colonists. However, the origin ofDoodle in this expression is unknown; it may be fromtootle, because the piece was apparently composed originally for flute or fife.In the case ofdoodlebug, it is thought that doodle, meaning "simpleton,” is the first part of the insect name.The sense "absent-minded scrawl" may come directly from the sense "fool"or from a British dialectal verb, meaning "to cheat, fritter time away,”that was derived from the noun sense "fool.”人们也许会问YonkeeDoodle， doodlebug， 和意思为心不在焉地乱涂的 doodle 之间有无联系。 单词doodle 在后两种用法中大概来自低地德语中， 意思为“傻瓜”的一个单词。“傻瓜”，doodle 的第一含义（现在可能已不再用）， 英文记载是在1628年，被用在1755年谱成的用来讽刺美国殖民者的曲子YankeeDoodle 中。 然而，在该表达中Doodle 的词源尚不清楚； 也许来自tootle， 因为该曲原本很明显是用笛子或横笛演奏的。在doodlebug 中， doodle 被认为意思为“傻瓜”， 是昆虫名的第一部分。“心不在焉地乱涂”可能直接来自“傻瓜”，或者来自英国方言动词，意为“欺骗，打发时间”的，这个动词来源于名词“傻瓜”〔janitor〕A holiday for janitors ought to take place in January,for both words are linked.In Latiniānus was the word for "archway, gateway, or covered passage" and also for the god of gates, doorways, and beginnings in general.As many schoolchildren know,our month January—a month of beginnings—is named for the god.Latiniānitor, the source of our word janitor and ultimately also fromiānus, meant "doorkeeper or gatekeeper.”Probably becauseiānitor was common in Latin records and documents, it was adopted into English,first being recorded in the sense "doorkeeper" around 1567 in a Scots text.In an early quotation Saint Peter is called "the Janitor of heaven.”The term can still mean "doorkeeper,”but in Scots usagejanitor also referred to a minor school official. Apparently this position at times involved maintenance duties and doorkeeping,and the maintenance duties took over the more exalted tasks,giving us the position of janitor as we know it today.看门人的假日应该放在一月，因为以下两个词都同一月有联系。拉丁文中的ianus 表示的是“拱门、道路或走廊”， 也是通常所说的门神、门口和开始。正如许多小学生知道的那样，我们的一月——最初的一个月——是以神的名字命名的。拉丁文ianitor 是单词 janitor 的来源， 追根溯源它也来自ianus， 意思是“看门人或管门人”。也许因为ianitor 这个词在拉丁文记录和文件中很普遍， 它才被英语所采用，最早被记录为“看门人”之意时大约在1567年的一篇苏格兰文章中。圣彼得在早期的引文中被称为“天堂守护神”。这个词仍然是“看门人”的意思，但在苏格兰用法中janitor 也指代低层的学校公务员。 显然这个职位时不时地也包含着维护的责任和守门的义务，这种维护的责任吸取了更为崇高的任务，于是就有了正如我们今天所知道的看门人这个职务〔Xmas〕Xmas has been used for hundreds of years in religious writing, where theX is understood to represent a Greek chi, the first letter of Χριστος, "Christ";in this use it is parallel to other forms likeXtian, "Christian.” But the letterX, or especially x, is nowadays more frequently interpreted as a mathematical variable than as a Greek letter, as indicated by the common pronunciation of the formXmas as (ĕksʹməs). Thus, while the word is etymologically innocent of the charge that it omits Christ from Christmas,it is now generally understood only as an informal shortening.In an earlier survey 88 percent of the Usage Panel rejected the use ofXmas in writing. Xmas 在宗教作品中已用了几百年， X 用来表示希腊字母chi， 是Χριστος的第一个字母，意为“耶稣”；在这种用法中，它与其他形式相似,如Xtian, “教会的”。 但是字母X， 尤其是 x， 现在更常见的是当作数学变量，而不是希腊字母， 因为该符号Xmas 发音已普遍为(ĕksʹməs)。 因此,当这个单词从词源学上把Christ从Christmas中省掉是合乎规则的，现在该词已被广泛看作一个非正式的缩写形式。在早期的调查问卷中，有百分之八十八的用法使用小组成员拒绝在作品中用Xmas 〔plus〕 (compareTwo cows plus two cows makes four cows ). This situation suggests thatplus in these uses should be regarded as a particular kind of conjunction, which joins two elements that are taken together as a single entity,the way the conjunctionand does in a sentence such as Peas and carrots is Sophie's favorite combination. · The usage ofplus in he construction industry has been hurt by the rise in rates. Plus which, bad weather has affected housing starts is not well established in formal writing, nor is the use ofplus introducing an independent clause, as inShe has a great deal of talent, plus she is willing to work hard. （试比较Two cows plus two cows makes four cows )。 这种情况暗示我们plus 在这些用法中应作为特殊的连词来看待， 这种连词联结被视为一整体的两个成分，就象连词and 在 Peas and carrots is Sophie's favorite combination 这样的句子中一样。 Plus 在 建筑业受到了利率提高的损害。 此外，糟糕的天气也影响了房屋的兴建一句中的用法在正式的书面写作中是未被广泛接受的， plus 引导一个独立句的用法亦是如此， 如在她极有天赋，加上她又愿意努力工作。 〔than〕Since the 18th centurygrammarians have insisted thatthan should be regarded as a conjunction in all its uses, so that a sentence such asBill is taller than Tom should be construed as an elliptical version of the sentence Bill is taller than Tom is. According to this view,the case of a pronoun followingthan is determined by whether the pronoun serves as the subject or object of the verb that is "understood.” Thus, the standard rule requiresPat is taller than I (not me ) on the assumption that this sentence is elliptical forPat is taller than I am but allowsThe news surprised Pat more than me, since this sentence is taken as elliptical forThe news surprised Pat more than it surprised me. However,than is quite commonly treated as a preposition when followed by an isolated noun phrase, and as such occurs with a pronoun in the objective case:John is taller than me. Though this usage is still widely regarded as incorrect,it is predominant in speechand has reputable literary precedent.It is also consistent with the fact thatthan is clearly treated as a preposition in the than whom construction, as ina poet than whom (not than who ) no one has a dearer place in the hearts of his countrymen. Still, the writer who risks a sentence such asMary is taller than him in formal writing must be prepared to defend the usage against objections of critics who are unlikely to be dissuaded from their conviction that the usage is incorrect. · Comparatives usingas . . . as can be analyzed in a parallel way to those using than. Traditional grammarians insist thatI am not as tall as he is the only correct form, and though both literary precedent and syntactic arguments can be marshaled in support of the analysis of the secondas as a preposition (which would license I am not as tall as him ), one should treat this use ofas as a conjunction in formal writing. See Usage Note at as 1自18世纪以来，语法学家坚持以为than 在其所有用法中均应被看作连词， 因此，在诸如Bill is taller than Tom 的句子中应解释为句子 Bill is taller than Tom is 的省略说法。 根据这一观点，than 后跟随代词的情况取决于该代词作为所“理解”的动词的主语还是谓语。 这样，标准规则要求Pat is taller than I （而不是 me )， 考虑到这个句子是Pat is taller than I am 的省略， 但允许The news surprised Pat more than me ， 因为这个句子被认当是The news surprised Pat more than it surprised me 的省略。 然而，当than 跟随一个独立名词短语时常被看作是介词， 如代词用于宾语的情况：John is taller than me 。 尽管这种用法仍然被广泛认为是错误的，但它仍在口语中占主要地位，并且有著名的文学先例。它也符合than 在 than whom 结构中显然被认为是介词的事实， 就象在a poet than whom （而不是 than who ) no one has a dearer place in the hearts of his countrymen 。 然而，冒险在正式写作中应用诸如Mary is taller than him 的作者必须准备针对那些不可能被劝服放弃坚信这种用法是错误的批评家们的反对意见而对此种用法进行辩护。 用比较级as…as 可以用与 than 相同的方式进行分析。 传统的语法学家坚持认为I am not as tall as he 是唯一正确的形式， 尽管文学先例和语法规则都能支持第二个as 作为介词（即允许 I am not as tall as him )的分析， 我们仍应该把这个as 作为正式写作中的连词 参见 as1〔reverend〕Reverend Abbr. Rev.Used as a title and form of address for certain clerics in many Christian churches. In formal usage, preceded bythe : Reverend 缩写 Rev.大人：用作对许多基督教堂中某些神职人员的称号及敬称形式。在正式用法中，前面加the ： 〔different〕Butdifferent than is more acceptably used, particularly in American usage, where the object of comparison is expressed by a full clause: 但different than 的比较对象用一完整的句子表示，特别是在美语用法中，这种用法更能接受： |
| 随便看 |
|
英汉汉英双解词典收录301015条英汉双解翻译词条，可根据汉字查询相应的英文词汇，基本涵盖了全部常用汉字的英文读音、翻译及用法，是英语学习及翻译工作的有利工具。