我可以問不倒Q&A專欄(2017/10-2018/02)

  我可以 問不倒

(2017/10-2018/02)

本Q&A專欄使用原則:
1.優先提供OKE美語之新舊學員任何有關英語學習之提問。
2. 為提供最符合大眾共同學習效益,每周OKE美語及旋元佑老師將均衡選取三則提問給予詳解。
3.提問請點擊右側標籤列#我可以問不倒,至當月份的文章版面。
此篇文章僅供2017年10月至2018年02月提問使用

留言


  1. 旋老師好,
    想請問要如何理解下列問題。
    (1) 何謂受詞?
    (2) 不懂任何單字,要如何分辨受詞及補語?
    (3) the和a分別是these/those及one比較弱的說法?
    (4) The magician moved his fingers.這句話的受詞是his fingers嗎?還是只有fingers?

    回覆刪除
    回覆
    1. 旋元佑親解

      (1) 所謂受詞(object),是英文句型中的基本元素之一。
      接在介係詞後面的名詞片語,一般就稱為介係詞的受詞,例如:
       the book on the desk
      其中的the desk就是on的受詞,與介係詞一起構成介係詞片語,當作修飾語使用。上面例子中的on the desk就是這種介系詞片語,用來修飾the book。
      還有一種是及物動詞的受詞,這類的受詞和介係詞的受詞一樣,必須是一個名詞片語,接在及物動詞後面,用來「接受」及物動詞的動作,例如:
       The hunter killed a deer. (獵人殺了一頭鹿。)
      本句中的動詞kill就是及物動詞,它後面要接一個「被殺」的東西(也就是句中的a deer),才算交代清楚發生了什麼事。而這個被殺的a deer就稱為kill的受詞。
      簡單地說,及物動詞的受詞就是句子中那個被「被…」的東西。它必須配合及物動詞使用,用來接受這個動詞的動作。
      如果是不及物動詞,就不會有受詞,例如:
       The boy smiled. (這個男孩笑了。)
      像smile這個動作,不會有什麼東西「被」怎麼樣,就沒有受詞可言。
      不過,動詞的用法是有變化的,是否「及物」,亦即是否要有受詞,還得看用法而定,像聖經中的那句:
       Thou shalt not kill. (汝不得殺生。)
      這個句子的動詞kill一般當作及物動詞,可式在本句作不及物動詞用,泛指一般的殺生(應指「殺人」),所以就沒有受詞。
      五種基本句型的變化,都是由主詞、動詞、受詞、補語四個元素排列組合而成。在這種定義下的受詞,可視為句子中接受及物動詞動作的元素,也就是「被」如何的那個部份,要配合及物動詞使用。
      (2) 如果不懂任何單字,就無法判斷句意,那麼就不可能區分受詞和補語。假如能了解單字的意思,那麼受詞與補語可以用下面的方法來區分:
      1. He killed a teacher.
      2. He became a teacher.
      例1中的a teacher是「被」殺的,所以它是kill的受詞。例2中的a teacher則與主詞He是同一人,句子也可解釋為「他是老師」。只要動詞當作「是」來解釋意思不會出錯,那麼動詞後面的元素就是補語。
      (3) the/a可以視為that, those/one的弱化(reduction)用法來看待,這是區分這兩個冠詞的基本原則。亦即the帶有「這個,那些…」等的指示功能;而a只有「一個」的意思,沒有特指「哪一個」,例如:
      1. I need a book to read on the way.
      2. I’ve finished the book you lent me last time.
      例1中的a book可以用one book來解釋:「我要帶『一本』書在路上看」,沒指定要哪一本。而例2中的the book可以視為that book:「上次你借我的『那本』書已經看完了」。因此究竟該用定冠詞the還是不定冠詞a,可以用這個原則來判斷。
      (4) The magician moved his fingers. (魔術師移動了他的手指)
      這個句子中,受詞是his fingers這個名詞片語。如果要說是fingers一個字也不算錯,因為fingers就是這個名詞片語中的名詞元素,也是最主要的部分。
      以片語的形式出現的名詞有三個元素,例如:
       a black dog
      其中的冠詞a稱為這個名詞片語的限定詞(determiner),black是形容詞,dog才是真正的名詞部分。這三者不必同時出現,例如複數時是black dogs,不必有限定詞。形容詞black也是可有可無,如果去掉就只剩下dogs這個部份。
      所以,上面那個句子中的受詞應包含整個名詞片語his fingers。當然,只強調其中名詞核心的fingers也沒錯。

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  2. 旋元佑親解

    (1) 所謂受詞(object),是英文句型中的基本元素之一。
    接在介係詞後面的名詞片語,一般就稱為介係詞的受詞,例如:
     the book on the desk
    其中的the desk就是on的受詞,與介係詞一起構成介係詞片語,當作修飾語使用。上面例子中的on the desk就是這種介系詞片語,用來修飾the book。
    還有一種是及物動詞的受詞,這類的受詞和介係詞的受詞一樣,必須是一個名詞片語,接在及物動詞後面,用來「接受」及物動詞的動作,例如:
     The hunter killed a deer. (獵人殺了一頭鹿。)
    本句中的動詞kill就是及物動詞,它後面要接一個「被殺」的東西(也就是句中的a deer),才算交代清楚發生了什麼事。而這個被殺的a deer就稱為kill的受詞。
    簡單地說,及物動詞的受詞就是句子中那個被「被…」的東西。它必須配合及物動詞使用,用來接受這個動詞的動作。
    如果是不及物動詞,就不會有受詞,例如:
     The boy smiled. (這個男孩笑了。)
    像smile這個動作,不會有什麼東西「被」怎麼樣,就沒有受詞可言。
    不過,動詞的用法是有變化的,是否「及物」,亦即是否要有受詞,還得看用法而定,像聖經中的那句:
     Thou shalt not kill. (汝不得殺生。)
    這個句子的動詞kill一般當作及物動詞,可式在本句作不及物動詞用,泛指一般的殺生(應指「殺人」),所以就沒有受詞。
    五種基本句型的變化,都是由主詞、動詞、受詞、補語四個元素排列組合而成。在這種定義下的受詞,可視為句子中接受及物動詞動作的元素,也就是「被」如何的那個部份,要配合及物動詞使用。
    (2) 如果不懂任何單字,就無法判斷句意,那麼就不可能區分受詞和補語。假如能了解單字的意思,那麼受詞與補語可以用下面的方法來區分:
    1. He killed a teacher.
    2. He became a teacher.
    例1中的a teacher是「被」殺的,所以它是kill的受詞。例2中的a teacher則與主詞He是同一人,句子也可解釋為「他是老師」。只要動詞當作「是」來解釋意思不會出錯,那麼動詞後面的元素就是補語。
    (3) the/a可以視為that, those/one的弱化(reduction)用法來看待,這是區分這兩個冠詞的基本原則。亦即the帶有「這個,那些…」等的指示功能;而a只有「一個」的意思,沒有特指「哪一個」,例如:
    1. I need a book to read on the way.
    2. I’ve finished the book you lent me last time.
    例1中的a book可以用one book來解釋:「我要帶『一本』書在路上看」,沒指定要哪一本。而例2中的the book可以視為that book:「上次你借我的『那本』書已經看完了」。因此究竟該用定冠詞the還是不定冠詞a,可以用這個原則來判斷。
    (4) The magician moved his fingers. (魔術師移動了他的手指)
    這個句子中,受詞是his fingers這個名詞片語。如果要說是fingers一個字也不算錯,因為fingers就是這個名詞片語中的名詞元素,也是最主要的部分。
    以片語的形式出現的名詞有三個元素,例如:
     a black dog
    其中的冠詞a稱為這個名詞片語的限定詞(determiner),black是形容詞,dog才是真正的名詞部分。這三者不必同時出現,例如複數時是black dogs,不必有限定詞。形容詞black也是可有可無,如果去掉就只剩下dogs這個部份。
    所以,上面那個句子中的受詞應包含整個名詞片語his fingers。當然,只強調其中名詞核心的fingers也沒錯。

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  3. 老師您好
    But Comey felt sufficiently uncomfortable about the conversation to document it afterward in a memo, typed into a laptop as he was driven away from the Trump Tower meeting in New York City.
    1 to document it =so that he documented the conversation … ?

    Across the country, teachers have started holding “prophylactic lectures” to warn students away from Navalny and his rallies. The state university in Vladimir screened a video comparing him to Adolf Hitler. And a professor at Tomsk State University was recorded giving his classroom a bizarre lesson in civics: “If the state has no corruption,” he said, “it means the state is useless.” When a student objected that corruption amounts to stealing, the professor shot back, “There’s stealing everywhere!”
    2學生跟教授的立場不同。When a student objected that… 表示學生反對corruption amounts to stealing這一件事,那這樣子學生不就跟教授的意見一致。可是依上下文來看學生跟教授的立場是不同。不知問題哪 ?

    In some sense, scandal has happened, priests have failed. There’s not so much stigma that priests are perfect anymore.”
    3不了解There’s not so much stigma that priests are perfect anymore的意思 ?

    But the haste with which it seems to have been made hid all of Kelly’s most appealing qualities—the joy she brings to winning an argument, the recognition of what viewers want.
    4 the recognition of what viewers want是補充說明the joy… 因為viewers want joy ? 但the joy跟the recognition 意思不同,這樣子的寫法好嗎 ?
    謝謝老師

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  4. 因為網站技術問題尚未克服,目前先以「張貼留言」方式回覆問題。以下回覆Agnus留言:
    1
    ...so that he would document it...
    2
    that corruption amounts to stealing就是學生提出的意見,以此意見來反對教授說的話
    3
    看來應該是that priests aren't perfect any more之誤:「神父不像從前的形象那麼完美無缺ー這種情況其實已經見怪不怪,無傷大雅」
    4
    應該是兩件不同的事,加在一起作為most appealing qualities的同位格(有兩種qualities)

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  5. This room is big enough if it's not *otherwise* for four.

    (如果不是給四個人住,這個房間是足夠大的了。 )
    您好,旋老師!
    這是我一個外教(來自美國)給我的例句,請問老師:
    How do I understand the function of "otherwise" here?
    Thanks in advance!

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  6. One thing's for sure - once the baby's born, your lives will never be the same again.
    請教旋老師,for是介系詞,為何能接sure作為受詞?這裡的sure應為何詞性?

    Political considerations aside, there was also the question of morality.
    These problems aside, we think the plan should go ahead.
    這裡的aside是副詞,但是前面都只有名詞,這裡的文法現象應該如何解釋?
    noun + aside在意思上是否等同於aside from?
    像第一句,能不能說成:Aside from political considerations, there was also the question of morality.

    謝謝旋老師解答!

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  7. 回覆Jerry留言:

    big enough, if it is not otherwise, for four:「要住四個人,大是夠大了,如果不提別的。」
    可以還原為if it is not enough in other ways

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  8. 回覆Gavin留言:

    1
    介系詞後面應該接名詞當作受詞,但是實際上接別的詞類的情形也很常見。例如:I can't be here for long. He'll be here for good.
    2
    可以這樣解釋。我認為這種構造是Putting...aside的省略:
    Putting political considerations aside...
    Putting other things aside...

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  9. 老師您好
    So when a deranged man opened fire on a baseball diamond, he was taking aim at more than the GOP members of Congress. He targeted the notion that the country could still be more than the political furies that increasingly define it... On that score, his attack was a failure.
    1 the country could still be more than the political furies 的意思是?

    More is at stake in Uber’s crisis than one company’s future, no matter how much venture capital it has raised. Because Uber is the defining technology success story of this era, its woes–and how it weathers them–are a wake-up call for all of Silicon Valley. 
    2 one company’s future完整的寫法是 in one company’s future ? one company’s future是指任一家公司的未來 (不包括Uber's) ?


    Several senior Republicans expect that a breaking point will come, which will force the President to cede more of his control. “When his numbers go down to 30%, he has got to listen,” said one Republican with prior White House experience. “And they are starting to decline.” On June 12, Trump hit 60% disapproval in the Gallup daily poll.
    Those declining numbers may explain why, inside the West Wing, an alternative mood is sometimes the order of the day. Trump’s entire Cabinet gathered steps from the Oval Office for its inaugural meeting in a classic Trump style, with effusive public praise of the President himself. “It is just the greatest privilege of my life to serve as Vice President,” Pence began, after which each officer followed.
    3an alternative mood is sometimes the order of the day. 是在暗示 ?
    4with effusive public praise of the President himself.是總統在自誇,是補充說明 in a classic Trump style。但從上下文得知,是幕僚在誇總統,只是這次不是 總統在自誇,這次是幕僚誇總統 ?

    And every now and then she wins a prize. But beyond winning, she's busy thinking about what that prize really means. Hear that whoosh? It's the sound of a hammer coming down, so soft you can barely heart it.
    5Hear that ... heart it. 是在暗示 ? 可是hammer 落地的聲音怎會是soft ?
    謝謝老師

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  10. 回覆Agnus留言:
    1
    國家應該有更崇高的意義,但是今日的美國卻只剩下政治惡鬥。此人槍擊國會議員,如果意圖要否定國家的意義,作者認為此舉是失敗的
    2
    比較的兩句是:
    Much is at stake.
    One company's future is at stake.
    然後變成More is at stake than one company's future.在此的one company指的就是Uber這一家公司
    3
    「一種相反的情緒當道。」
    4
    這裏是說幕僚誇總統
    5
    這裏就是用這種矛盾的說法來強調此人手法輕柔



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  11. 老師您好
    In Washington, the ‘first law of holes’ is one of those shopworn maxims that are so familiar, they need not be spoken. It’s like what you should do if you want a friend in the capital: ‘Get a dog’ goes without saying.
    Now he’s learning the local folklore the hard way. The first law of holes is, if you’re in one, stop digging. Three times, Trump heard assurances from former FBI director James Comey that the Russia investigation wasn’t aimed at him. Instead of putting his shovel down, though, Trump worked it furiously. 
    1Get a dog’ goes without saying. 的意思是?


    A fact of Washington life that ought to be a maxim, but isn’t: not every important moment gets a headline. One such moment was a largely overlooked exchange in May between Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, and Comey, who still held his job at the FBI.
    “It’s not uncommon to seek and use tax returns in a criminal investigation?” asked the Senator, himself a former prosecutor, who was well aware of the answer.
    2A fact of Washington life that ought to be a maxim, but isn’t的意思是?


    Building the instruments(telescopes) that make that wondering gaze possible isn’t easy or cheap, and none of it pays the kinds of earthly dividends that pick-and-shovel programs like fixing roads or building airports do. But there are other kinds of dividends as well, and if uncovering the universe’s most ancient secrets doesn’t qualify, what would? Washington could certainly spend its money more frugally, but it’s hard to see how it could spend it more imaginatively.
    3 if uncovering the universe’s most ancient secrets doesn’t qualify, what would? 背後的意思是 ?
    謝謝老師

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  12. 回覆Agnus留言:

    1
    If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.暗示:在華府不可能交到真正的朋友。後面的goes without saying是「不用說、當然就是」
    2
    「華府生活還有一件事應該成為格言、但不是格言,那就是…」。原文but isn't是but isn't a maxim的省略
    3
    If uncovering the universe’s most ancient secrets doesn’t qualify (as a dividend), what would (qualify...)?
    暗示「揭開宇宙最古老的奧秘」當然可以算是dividend



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  13. 老師您好
    The White House insists that the changes in spending shouldn’t be called a cut, since they are merely decreases from what everyone thought they’d spend in the coming years. “If you spent $100 last year on something, and we spend $100 on it this year–on that same thing–in Washington, people call that a cut,” White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said in May. As White House counselor Kellyanne Conway put it on June 25, “This slows the rate for the future.”
    That leaves those steeped in the budget bemused, since no one expects health care to stop becoming more expensive. “If the federal government says, ‘Well, we’re only paying a certain amount going forward,’ then one of two things happen: either services are going to be cut or 25% of people who are currently covered are going to be cut,” says Andy Slavitt, a former administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. “There’s no way around it–there’s not that much slack in state budgets.”

    1The White House insists that the changes ... the coming years意思是如果去年花50,今年只花40,這個是decrease, 不是cut ?

    2If you spent $100 ...a cut。因為今年跟去年都花100,為什麼是cut ?


    3This slows the rate for the future意思是今年跟去年都花100,所以費率沒有增加

    4paying a certain amount going forward的意思是 ? 

    What’s changing in America? Not observations on kids these days. Polls confirm what the heart already knows: every generation thinks the one coming up behind it is at least a little bit spoiled. The sentiment is expressed first as aspiration–the desire to see your kids live better than you were able to–and then, if prosperity indeed arrives, as complaint. “Kids don’t work anymore,” says the manager of a company that struggles to recruit teen counselors for sleepaway camps, speaking privately to vent. “Mine are 12 and 14, and they want everything to be done for them.
    5Not observations on kids的意思是 ?
    謝謝老師

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  14. 回覆Agnus留言:
    1, 2
    去年花了50,今年各界預估應該要花60,但還是只編列50的預算,那麼從60減化50是decrease,但本來就是50,所以沒有cut
    3
    這句意思不是很清楚。可能表示「減低了將來增加的速度」
    4
    「將來只支付固定的費用」,例如往後每年都是100,不再調整
    5
    承上句,Observations on kids are not changing in America nowadays.「在美國,對小孩子的觀察(評論)沒有改變」


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  15. 旋老師:

    請問 New sites for waste disposal will be determined having regard to environmental matters. 1. 當中的having regard to...是副詞子句 after have regard to 嗎?
    2.句子的主語是New sites,兩句主語不同為何不會是dangling 錯誤?

    謝謝老師

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    回覆
    1. 句子不好,不應該採用having...的構造

      刪除
  16. 老師您好
    Michelle Obama joined in with a Twitter selfie sporting the group's message.

    1 sporting和 , sporting(前面加逗點)及 to sport 三種寫法在語意上差異為何 ?

    Once those students graduate, they need to be compensated as public-health personnel and not treated as luxuries for the private market.
    2意思是: 這些學生應該進入公部門,而不是進入私部門追求更高的薪水 ? 

    The Minions(電影中的配角) have proved they can't headline the movie, yet they pretty much carry this one.
    3yet they pretty much carry this one.的意思是 ?

    It's an outrage that so much public money should have been wasted in this way.
    4在文章中如果出現Should have been ,可能是假設語氣或猜測,可是原句看起來不像是假設語氣或猜測,看起來像是事實的陳述。不知該如何解釋 ?
    謝謝老師

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    回覆
    1. 1
      不加逗點是形容詞子句which sported...減化,修飾先行詞selfie。加逗點則可能變成分詞構句修飾joined(比較不清楚),所以加上逗點比較好。如果用to sport,意思是in order to...,還是飾joined,意思不大合理
      2
      文章應該有上文,表示這些學生有在做某種工作。一旦畢業之後,既然有做工作就應該拿報酬,而不是為私人提供享受
      3
      他們在這部片子中能夠撐得住場面
      4
      語氣助動詞只有加完成式才能表示過去。should have been一方面表示過去,另一方面暗示「不應該、竟然…」

      刪除
  17. 旋老師好,
    請問老師文法問題
    國立嘉義高級中學103 學年度第1 次教師甄選-英文科試題
    In Japan, life is often much slower outside the big cities, _____ is true in other countries as well.
    (A.which B. what C. as D. that)
    正確解答給C 請問老師答案A可以嗎?
    10. X: When will the plane arrive?
    Y: It should have arrived an hour ago; it is already _____.
    (A. overtime B. overdue C. delayed D. behind.)
    正確解答給B 請問老師答案C可以嗎?
    還有overdue形容班機延誤是否符合正確用法
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      答案A應該也對。另外,答案C其實和後面的as well內容有重複,並不是好答案
      2
      overdue可以形容班機延誤。另外,答案C也可以

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  18. 老師您好
    The story of contemporary Hong Kong is a story of broken promises, of a city that has seen its crusades for democracy repeatedly defeated by its overlords. This as the mainland itself has flourished… while Hong Kong suffers from unaffordable housing…
    1of a city 的city不等於promises。所以這種寫法好嗎 ?
    2This as…This是指The story of contemporary…overlords.這一段話 ?而as =when ?


    Few think the U.S. can bomb its way out of this. For one thing, North Korea is adept at hiding its missiles, and there’s no guarantee the U.S. could get them all. North Korean retribution would also be fierce–and 25 million South Koreans live within range of conventional weapons, while Japan is also a target. An incomplete U.S.-led military strike on just one facility could cost as many as 1 million lives and $1 trillion, according to one Pentagon estimate given to Clinton-era negotiators. The math hasn’t gotten kinder in the intervening years.
    3The math hasn’t gotten kinder in the intervening years 中的the intervening years是指攻打北韓之後的後續期間,但為何要用hasn’t gotten kinder現在完成式?因為攻打北韓這件事是非事實。

    Activists are counting on the emotional appeal of their stories to continue to sway Senators. “How do you as a Republican lawmaker counter the argument ‘My child is sick and will die if you pass this bill’?” says Dana R. Fisher, a professor of sociology at the University of Maryland who studies protest and social movements. “It’s extremely difficult to pivot on that into any kind of political speak that doesn’t make you sound like an a–hole.”
    4It’s extremely difficult… hole的意思是 ?

    It all adds up, in the words of a senior Administration official, to a “sh-tstorm” that no White House staffer even tries to deny. The #FakeNews defense won’t work when the Trump family is the one tweeting the potentially incriminating emails. And all of Washington has awakened to the fact that the Russia issue has spiraled beyond anyone’s control. There are too many investigations and too many targets–each with his own interests to protect and his own team of attorneys to protect them–and too many enemies created by Trump’s bull-in-a-china-shop style. It’s not a question anymore of putting them all in a box and shutting the lid. It’s only a question of how bad it will get.

    5each with his own interests 的each是 each target ?
    6how bad it will get的it 從此段落找不出it代表何事,但從文章(How Donald Trump Jr.’s Emails Have Cranked Up the Heat on His Family,july24.2017.TIME)可知it 是指Trump Jr.’s Emails被調查的事 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      of a city that...具有解釋上文of broken promises的功能,所以可以
      2

      3
      the intervening years是指從Clinton時代至今的這一段時間,所以用現在完成式
      4
      to pivot on that into a kind of political speak「由那個出發點開始,迅速轉變立場、提出一套政治說詞」,也就是「設法自圓其說」。作者的意思是,不論怎樣的自圓其說,難免都會令人覺得是個asshole
      5

      6
      it在此是個虛字(假主詞),沒有明確內容,是指「整件事」

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  19. 旋老師請問,下面這句話是否on the bus和in the bus都可行
    He saved all the people on the bus.
    He saved all the people in the bus.
    選擇介系詞in還是on怎麼判斷,為何是get in the car,換成bus之後卻變成了get on the bus?
    Longman Dictionary says Don't say "Get in the bus."明明都是車,為什麼一個用get in,一個用get on?

    謝謝老師解惑

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    1. 公共交通工具通常用on,如on the train, on the plane, on the bus等等。「搭上」也通常用get on,取on board之義。the car不屬於公共交通工具,用法不同

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  20. 旋老師,我在教學期刊看到關於「A比B大N倍」的表達上有兩種不同的看法
    第一種觀點:
    A is N+1 times as large as B.或者
    A is N times larger than B.
    第二種觀點:
    A is N times as large as B.或者
    A is N times larger than B.
    (第二種觀點的原文:在英文倍數表達方式中,對上述中文倍數的兩種表達方式的意思卻是相同,即「A is N times larger than B」,也可表示成「A is N times as large as B」。)
    請問老師,那種才是正確的翻譯方式?應該如何去理解「A比B大N倍」?
    謝謝旋老師

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    1. 比較清楚的講法是用as...as,例如:飛機票3000元、火車票1000元,最好說The plane fare is three times as expensive as the train fare.。反之,如果說The train is three times more expensive than the train fare.,對方可能理解為3000元對1000元、也可能理解為4000元對1000元,所以這種說法不夠清楚。另外,如果是很大的倍數,兩種說法就沒什麼差別了,例如:The Presidential Suite is 100 times more expensive than (or as expensive as) the hostel.

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  21. 旋老師好,麻煩您指點一下突破口語瓶頸的方向(非口試,僅就友人之間的交流)
    1.每天堅持記憶單字和片語,一段時間後還是無法感覺到自己的口語能力有明顯的提高,還是會遇到自己難以表達的內容,感覺辭彙問題總是無法突破,在網路上聽說只需要5000左右的辭彙量就能解決日常會話,文法觀沒問題,辭彙量也不少,但為什麼還是感到在日常會話上有困難?原因是什麼?
    2.旋老師在廣讀法中提到廣讀也可以突破口語上的問題,可是廣讀需要以字源分析能力為基礎且需要長期的時間投入,如果要在短期內提高自己的口語表達水平,進行集中的單字和片語記憶是否相對於廣讀法更為合適且有針對性?

    感謝旋老師指點

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    1. 看起來你已經花了不少時間去記單字、片語,而且已經具有足夠的文法觀念。這時候你需要的是大量練習。廣讀(速度要夠快)是一種練習方式。多聽也是一種練習方式。可以下載一些簡單的英文mp3(例如Voice of America中的Learning English部分),隨身帶著聽。如果需要練習口說,可以搜尋language exchange性質的網站,找個說英文的對象:你教他說中文、他教你說英文。

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  22. 1.廣讀需配合字源分析進行,字源分析的門檻很高,不易掌握,常見字根有上百個,以最基礎的in-=not為例,字源大挪移中光in就有3種變形im,ir,il,變形繁多,許多變形與音標有關,感覺在記憶上很困難,縱使生硬記憶也容易忘掉,字源的學習中對於變形應該如何記憶?如何應對字根的複雜變形?
    2.要達到不查單詞的廣讀,字源分析要掌握到什麼程度才夠?像是要掌握多少常見字根才夠脫離字典?
    3.應該如何通過訓練克服不查難受的心理障礙?旋老師中學時也是查字典過來的,想必開始放棄查字典也不是一下子就能做到的,縱使自己已經減少查閱的次數,還是無法做到老師所提脫離字典不求甚解地廣讀,對於很多人來說捨棄不是一件簡單的事情

    感謝旋老師撥冗解答

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    1. 1
      所謂變形,多半只是連音所造成的同化作用。如果後面接的是雙唇音(m, b, p),in會被同化為雙唇音im。如果後面是r開頭,會同化為ir。後面是l開頭,會同化為il。只要觀察一下,不難掌握。
      2
      先花點時間,記憶一百多個字首字根就足夠使用了。
      3
      要改變習慣,是有點困難。建議先從最簡單的讀物開始(例如童話故事),訓練自己的閱讀速度與英文理解。

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  23. 想與旋老師探討有關廣讀法的疑問
    1.如何用廣讀法解決片語的理解問題?老師在廣讀法的介紹上提到過廣讀法配合字源分析能不查單詞,通過字源的分析解決辭彙上的問題,可是如何應對片語的理解?如果不查片語,多數情況下難以通過多讀不求甚解地去讀懂意思,比如倍數表達的片語increase by/to 3 times與as much large again as,即使是通過查閱詞典也不易理解,甚至很多老師都會搞錯
    2.中英雙語的閱讀材料是否比純英文的材料更好?很多人從小學習英文,為了應試,見過的英文文章不計其數,可以說也是實踐了老師介紹的廣讀法,但是很多人並沒有真正掌握英文,大學畢業多年未用後,反而連簡單的英文都不會講,廣讀可以解決口語與閱讀的問題,那為什麼還會出現這種現象,在廣讀上還應該注意什麼問題?
    3.自己用的是Phonics,沒有發音問題,但音標一直學不會,音標在學習時要進行大量符號和發音的記憶,記憶門檻高,特別難以掌握,周圍人學會的也不多,想請教旋老師自己在音標上的學習經驗
    此外,對於字源分析而言,音標的掌握是必須的嗎?要達到老師這樣高層次的英文水平,學不學音標對於英文的掌握有多大的影響?

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    1. 1
      片語的情況和單字相同。如果是常用的片語,廣讀時就會經常看到。因為有上下文、再加上有字面上的意思,不難判斷出來。如果是冷僻的片語,並不需要學習。
      2
      一般人的閱讀習慣是「精讀」,閱讀速度與份量都和真正的廣讀相去甚遠。中英雙語材料是一種階段性的教材,達到足夠水準之後就應該避免,改用純英文的讀物。只要真正讀得快、讀得多,自然會收到廣讀的效果。
      3
      音標不需要學。查網路字典,很容易找到「有聲」的。

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  24. 老師您好
    But for all its flaws, the mall did manage to bring people together in ways that, in the era of personal devices, even Gruen might appreciate: the grandmothers and goths, the flirting teens, the mall walkers and mall rats. They’re all online now, face-to-screen, interacting in ways impersonal and impulsive. It’s a different sort of marketplace, unsurpassed in its efficiency and with its own code and culture, but without the skylights, the sweet smells, the splashing fountains, the ethereal Muzak–all of which are still around, but you have to look hard to know it.
    1 all of which ... know it.意思是這些東西在現實生活中還存在,只是已不多見了 ?

     Late in the film, a British commander played by a stalwart Kenneth Branagh, knowing that nearly all of his own men have been rescued, makes an executive pronouncement: He will not leave stranded French soldiers behind. His England, even then, was part of a greater whole, and that made him no less English.
    2 His England...English是在暗示什麼 ?

    Available forces for incident responsein a federal status include the Active and Reserve Components, to include National Guards.
    3應該是 Include Active... and National Guards,可是為什麼原句寫to include ,有省略什麼字嗎 ?

    Critics dubbed her “the Mistress of Delay,” and to hear Florida’s politicians and prosecutors tell it, Holdman was a mighty force thwarting the will of the people.
    4to hear 不知是什意思,是 有省略什麼字嗎 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      是。因為the mall已經式微了
      2
      背景是二次大戰。英國軍官在法國,指揮Dunkirk撤退。英軍撤完之後,此人選擇留下來陪同被困的法軍。His England...一句,意思是「即令在當時,這位軍官也不把英國視為孤立在歐洲以外。而且,持有這種觀點(認為英國與歐洲不可分)絕不減損此人的英國身分。」這是相對今天的「脫歐」而言:今天許多英國人認為要脫離歐洲、把英國置於第一,這樣才算愛英國
      3
      還原為if one should include National Guards「若把National Guards算進去的話」
      4
      也是if one should hear...「如果聽他們的說法…」

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  25. 老師您好
    These days, it’s common for major public companies to market themselves using words like sustainability and mission-driven. But University of Baltimore history professor Joshua Clark Davis argues this kind of branding derives from big corporations’ antithesis: small businesses, especially those born during the social-justice movements of the 1960s.
    In his new book, From Head Shops to Whole Foods, Davis profiles several of these entrepreneurial ventures, such as the black-owned Drum and Spear Bookstore and the feminist Diana Press, and explains how they pioneered what he calls “activist entrepreneurship” by selling progressive products, using storefronts as political spaces, sharing ownership, limiting growth and de-prioritizing profit.
    Although many of these businesses have since closed, their language legacy lives on, albeit in ways that would likely make their founders cringe.
    1 Albeit… cringe的原因是: 小企業的目標是selling progressive products, using storefronts as political spaces… 與大企業的目標不同,而大企業卻採用小企業的用語,如sustainability and mission-driven等字,所以讓小企業cringe.

    In April, the U.S. Internal Revenue Service granted Friends of Notre Dame tax-free status, and the organization is planning to hold a five-city American road show in spring 2018 in an all-out push to raise the money. By the time serious renovation work begins–perhaps sometime before the end of this decade–the damage could be worse than it is today. But at Notre Dame, history is counted not in years but in centuries. “We hope it will last forever,” Picaud says. “But it cannot last forever without this renovation.”
    2 history is counted not in years but in centuries.是暗示雖然By the time serious renovation work begins–perhaps sometime before the end of this decade 但但但但renovation不會太晚,還來得及 ?

    Venezuela leveraged nearly half of Citgo (the subsidiary Venezuela owns in the U.S) for a loan from a Russian state-owned oil company.
    3leverage: to make money available to someone in order to invest or to buy something such as a company 不過leveraged of Citgo for a loan 我還是不了解其意 ?

    Most diagnoses do not come with 20-plus medicines approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat it –and yet with depression, more options don’t always mean better outcomes
    4 treat it的it是diagnoses,可是diagnoses是複數 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      是。像sustainability, mission-driven這種字眼,本來都有濃重的使命感、崇高的理想性。現在卻被圖利的
      大財圑濫用,會令人覺得刺耳
      2
      是。cathedrals是幾百年歷史的東西,不急於幾年,但不能完全不補救
      3
      動用Citgo公司近半數的資產作為抵押,向俄羅斯國營石油公司貸款
      4
      是不大好。不過言下之意是most diagnoses之中的「任何一個」,還算可以接受

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  26. He advised Tom to walk slowly and to find a walking stick.
    能否省略掉後面的to變成:
    He advised Tom to walk slowly and find a walking stick.

    謝謝旋老師

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    1. 可以(省略的原則是「夠清楚就可省略」)

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  27. I like to play the basketball game.
    I like to play basketball games.
    「我喜歡打籃球」應該使用哪一種講法,還是都可以,怎麼去解釋好?
    the basketball game和basketball games都可以指籃球這種運動嗎?the basketball game只能指某場籃球比賽嗎,能不能指代籃球這種比賽?

    the basketball game指代籃球這種運動時,the還是this, that的減化嗎?the應該還原成什麼?this basketball game 感覺像「這場籃球比賽」而不是「籃球運動」

    It is basketball games.「這是籃球運動」
    這句話是否應該改成It is the basketball game.

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    1. the basketball game有兩種解釋:「這場」比賽或是「籃球賽『這種』東西」。basketball games使用零冠詞,指的是「所有」的,也就是「這種」。

      the basketball game是the game or this game called "basketball".

      It is basketball games與It is the basketball game,兩句中it的先行詞都沒有交代清楚。若是場中正有一場比賽進行,可以說This is a basketball game。若要說「符合某種條件的比賽就叫作籃球比賽」,可以說Such a game as...is called a basketball game.

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  28. 請教旋老師the的理解
    the是不是有兩層不同的含義,一種是指這一類事物,一種是指代特定的事物「那...」,即that,this,those,these的減化?
    但如果the指代某一類事物,感覺the還原成that, these, this, those很怪,此時應該如何還原the?
    Teachers use the white board to teach.這裡的the white board指的是白板,而不是指那一塊白板,如果還原成that white board或those white board很怪,這裡的the怎麼去理解?

    謝謝旋老師解答

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    1. 例句中的the white board意思是「白板『這種』東西」,也就是the tool called "white board"的意思,當中的the tool就是this tool的意思。

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  29. 「在周末」在詞典中有多種表達:
    On weekends、on the weekend、on the weekends
    at weekends、at the weekend、at the weekends
    以上都是「在周末」,加the與不加the,加s與不加s有什麼區別?全部表述都可以互換嗎?
    下面幾個例句都從詞典中摘錄
    They seldom leave their children in the house on weekends.
    What are you doing on the weekend?
    The public are barred from access to the city library on the weekends.
    I only see him at weekends.
    I never work at the weekend.
    We sometimes sleep late at the weekends.

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    1. 單數的on the weekend可以解釋為「本周末」(this weekend),也可以解釋為「在(任何)周末」,後者的the表示「這種時間」。如果用到複數的weekends,指的就是「任何周末」。介系詞用on與at都行,沒有差別。如果是複數,可以採用零冠詞(weekends),表示所有的周末。也可以採用定冠詞(the weekends),表示「周末『這種』時間」。

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  30. 作者已經移除這則留言。

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  31. 老師您好
    Is that merely a function of cosmic randomness? Yes. Might you also find order and even divinity in it? Yes again. There is nothing wrong with seeing the 2017 eclipse as a gift to a riven nation—provided we resolve to be worthy of it.
    1provided we resolve to be worthy of it.暗示美國雖處於分裂,但看日全蝕是全民運動,使全民更團結,而團結的方法是resolve to be worthy of it?

    No bird is going to displace humans as the smartest critters on the planet, of course, but all of this work is nonetheless a reminder that our familiar, self-flattering equation–big thoughts require big brains–is a myth. There are elegant brains and nimble brains too–and they are home to equally elegant and nimble minds.
    2不太解There are … nimble minds.所要表達的意思 ?

    But it is also likely that Trump knows on some level that his presidency and perhaps the nation hang in the balance. In moments of crisis, American political leaders have often turned to the nation’s military brass to guide the country with clear thinking. For the time being, current and former officers are positioned to perform double duty, providing for the common defense abroad and a measure of common sense at home. If that isn’t what the Founders had in mind when they drafted the Constitution, it is also preferable to several other possibilities that could still become reality. The arrangement bears close watching. But in the case of John Kelly, it is a reminder of what a lifetime of service to the nation can mean.
    3 it is a reminder…暗示雖然John Kelly一生都在軍中服務,但Trump 選他當White House Chief of Staff是正確的決定 ?

    The heart of Atypical is its difficult-to-forget main character. Sam sits rigidly upright on the bus so as to avoid touching the seat back. He pulls a stranger’s ponytail at his sister’s track meet to get it to stop shaking in his face. And he has an unusual coping mechanism in times of stress: he thinks about Antarctica, and how chilly and remote it is there. Gilchrist, previously seen as Toni Collette’s son on Showtime’s United States of Tara, conveys Sam’s gifts and challenges masterfully.
    High school–with its constant interpersonal sparks–is as far from the South Pole as it gets. And Atypical, in quieter moments, shows how a group of people band together to get one perceptive, thoughtful kid through.
    4High school–with its constant interpersonal sparks–is as far from the South Pole as it gets的意思是 ?
    5 interpersonal sparks是人與人之間的爭吵 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      有這個意思。美國因為川普而陷入分裂。若把日蝕視為天賜,用於癒合分裂,作者認為並無不可,但是叮嚀美國人說「不能只仰賴上天」,而要有所表現,需知「天助自助」
      2
      elegant與nimble都帶有「小巧」的暗示。接續上文,意思是說「腦大不見得就好,小也有小的好處」
      3
      我覺得這裏主要在暗示:職業軍人並不是退伍就沒事了,隨時有可能會被徵召,繼續奉獻
      4
      這位角色,處理壓力的方式是「想像身處南極」。那是孤立無援的地方。現實生活中,這位角色是在高中,隨時要和人互動,碰到壓力也隨時有人會伸出援手,絕非像南極那樣冰冷、無人情味。所以下文才說有一批朋友等在那邊願意幫忙
      5
      這個sparks應該是正面的:碰觸產生出火花,那是有創造力、有溫暖的事

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  32. dig a hole four feet across and three feet deep
    請教旋老師,這句中的across與deep的詞性分別是什麼?and為對等連接詞,所連接的內容詞性對等,若across為ad.,deep為a.,為什麼還能成立?
    還是說對等的內容是關係子句,即還原成:dig a hole which is four feet across and which is three feet deep呢?但是這樣的話不會誤解成挖兩個不同的hole嗎?
    詞典中的解釋:
    a hole fully thirty feet across足有30英尺寬的洞(這裡的across為ad.)
    Dig a hole around 12 inches deep. 挖一個約12英寸深的洞。(這裡的deep為a.)

    謝謝老師解答!

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    1. four feet修飾across,當中的across雖然是介副詞,但用法與意思都和形容詞wide相同。three feet修飾deep,當中的deep是形容詞。對等連接詞用來連接across與deep,雖然詞類不同,但「寬」與「深」用來修飾a hole卻是對仗工整,可以這樣用。

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  33. go to school中的school是抽象名詞,by bus中的bus也是抽象名詞,by bus表「方式、手段」,請問老師,除表「方式、手段」外,什麼情況下普通名詞才應抽象化作為抽象名詞使用?go to school不能解釋成「方式、手段」,應該歸為什麼情況?

    Teachers use the white board to teach.老師使用白板教學而不是使用這塊白板教學,為什麼use the white board中「白板」沒有普通名詞抽象化說成「use white board」,但go to school卻與go to the school不同?wear school uniform是否又與wear the school uniform不同呢?

    謝謝老師!

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    1. go to school和go to bed之類,表示「做某種活動」的片語,也是普通名詞抽象化的例子。

      the whiteboard是「白板這種東西」

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  34. 旋老師您好,請教您the的理解
    people's opinion on wearing school uniforms能否寫成people's opinion on wearing the school uniform?
    因為uniform為普通名詞,是否能加the用the school uniform指代「校服」而不是「某件校服」,school uniforms與the school uniform是否都能指代「校服」?

    Do you wear school uniform?句中的school uniform為什麼為零冠詞,wear school uniform是否屬於普通名詞抽象化,又能否寫成Do you wear the school uniform?

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    1. 各校有各校的校服,所以用複數school uniforms是合理的(泛指所有的校服)。如果說the school uniform,可以表示「這件校服」、「這種校服」,也可以表示「校服這種東西」,所以意思比較不明確。

      後面那個句子,應該用a school uniform比較好。

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  35. The crumbling sidewalks are dangerous for old people. 能否寫成The crumbling sidewalks are dangerous for the old people.
    old people使用零冠詞是否因為people為複數形式?

    如何解釋most of the old people不能寫成most of old people,如何這裡the的含義?為什麼上面情況不加the,但是下面情況要加the?

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    1. 「老人」可以說the old(後面的people省略),也可以說old people(因為複數,採用零冠詞)。如果說the old people,感覺像是特定的一群(例如the old people that live in the neighborhood)。

      most of the old people就是「這群老人當中的大多數」。如果沒有範圍,泛指「所有老人中的大多數」,就不要加the(定冠詞就是指出特定範圍的)

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  36. 老師您好

    On the day of the “14 Minutes” headline, Guam’s government issued a two-page fact sheet titled “In Case of Emergency: Preparing for an Imminent Missile Threat.” Among the advice it gives residents affected by fallout: Avoid using conditioner “because it will bind radioactive material to your hair.” Ana Aguon, an islander, says she read the fact sheet but worries that if a bomb comes at night, there won’t be time to heed its advice. “I told my kids, ‘Just make sure you’ve got snacks so that whenever they tell us to evacuate, you just grab your backpack and move,'” she says.
    On Aug. 12, Trump called Guam Governor Eddie Calvo. He assured Calvo that he was “1,000%” behind him and suggested he enjoy the attention. Tourism, the President said, is “going to go up, like, tenfold with the expenditure of no money.” Some, however, caught an unusual note in Trump’s phrasing. He called Calvo, Trump said several times, “to pay [his] respects.” For two men just shooting the breeze, it was an oddly funereal phrase.
    1For two men...phrase.背後的意思是?

    The motley fascists and their extended klan could hardly have picked a more storied stage than Thomas Jefferson’s temple of enlightenment, the University of Virginia, nor a more perfect sword than flagpoles, weaponizing the very pillars that hold up our national ideal
    2could hardly...than 指fascists沒辦法選 storied stage,只能選 Thomas Jefferson’s temple... ?
    3 weaponizing...是在暗示什麼 ?



    Patti is no conventional beauty: her hair hangs in limp blond ripples, and her shape is less than svelte...
    Jasper tells Patti’s story by blending kitchen-sink drabness with fairy-tale idealism. He’s better at the idealism; for the realness, he favors wobbly closeups that often render his characters’ faces unintentionally grotesque, and he works too hard at signaling the dinginess of Patti’s surroundings. (Dirty dishes piled up in the kitchen have long been the international symbol for giving up on life.) But Patti Cake$ motors along steadily on Macdonald’s unsentimental charisma. Her Patti radiates a slow-burning glow–she’s a firefly ready to become a flash of lightning–and there’s never a minute when you don’t want good things to happen for her. Divaliciousness is a state of mind, but it’s always better with an audience.
    4Divaliciousness...是在暗示?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      兩個人只是在電話中閒聊(shooting the breeze),事後卻用pay one's respects「致敬」來描述打這通電話的用意,所以令人感到不祥。到葬禮上去獻花也是pay one's respects
      2, 3
      這是比喻。一批法西斯搞示威,選擇的舞台是最具傳奇色彩的維吉尼亞大學(強調理性的啟蒙運動的殿堂)、使用的道具刀劍是繫國旗用的旗竿。旗竿支撐起國旗,猶如大柱子支撐起美國的和平民主理想,如今卻被拿來當武器使用
      4
      Divaliciousness是作者的造字。Diva是歌劇女王、天后。結合delicious,成為devalicious這個合併字。「覺得自己是第一女主角、秀色可餐」,這種感覺就是divaliciousness。最後一句話是說:divaliciousness固然是自己內心營造的感覺、是一種個人心態,但如果有觀眾認同的話當然更好

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  37. 老師您好
    Yet now, 20 years after her death, on Aug. 31, 1997, this is her legacy: less a queen of hearts, perhaps, than a queen of the heart. Demonstrating the courage to break out of a rigidly hidebound establishment to expose not just her failing marriage but also her wounded feelings–that wasn’t something people did in the mid-’90s, not in Britain.
    1queen of hearts 及 a queen of the heart有何不同 ?

    For now, the pecking order inside the West Wing runs directly through the Trump family tree, the old campaign war rooms in Trump Tower and a network of military brass. The new crew has succeeded in cutting out some of the meddlesome voices that saw it as their duty to protect the presidency from the man elected to it. But the survivors’ power is unproved.
    2that saw it...的that 先行詞應是 The new crew,但是原文的寫法感覺是voices ?
    3that saw it的it是 cutting out some of the meddlesome voices?
    4to protect the presidency from the man .. the crew是trump的人馬,為何他的人又要protect the presidency from the man,感覺邏輯不通 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1.
      Queen of Hearts是撲克牌的「紅心皇后」,也是Alice in Wonderland裏面的一個角色。若從字面解釋,則是「眾人心中的皇后」。至於the heart則是「內心、心靈、情感」,所以Queen of the Heart是「代表『情感』的皇后」
      2
      先行詞是the meddlesome voices。川普原先的幕僚中有一批人,認為川普老是亂說話、而且行事魯莾,所以不斷規勸、牽制川普,這就是the meddlesome voices that wanted to protect the presidency from the president。如今這批人已經被排擠出局,由the new crew取代
      3
      it指的是to protect the presidency...
      4
      見1

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  38. 水污染water pollution
    太平洋the Pacific Ocean
    pollution和Ocean都是普通名詞,為什麼加定語修飾時,水污染不說the water pollution,而太平洋卻說the Pacific Ocean?
    有定語修飾時,普通名詞前面如何判斷要不要加the?

    謝謝老師解答

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    1. 世上的ocean有三個,所以ocean是可數名詞。the Pacific Ocean意思是「名為Pacific的『那個』ocean」,指示功能很明顯。

      至於water pollution,因為pollution是不可數名詞,前面可以選擇採用零冠詞(泛指所有的水污染)。如果搭配指示,改成the water pollution in the estuary caused by industrial effluents「由工業排放造成、發生在這個河口的水污染」,如此明確指示之下就要用定冠詞the了。

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  39. 1.the coastal waters of Alaska 阿拉斯加沿海水域
    2.The ship drifted into Turkish territorial waters.
    上面的兩個水域都有特指某個位置,但是為什麼上面的用the,下面的沒有用 the?
    下面的情況能否講成the Turkish territorial waters.

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    1. 複數名詞前面可以採用零冠詞(也就是不加任何限定詞,意思是不限、無限、所有的)。如果加the也行,意思仍然是「特定的、這個、這些」。上述例1因為後面有of Alaska指出是「哪塊水域」,所以前面用the coastal waters。例2的Turkish territorial waters裏面,Turkish territorial是兩個形容詞,在名詞後面並沒有「指定」,所以選擇採用零冠詞。若選擇加上the也可以接受(Turkish territorial這兩個形容詞,多少也具有一些「指示」功能)。

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  40. 旋老師新年好,請教老師the的用法:
    the water與waters的區別是什麼,字典中都有「水域」的含義
    1.something floating on the water.
    2.The cat learnt to adapt to the water.那隻貓學著適應水
    這兩個例子中的the應該如何理解?the應該怎麼還原?
    The cat learnt to adapt to water.這種講法不可以嗎?為什麼用the water?

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    1. 兩句中的the water因為有定冠詞,意思是「此處的水」或「這塊水域」,所以附近應該有個河流、池塘之類,the water指的就是它。如果不加the,如你最後的那個句子,當然也可以。意思變成「對水適應」而非「對這塊水域適應」

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  41. 作者已經移除這則留言。

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  42. 旋老師您好,
    「報紙怎麼評論這本書」能否說成How did the newspapers say about the book?
    把The newspapers say in this way about the book.這句改寫成疑問句不行嗎?即第一句,麻煩老師告知文法問題出在哪裡?

    「你怎麼看B」能否說成How do you think of B?把you think in this way of B.這句改寫成疑問句不行嗎?

    What do you think of it?
    How do you like it?
    這兩個疑問句如何還原成直述句?

    謝謝老師

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    1. How do you like為什麼和What do you think of it?意思相同

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    2. 直述句是:
      The newspaper says this about the book.
      句中的動詞say是及物動詞,後面要有受詞(就是this)。拿this出來改為疑問代名詞what,就成為疑問句:
      What does the newspaper say about the book?
      如果不用疑問代名詞what,而用疑問副詞how(由副詞so改寫而來),造成的問題就是及物動詞say後面沒有受詞,句型不完整。

      另一句的道理相同:
      I think this of B.
      句中的think是及物動詞,要有受詞(this),所以會改寫為疑問代名詞what。

      What do you think of it?句中及物動詞think的受詞是疑問代名詞what。還原為直述句:
      I think this of it.

      How do you like it?句中及物動詞like有自己的受詞it,所以前面採用的就是疑問副詞how。還原為直述句:
      I like it so.

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  43. 老師您好
    His father, Edmund “Pat” Brown Sr., was “a glad-hander in the best sense of the word,” says Rarick.
    1意思是:即使用最favorable的方式來解釋 glad-hander, glad-hander還是
    有負面的意思 ? 

    That is, however, the same answer he gives when you ask Brown if he thinks about his legacy. “If you actually think about it, what would that mean? Are you talking about a book someone would write about you?” he says, starting one of his Socratic dialogues, pressing for an answer to push back against. “It is kind of a morbid, backward-looking thought,” he says, “whereas if you are fully alive and every day you are getting up and the sun is shining and the birds are chirping … I mean, there is stuff to do, problems and crises. That is very exciting.” Doesn’t it make more sense, he asks, that a politician would arise to tackle the day than try to shape some nebulous future impression of what he had achieved? “The concept is thin,” he says, “to be charitable.”
    2The concept is thin的 The concept 是 his legacy,也就是指 backward-looking thought?
    3 to be charitable是不是可以換成 in the best sense of the word?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      意思是:此人是個glad-hander,但是完全沒有負面的意思,要從最好的方向來解讀
      2
      the concept是thinking about one's legacy
      3
      to be charitable是「如果講好聽點、如果留點口德」。言下之意,如果是not charitable,可以用上比thin難聽得多的字

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  44. 作者已經移除這則留言。

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  45. favourite作為adj修飾的名詞,只看到過單數但是詞典中卻沒有出現過複數形式「指最喜歡的只有一個」,但favourite作為noun時,卻可以是favourites「指很多個最喜歡的」,這是否存在矛盾,怎麼理解?
    Who are your favorite actors?是正確的說法嗎?
    These actors are my favourites.的疑問句是Who are your favorite actors?嗎,還是Who is your favorite actor?如果是後一種問法是否會讓讀者覺得是指唯一一個最喜歡的演員?

    「你喜歡西方節日嗎?」
    Do you like the western festival?
    Do you like western festivals?
    兩種翻譯方式都可以嗎?the western festival與western festivals都能指「西方節日」?

    「你參加過哪些社會活動?」
    What social practices have you taken part in?
    What social practice have you taken part in?
    哪種翻譯是正確的?What social practices是指「哪些社會活動」,What social practice是指「哪個社會活動」?

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    1. favorite比較常用單數,但my favorite actors也是正確的。

      the Western festival不夠清楚(感覺像是「這個節日」,但沒有指出「哪個」),複數比較清楚(意思是「所有的」)。

      如果中文是「哪些」,翻譯用practices較接近原文。純就英文用法而言,用單數的practice來問「哪個」亦可。

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  46. 旋老師您好,請教老師關於名詞片語的問題
    a new kind of pencil應該看成是a new kind || of pencil還是看成是a new kind of || pencil?如果是看成a new kind || of pencil,為什麼pencil是零冠詞,使用單數?

    different kinds of animal(s),three kinds of cakes/cake
    What kind of (a) job are you looking for?
    怎麼理解kinds of 後面既可以接複數又可以接單數名詞,kinds of接複數與接單數名詞有區別嗎?怎麼理解kind of 後的a可以省略?

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    1. 如果pencil沒有加s,就得把a new kind of當限定詞看才講得通。

      different kinds of animal(s)後面那些講法都正確。只能說:大家都接受這些說法,所以是正確的。

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  47. 「這本書有什麼問題?」
    What problems does this book have?
    What problem does this book have?
    What is the problem of this book?
    What is the problems of this book?
    What is this book's problem?
    What is this book's problems?
    上面的翻譯方式正確的是?What problem能不能表示所有的問題?
    What problem是such a problem改寫而來的嗎?What problems是such problems改寫而來的嗎?

    「你覺得我能在國外做什麼工作?」
    What kind of job do you think I can do abroad?
    What kinds of jobs do you think I can do abroad?
    What job do you think I can do abroad?
    上面的翻譯方式正確的是?What kind of job是指「哪一種工作」,What kinds of job是指「哪些工作」,What job是指「哪一件工作」嗎?

    謝謝老師

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    1. 第4句和第6句的動詞is要改為are。另外,第1,2兩句用have「擁有」做動詞雖然文法正確,但這裏要表達的並非「擁有」而是「存在有」,所以比較好的講法是What problem is there with the book?與What problems are there with the book?。在what problem(s)這個名詞片語中,what稱為疑問代名詞,由限定詞this, that, these, those寫而來,可以還原為this/that problem,these/those problems。

      講工作那群句子都正確,意思也都差不多(參考上則回覆)。

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  48. What music do you like?
    What kind of music do you like?
    兩句的意思是否均為「你喜歡什麼音樂?」

    What kind of activity will we have?
    What activity will we have?

    What job do you want?
    what kind of job do you want?
    省略句子中的kind of和kinds of後,是否不會對句子的含義產生影響?

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    1. 兩種句子的意思差不多。如果加上kind of,是比較明確在問「種類」。但即使不加kind of,上下文仍然帶一點「哪種」的暗示,所以差不多。

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  49. The virus thrives where people live in close proximity to one another.
    句中的副詞子句where people live in close proximity to one another應該如何還原?

    cost和expense作為費用時都是[countable/uncountable](詞典中顯示),如何判斷這類名詞(一個意思中既有可數又有不可數的詞性)在使用時,是採用可數還是不可數形式?

    「生活費」的表述:
    the cost of living
    living costs
    the costs of living
    living cost(cost不可數)
    the expense of living
    living expenses
    the expenses of living
    living expense(expense不可數)
    上面這些講法中正確的講法是?在文法上又該如何理解?

    謝謝旋老師解答

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    1. People live in close proximity to one another. 前面加上從屬連接詞where成為地方副詞子句,修飾動詞thrives。

      若說「生活開銷」,包括食衣住行等等,應該是複數的概念(有很多種開銷)。就算是不可數名詞,「幾種」的話也要採複數,例如foods。所以living expenses, the costs of living這種片語用複數比較好。如果說the cost of living,單數的cost令人想到的不是「開銷」,而是「代價」:有點像在說「生命的代價」的味道。

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  50. 旋老師好

    1.I wonder where they will take us to.
    2.The bus will take you where you're going to.
    3.Where do you plan to take them to?
    上述的名詞子句中where為疑問代詞,where指代的是代詞there嗎?上面的句子應如何還原?
    能不能改成:
    1.I wonder where they will take us.
    2.The bus will take you where you're going.
    3.Where do you plan to take them?
    將副詞there改寫成疑問副詞where?如果不能改的話,麻煩老師講講哪裡不符合文法?

    又能不能改成:
    1.I wonder which place they will take us.
    2.The bus will take you which place you're going.
    3.Which place do you plan to take them to?
    此時作為疑問代詞的where能否換成which place?which place的which是否具有the的指代意味,此時的which是否由the改寫而來?

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    1. where可以代表the place(這時它是疑問代名詞),也可以代表there(這時它是疑問副詞)。第一群和第二群句子分別是這兩種用法,都對。因為第二群句子比較短,修辭效果比較簡潔,所以優於第一群句子。

      第三群句子不好。which place中的which是限定詞(所以具有和the相同的功能),也有疑問詞的功能,可以引導疑問句,但是which place是個名詞片語,要放在名詞位置使用(當作主詞、受詞等等),可是在第三群句子中的1、2兩句,都沒有這樣的角色來容納它,所以不對。只有3句,因為可以安排在介系詞後面的受詞位置,才是正確的。

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  51. 在關係子句、名詞子句、疑問句中,whom只要在「非介系詞後面的位置」就可以換成who,whomever也同理,這樣看有沒有文法問題?正式的文體也可以這樣做嗎?
    比如,下面的做法:
    1.Whom did you invite to the party? = Who did you invite to the party?
    2.He asked me whom I had discussed it with. = He asked me who I had discussed it with.

    感謝旋老師解惑

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  52. 作副詞使用的時間詞=介系詞+時間詞,但是介系詞+時間詞不一定能省略介系詞,這樣看時間詞有沒有問題?

    at night指的是晚上這個時間點,in the night指的是在夜間這個時間段,night既可以看成時間點又可以看成時間段,是否意味著at night和in the night無差別,可以互換,怎麼理解?
    Anna doesn't like him walking home late at night.能不能把at night換成in the night?
    at a cold night能不能把at換成in?

    1.The attack came early on a summer morning.
    2.They can serve over 1500 covers on a big night.
    a summer morning沒有指出哪一個具體的時間,而且summer是一個時間段,為什麼能用介系詞on?a big night也沒有指出哪一個具體的時間,為什麼也能用介系詞on?

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    1. 第一個問題請參考上則回覆。

      一般人夜裏睡覺,一夜無事,好像很快就過去了,所以可以說at night。如果要說在夜裏做了什麼事,那就是長時間了,也可以說in the night。

      late in the night和in a cold night都行。

      on a summer morning「在某一個夏日早晨」。on a big night「在一個舉行盛大活動的夜晚」。這兩個片語都是在說「某一天」的早晨或夜晚。而搭配「某天」的介系詞通常是on,如on Sunday morning。

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  53. 請教旋老師
    1.Early that morning, he went to the supermarket.
    2.His plane left this morning.
    3.The phone rang at three in the morning.
    4.Are you doing anything Saturday night?
    為什麼第1,2句的morning和第4句的night前面沒有加上介系詞on,卻直接可以用於作為時間副詞?
    時間詞什麼時候可以不接介系詞直接作為副詞使用呢,什麼時候又必須要與介系詞一起作為副詞使用呢?(像第3句就不能直接當副詞使用,要接介系詞)

    那些作為副詞直接使用的時間詞,能不能再加上介系詞?
    Early that morning, he went to the supermarket.
    能不能寫成
    Early on the morning, he went to the supermarket.?或者On the early morning, he went to the supermarket.?

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    1. 名詞片語,如果名詞位置是時間單位,可以不加介系詞而直接當作時間副詞使用,例如:

      I worked five hours.

      在名詞片語five hours中,因為名詞hours是時間單位,整個名詞片語直接當作時間副詞用來修飾worked,這種用法可以視為for five hours省掉介系詞for。地方副詞的情況類似:

      I walked five miles.

      名詞片語five miles裏面的名詞miles是距離單位,整個片語省掉介系詞for、直接當作地方副詞使用。

      你問到的early that morning, this morning, Saturday night都是同樣情況,如果不省略,要加上介系詞,文法也是對的,只是感覺有點囉嗦。

      至於at three in the morning,這是兩個介系詞片語,情況不同。

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  54. 老師您好
    Perhaps Friend’s most troubling insight is that Americans are, at the moment at least, the problem, not the solution. Trump is President not in spite of who we are but because of who we are–even if many of us don’t want to admit that uncomfortable fact. “Trump was … a horndog, a braggart and a social-media-holic–just like voters were,” Friend writes of 2016. “Trump, unlike the typical public servant, was selfish (and committed to self-preservation)–just like voters, who were bone tired of giving and forgiving.”
    1Trump is President not in spite of who we are but because of who we are的意思是 ?


    This growth is fueled by the generosity of ordinary people joined to the intimate immediacy of social media–but it’s also driven by structural gaps that have left too many Americans one piece of bad luck away from financial hardship. More than 40% of Americans are not prepared to handle a sudden expense of $400 or more, be it replacing a broken car engine, visiting an emergency room without insurance or repairing a flooded home, according to a recent report by the Federal Reserve.
    2left too many Americans one piece of bad luck away from financial hardship的意思是 ?


    Thirty years after everything happened–and 31 years since he had first set foot in Southeast Asia–my father, a soldier of the Fourth Infantry Division, wrote me a letter. It was 1999, and the note came with a set of recently rediscovered photographs he and his friends had taken with an old 35-mm Minolta in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. There were images of impossibly young men...
    In his letter to me with the photographs of Vietnam 15 years later, my father was relatively terse about his thoughts in-country. “I wanted,” he wrote, “to get back to life.” My father is dead now, but for the warriors still among us, Ken Burns has at last charted a path back toward life, and toward home.
    3 I wanted,” he wrote, “to get back to life背後的意思是 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      許多人反川普,對於川普能當上總統,感覺很排斥:我們是這樣的人,怎麼會選出那樣的總統?Friend則認為:什麼人選出什麼總統。會選出川普這樣的總統,正因為我們就和他一樣。
      2
      太多美國人濱臨貧窮邊緣:只要碰上一件倒霉事,立即會美入破產。
      3
      希望能夠從越戰陰影中走出來、回復正常生活。

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  55. Hi 旋老师,我想请教个问题。
    1.I agree with you.
    2.She allows me to speak.
    3.You throw an apple to me.
    以上句子中,with you, to speak, to me这三个介系语,在句子充当什么成分呢?谢谢旋老师

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    1. 情況不同。
      1
      I(S) agree(V) with you.
      介系詞片語with you當副詞,修飾agree,說明「同意誰」。
      2
      She(S) allows(V) me(O) to speak(C).
      句中的to speak是不定詞片語(可以視為動詞can speak的詞類變化),形容詞類,當受詞補語,修飾me,說明「准許我可以做什麼」。
      3
      You(S) throw(V) an apple(O) to me.
      介系詞片語to me相當於toward me,當副詞使用,修飾動詞throw,說明「丟給誰、向誰丟」。

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  56. 老師您好
    A:Which of the three pens do you want?
    B:____ will do .
    (A)None (B)Either (C)Any (D)Neither
    正確答案給(C)
    請問(A)行嗎
    如果(A)不行,要如何改?
    謝謝老師

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  58. 老師您好
    In that sense, Trump’s speech was in line with the sovereignty-embracing realist approach adopted by some of his predecessors. But the worldview he articulated contained none of the larger ambitions–no encouragement of democracy, for instance–by which America has defined itself on the world stage for a century. “We do not expect diverse countries to share the same cultures, traditions or even systems of government,” the President said.
    How Trump squares his stated brand of realism with, for instance, punishing Syria for gassing schoolchildren, remains far from clear. Sovereignty, in his case, is hard to distinguish from whatever course of action seems right at the moment.
    1 Sovereignty…moment. 暗示: 美國政府現在所作看起來是對的事其實都有Sovereignty的味道在 ?
    2 Sovereignty…moment.=it’s hard to distinguish Sovereignty from whatever course ? 不過前者句字的寫法好像不多見 ?


    The defeated Axis power adopted a pacifist constitution, secure, as it supposedly still is, within the U.S. nuclear umbrella
    3 secure, as it =although the defeated Axis power supposedly still is secure… ?

    After all, when it first aired in the 1960s, Star Trek boasted one of the most diverse casts on TV, and in 1968 it broadcast the first interracial kiss. Across its many iterations, the 51-year-old series consistently promoted postracial alien harmony and a top-line promise to “boldly go.”
    If only. When CBS revealed that Sonequa Martin-Green (The Walking Dead) and Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) would headline the new Star Trek: Discovery, the two women were greeted with the kind of abuse that has become commonplace in social media.
    4 If only.的意思是? 有省略哪些字嗎 ?

    We are living in the longest period of war in American history and, watching the new TV season, one might think the grinding nature of the conflict has made meaningful storytelling about it impossible. War provides an innately compelling hook for these shows, but there’s something unpleasant and hectoring about how bluntly incurious they are about what it might all mean. They seem satisfied to prove a case with which so many will easily agree: that the military comprises hardworking people, that global terrorism is bad. But true patriotism means wanting one’s own homeland to be the best it can, not just repeating three times a week in prime time that it already is.
    5But true patriotism…it already is.意謂現在的電視劇播放的都是一些homeland已經有的某些東西 ?
    6Repeating後是不是省過了something 之類的字 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      前面說,從前的總統也講究務實、也強調維護國家主權。川普與他們的差別在於:從前的總統還有更高的理想,例如推行民主到全世界。川普則沒有,只顧眼前。
      2
      是這樣解釋沒錯。
      3
      The defeated Axis power adopted a pacifist constitution, so that it was secure (as it supposedly still is) within the U.S. nuclear umbrella. 後面的so that子句表示結果,減化為形容詞補語secure。中間的一對逗點當括弧看,主要為了說明時間:二戰後,戰敗國投入美國保護傘因而獲得安全,至今應該仍是安全。
      4
      If only it were really so. If only it were that simple.上文講到這套影集的理想與成就。中間發出感嘆,因為緊接著馬上說到今天的現實,與理想相去甚遠。
      5
      that it already is後面省掉的是the best it can be
      6
      受詞就是that it already is這個子句

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  59. 老師您好
    Stillness is drenched in humidity and scorched by a sun blasting down from the clear skies that will eventually follow a hurricane. But on this island of 3.4 million people, the quiet after Hurricane Maria had a distinct feeling of absence, an inattention bordering on obliviousness.
    1Stillness is drenched… an scorched…hurricane。感覺還滿抽象的,不知所要表達的意象是 ?
    2Absence與an inattention bordering on obliviousness是同位格,在這的inattention是否可解釋為 absence of attention ?


    But while Trump tweeted about the island’s debts to Wall Street, officials understood that Maria had also left behind the gift of leverage. More Puerto Ricans now live on the mainland than on the island. Migration, already up markedly in recent years, may surge to new heights if swaths of the territory remain unlivable
    3the gift of leverage在這的意思是 ?


    Five Foot Two(a documentary that shows Gaga at a professional and personal low) is remarkable because it is centered around a personality whose need to be seen and understood is running up against implacable realities. By documenting a period that other artists might have kept hidden, it far exceeds the musical era it depict.
    4it far exceeds the musical era it depict. 的意思是?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      記者在風災過後來到現場報導災情,描述眼中所見:一片死寂,濕度極高,天空晴朗,陽光炙熱,風災過後都會出這種大太陽。
      2
      島上雖然有幾百萬人,記者很強烈感覺「看不到人」(absence of people),好像大家不注意災害的嚴重,簡直到渾然不覺的地步。
      3
      看來是「風災讓災民有藉口可以操作:家園不能住了,所以要移民美國」
      4
      應該是it depicts吧?別的藝人會掩飾自己的低潮,Gaga卻選擇拍成紀錄片,所以本片描繪的絕不只是Gaga所處的那段音樂時代(還包括描繪Gaga的內心世界)

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  60. 老師您好:1.想請問複合形容詞可理解成兩個形容詞?如:steel-rimmed glasses,steel跟rimmed皆當作形容詞?
    2.限定詞跟名詞中間的形容詞為何只能放單字不能放片語?是因為文法不對?
    以上疑問麻煩老師解惑了!感謝~

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    1. 1
      原本是a steel rim這個名詞片語,其中steel修飾rim。改寫為steel-rimmed不是兩個形容詞,而是用連字符號合成一個字,也就是一個形容詞
      2
      文法不對

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  61. 作者已經移除這則留言。

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  62. 老師您好
    Some are hoping for help from an unlikely quarter: President Trump. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer tried to find some daylight between Trump and the NRA, which spent a record $30 million on his campaign against Hillary Clinton. “Before he was a candidate and marched in lockstep with the NRA,” Schumer said, “Donald Trump expressed very a reasonable position on gun control.”
    1find some daylight between Trump and the NRA這句是在暗示什麼

    Others are considering how to wrangle Republicans to join previous attempts to finally fund the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention programs to figure out just how much of a public-health risk guns pose
    2 to figure out…=so that Republicans can figure out .. ?

    So why are women choosing the more invasive option more often? There are likely several reasons for what experts are calling a surge in women undergoing CPM--including a woman’s doctor. The study found that surgeons account for 20% of the variation in rates of women removing both breast.
    3surgeons account… breast. 的意思是 ?

    The suits have designer names and a price tag to match
    4a price tag to match從字面上的意思看不出來有價值不斐的意思 ?

    I can’t not eat delicious food, that’s never been who I am .
    5can’t not 好像不是can ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      find daylight between是在兩者之間創造一些距離,也就是要分開(或離間)兩者
      2
      看起來像是修飾programs的目的:programs that try to figure out...
      3
      主要是說:男醫生還是女醫生,對女病人的決定會有影響
      4
      衣服上有設計師的名字,表示這是名家設計,和一般成衣不同,售價當然會貴。and a price tag to match意思就是「售價也符合名家設計的售價」
      5
      英文比較少用雙重否定,但這裏就是:不能不吃美食,不吃就不是我了

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  63. 老師您好
    Eight Years is about the work of black people, and the striving and strife they have lived through in America, and is based on eight columns that Coates wrote for the Atlantic, one to represent each year of Barack Obama’s presidency.
    1 one to represent…=while Eight Years is one to represent ?

    The notion that writing about race, which is to say, the force of white supremacy, is marginal and provincial is itself parcel to white supremacy, premised on the notion that the foundational crimes of this country are mostly irrelevant to its existence.” The notion that reading about race is similarly marginal seems disastrous too. It is foundational to our national identity. Which is why Coates says Trump’s race signaling makes him America’s “most dangerous President — and made more dangerous still by the fact that those charged with analyzing him cannot name his essential nature, because they too are implicated in it.”
    2Premised= because the notion that writing about race, which is to say, the force of white supremacy is premised on .. ?

    3crimes of this country are mostly irrelevant to its existence意思是說white supremacy與國家的存亡大體上沒有關係 ?

    4made more dangerous….=Trump is made more ….. ?

    No race or gender is a monolith — just ask the women who voted for Trump — and Coates has detractors, most recently and vociferously Thomas Chatterton Williams, who wrote in the New York Times that Coates “fetishizes” race, giving whiteness power.
    5No race or gender is a monolith的意思是 ?


    But there can be downsides to the intimacy of social media, particularly when it meets the porous boundaries of public life. Before she settled down with her fiancé, Stewart (an elected official) took a stab at Tinder. “Surprisingly, there are quite a few other elected officials on Tinder as well,” she says. “I definitely swiped left.”
    6But… life是說因為她的public life, 所以私生活受到干擾 ? (如果public life沒有porous,那她就不會被干擾 ?)

    Reuben Faloughi is a 26-year-old Ph.D. candidate and founding member of Concerned Student 1950, the group that held protests at the University of Missouri two years ago over the administration’s handling of racial issues, leading the president and chancellor to resign.
    7Leading…=so this( that the group held protests at the University of Missouri two years ago over the administration’s handling of racial issues) led …. ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      one (column) to represent each year
      歐巴馬當了8年總統,此人就寫了8篇專欄,一篇代表一年
      2

      2, 3
      從黑人的角度來看,美國當初建國是奠定在「奴隸制度」這個犯罪基礎上。要了解美國,就要先了解美國建國者犯的罪、要先了解奴隸制度。但白人至上論者認為:the foundational crimes of this country are mostly irrelevant to its existence「美國的存在和當初犯的罪沒關係」,所以作家不必去寫種族史、讀者也不必去讀種族史。本文作者當然反對這種說法。
      4
      是。the most dangerous president is made more dangerous still...
      5
      a monolith字面上是「一整塊巨石」,暗示「整體、團結」。Women are not a monolith.「女人不是一個整體」(例如有些女人就投票給川普)。Blacks are not a monolith.「黑人不是一個整體」(例如就有黑人反對Coates的立場)。
      6
      這裏似乎在暗示:民選官員應該中立,不要太partisan。此人因為有social media,在上面毫不諱言她是左派,作者認為這樣表明立場的作法太公開了
      7


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  64. Prices of papayas in Taiwan are much lower than those in England. 請問老師既然句首的 prices 後面有介系詞片語來限定,為何其前面沒有定冠詞呢?

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  65. 老師您好
    While the rhetoric makes sense, Trump’s decision to decertify Iran’s compliance with the nuclear deal, coupled with his inconstant support for Iraq’s Kurds, have pushed things closer toward an endgame. In recapturing Kirkuk, Iraqi security forces were joined by Shi’ite militias backed by Iran. The Iranians, emboldened by Trump’s nuclear-deal gambit, have every incentive to push the U.S. into these kinds of existential geopolitical dilemmas.
    To be fair to Trump, this is not the first time a U.S. President has had to give way to realities on the ground. Obama did virtually the same with the Ukrainians when Vladimir Putin invaded in 2014, leaving Kiev in the lurch. The difference here is that it was Trump’s unilateral decision to provoke Iran that ended up forcing moves in Iraq, much like it was Trump’s unilateral backing of Saudi Arabia that touched off this year’s spat between Qatar and other Gulf monarchies. With allies like these, Iraq’s Kurds might be asking if they really need enemies.
    1 In recapturing Kirkuk, Iraqi security…. In是for the purpose of ?
    2to give way to realities 字面上是取代了現實情況,意思是沒有依現實情況採取適當措施 ?
    3 With allies like these, Iraq’s Kurds might be asking if they really need enemies.背後的意思是 ?

    I'm a good tennis player, if not a great one.
    (a) I'm a good tennis player, and may even be a great one.
    (b) I'm a good tennis player, though not a great one.
    If we know the speaker is arrogant, we might default to (a). If we know he is humble, we might default to (b).
    依照上述,if not 有兩種意思,要依上下文判斷。
    The BFHI also strongly recommends rooming-in, the practice of having babies sleep in the hospital room, if not in the bed, with their mom… Doctors worry that rooming-in could lead to mothers’ accidentally smothering their children and possibly contribute to sudden unexpected postnatal collapse, a rare but often fatal respiratory failure.

    4 if not in the bed照道理講有兩種意思 (有可能in the bed,也有可能not in the bed)但Doctors worry that rooming-in could lead to mothers’ accidentally smothering their children 所以if not in the bed在這的意思是”有可能in the bed” 不知觀念是否正確

    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      差不多。相當於while...
      2
      意思是「向現實情況讓步」
      3
      俗話是With friends like these, who needs enemies?「有這種朋友,誰還需要敵人?」意思是「這種朋友比敵人還糟糕」
      4

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  66. While good prices in October trended higher, living costs fell 0.32 percent from a year earlier in the month. 請問老師這句話的 from 該做何意思解? 看起來不是表示起點。

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  67. If I go à la carte 、 go green 請問老師這裡的 go 該作何意思解? 謝謝。

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    1. 兩句不同。à la carte是法文,相當於英文的介系詞片語by the card。句型是I(S) go(V) by the card.,其中介系詞片語修飾go,說明「如何點菜」。

      go green則相當於become green,例如:The company(S) has gone(V) green(C).,意思就是The company has become green.「成為綠色(環保)」。

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  68. Every city dweller has felt the need to escape from the noise and stress of the city, to return to nature.

    不定詞片語當形容詞,修飾the need。但我看不出還原成關係子句會是何模樣,煩請老師解惑。謝謝。

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    1. the need which is that he or she must escape...
      其中的which子句是關係子句,修飾the need。後面的that子是名詞子句,當作主詞補語。關係子句減化後成為:
      the need that he or she must escape...
      其中that子句(名詞子句)是the need的同位格。減化為不定詞片語,成為:
      the need to escape...
      其中to escape...是the need的同位格

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  69. 老師您好
    Perel now argues that while infidelity is a betrayal, that convenient label ignores unsettling questions about whether we are being realistic in our most intimate relationships. Drawing from her interactions with the couples she sees in her practice, she lays out some mitigating factors: Can the guy whose wife with Alzheimer’s can’t remember him have a girlfriend? Is watching Internet porn equivalent to paying for a personalized online performance? Is breaking up an otherwise happy family because its progenitors are sexually incompatible really better for everyone than having a secret side-lover? Perel also points out that not all the unfaithful come from unhappy marriages, or are sex-addicts or just jerks. “Sometimes when we seek the gaze of another,” she writes, “it isn’t our partner that we have turned from, but the person we have become.”
    1Sometimes when we seek the gaze of another,” she writes, “it isn’t our partner that we have turned from, but the person we have become.”背後的意思是 ?

    She ventures that it might be worth trying some form of “consensual non-monogamy” even though the couples who do that still end up in therapy with a whole different set of equally confounding troubles. “Monogamy is impossible,” Francois Truffaut said, “but anything else is worse.”
    2but anything else is worse是說 Monogamy以外的其他事會更不好 ?

    Consider: it was President Bill Clinton who signed a repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act, which had prevented banks from betting your money on Wall Street. And President George W. Bush imposed almost $30 billion in new regulatory costs on Americans, according to the Heritage Foundation. Ultimately, as with much in life, good government relies on the good faith of those in whom we place our trust. Which is why so much rides on the crew that Trump has put in charge of his D.C. demolition project.
    3Bill Clinton 及George W. Bush 代表regulation, 而Trump 是deregulation, . 我太了解Which is why…所要傳達的意思 ?


    The hope is the building will attract more than patrons: the concrete exterior will be texturized so mollusks can latch on and create a mussel reef, serving as a natural water purifier.
    4Serving…是building serves… ?

    To hear Kilcher describe her heritage is to envision a spinning globe: “I was born in Germany, raised in Hawaii…
    5To hear及to envision可否改成hearing 及 envisioning,而且意思不變 ? 像to v is to v的句型應該不可翻成”為了….”, 以原句為例: 聽了….就像想像….,不知觀念是否正確 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      「當我們尋求和第三者的注目,有時候並非因為我們背離了伴侶,而是因為我們本身改變了」
      2

      3
      Clinton簽署的是廢除管制法案(which子句修飾的是the Act),所以他是deregulation做法,背離傳統的民主黨路線。Bush所做的則是regulation,背離傳統的共和黨路線。成敗的關鍵在於民眾是否信任主事者。Trump的demolition project所做的是deregulation,成敗的關鍵同樣在於主事者(主持demolition的官員)。
      4
      which serves as a natural water purifier,修飾mussel reef。
      5
      正確

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  70. 旋老師好:
    “Keeping up with the Joneses” is a catchphrase in many parts of the English-speaking world. Just like “keeping up appearances,” it refers to the comparison to one’s neighbors as a standard for social status or the
    accumulation of material goods. Generally speaking, the more luxuries people have, the higher their value or social status—or 1.( ) they believe. To fail to “keep up with the Joneses” is thus perceived as
    revealing socio-economic inferiority or, as the Chinese would put it, a great loss of face.
    1. (A) still (B) so (C) yet (D) even
    請問老師為什麼答案是(B),請問是考甚麼文法?
    謝謝老師!

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    1. 還原為they believe that the more luxuries people have, the higher their value or social status,句中整個that子句與上文重複,所以用副詞so取代以避免重複。類似的句子:

      He is tall, and so am I.
      He likes baseball, and so do I.

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  71. What chance is there of anybody being found alive?
    我自行把這句還原: What chance is there that anybody is found alive? 我想問的是,名詞子句減化後,為何不是 of anybody found alive? being 的兩大功能: 強調進行狀態、詞類變化,我看原句的 being 這兩個功能都不具備,請問老師這裡開作何解? 又加不加 being 有何差別? 謝謝老師。

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    1. anybody found alive還原為anybody that is found alive,重點在「人」(anybody)。而anybody being found alive還原為anybody is found alive,重點在「事」(整句敘述)。此處加上being是為了強調「動作」

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  72. 請問老師
    1. I have the same watch as you. 從屬子句經還原的話是 as the watch you have 嗎?
    2. news as reported in the journal vs. containing more words than are necessary 為何前者的從屬子句省略 be ,後者的卻要保留 be?這規則怎麼記呢?謝謝。

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    1. 1
      還原為as you have (the watch)
      2
      都行。前面也可以說news as is reported...,後面也可以說than necessary。在比較級連接詞than與as後面,可以彈性省略重複的部分

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  73. It is with backhanded gratitude that we might all thank President Trump for that.
    請問老師,這句分裂句的 that 是關係代名詞還是關係副詞? 若是關係代名詞,跟後面的關係子句又沒有關連;若是關係副詞,換成任何一個關係副詞都講不通,請問這裡的 that 該做何解釋? 謝謝。

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    1. 關係副詞,相當於how。亦即:可以還原為we might all thank President Trump so (or in this way)

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  74. 1.
    Online dating services are growing in popularity, and the anonymity of the Internet makes rejecting--and rejection--easier than it was in the past.
    請問老師 rejecting 跟 rejection 有何差別?
    2.
    Still other values are commonly illustrated by stories about national heroes, such the virtue of honesty displayed in the tale of George Washington chopping down his father's cherry tree.
    逗點後的部分是獨立分詞構句嗎? such the n. 這是什麼樣的用法?
    謝謝老師解惑。

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    1. 1
      rejecting是主動拒絕別人,rejection是被別人拒絕
      2
      原句有錯,應該是such as the virtue...,可還原為:such as the virtue of honesty that was displayed in the tale that George Washington chopped down his father's cherry tree

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  75. 老師好
    But they haven’t won a World Series since 1908, which is the longest any professional sports team in North America has gone without winning a championship.
    1. which指的是they haven't won a world series這件事嗎?
    2. the longest後面有省略time that嗎?
    3. the longest any professional sports team in North America has gone without winning a championship.是何子句?

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    1. 1

      2

      3
      any professional sports team in North America has gone without winning a championship前面省略that,是關係子句,修飾先行詞the longest

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  76. 老師您好
    They sat cross-legged in packed rooms making to-do list.
    They sat cross-legged in packed rooms to make to-do list.
    1不知兩者在語意上有何差別 ?

    China has wrapped an amorphous group of project into a tidy package that speaks to inclusiveness, cooperation and altruism: as a green leader, despite being the planet's worst polluter; as a champion of free trade and investement, despite wreathing its economy in red tape...
    2如果原句的冒號省略,可否變成 because China is a green leader … a champion of … ?

    There’s an old, likely apocryphal story that, during a visit to China several decades ago, economist and free-market fundamentalist Milton Friedman visited a site where workers were building a canal. When he asked his host why the workers were using shovels and wheelbarrows rather than modern equipment like tractors, he was told that the project’s purpose was to create jobs. If it’s jobs you want, Friedman asked, why not give the workers spoons instead of shovels?
    3Why not... 是在暗示什麼 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      前者是while they were making...,後者是in order to make...
      2
      as是in the capacity of「以…身分」,和because接近但不完全相同
      3
      shovels很大,spoons很小。若是為了創造更多工作而採用落後工具,那乾脆用湯匙不用鏟子,不就可以創造更多工作嗎?

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  77. 作者已經移除這則留言。

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  78. 作者已經移除這則留言。

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  79. 旋老師你好
    請文下列這句的they是指什麼?
    Yet a green organization opposing such a weakening is seen as altruistic, even if an impartial view of controls in question might suggest they are doing more harm than good.
    謝謝老師!

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  80. 老師您好
    She experienced these conditions after she fled Syria for Jordan in 2013. (Her family has since resettled in England.
    1 Since 是指逃亡到Jordan之後的某一個時點 ?

    This program is premised on an idea—that all Americans have a kinship and a basic responsibility to listen to one another--that neither side seems inclined to accept on faith anymore.
    2 that all…跟that neither… 這兩者是不同的槪念,所以這樣的寫法是有問題嗎 ?


    Gerwig knows, as her young heroine doesn’t yet, that what really defines you as an emerging grownup is how you handle everything else clustered around issues of money. The first love who’s all sorts of wrong yet also perfectly right, the desire to hang with the cool crowd only to realize that your longtime, uncool friends are a thousand times better and, perhaps most complicated of all, the slow crawl toward a truce with the parent who drives you crazy.
    3 通常是he knows, as Mary does. 但原文Gerwig knows, as her young heroine doesn’t yet 這樣的語意感覺不通 ?

    4 The first love …the desire… 這些都跟錢無關,為何作者會寫everything else clustered around issues of money ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      是since then的省略,也就是since she fled Syria
      2
      雖是不同的觀念,但也是一體之兩面:都應該要聽,但都不願接受別人意見,所以才要辦這個program來溝通
      3
      這個as可當作while解讀:作家很清楚,然而她筆下的主角並不了解…
      4
      沒有直接關係,但間接相關

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  81. 旋老師好,got it和get it在用法上怎麼區別?什麼時候用got it,什麼時候用get it呢?有種說法是got it和get it沒有區別,是這樣嗎?

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    1. 理解的瞬間就成了過去的狀態,從文法的角度來講,get it的說法為什麼能成立呢?

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    2. 若將get it視為「動作」,似乎是過去式比較合理。但若將get it視為understand或know的「狀態」,現在式也很合理,例如Now I get it.相當於Now I understand.

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  82. 「自己剛剛沒看到巴士站,但是現在看到了」,應該怎麼表達自己現在看到了巴士站?

    看到了的瞬間就成了過去,那麼看到了的狀態所發生的時間始終是在now的後面,如果要表達看到了,應該用現在式還是過去式呢?I see it right now還是I saw it just now?

    謝謝旋老師

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    1. 兩句都正確,意思稍有不同。第三種說法Now I see it.比較接近你要講的意思。另外,整句可譯為:I didn't see it until now.

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  83. They sat at opposite ends of the table (to/from each other), refusing to talk.

    請問老師 ends 不用定冠詞來限定的意思是什麼?畢竟後面有介系詞片語來限定了不是嗎?

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    1. 一張長方形桌子有四邊(four ends),兩兩相對(two opposite ends),所以opposite ends of the table尚未指出是哪兩個ends

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  84. 靜態動詞的時間點總是在過去,比如see、know,怎麼判斷靜態動詞要使用過去式還是現在式?

    靜態動詞不能用於進行時,可是還是存在這種句子,如何解釋其合理性?自己在使用的時候應該怎麼做?
    I'm hoping to interest Jose Ferrer in doing it.
    I've been thinking there isn't any reason for you to work as hard as you're doing....
    Everybody's been wanting to meet you.

    謝謝旋老師

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    1. 1
      不一定在過去。例如:I didn't see it then, but I see it now.「當時不懂,可是現在懂了」,還是用時間判斷。
      2
      這就跟麥當勞廣告I'm lovin' it一樣:如果不是講「心態」,就不是靜態動詞。hope與want如果當expect使用、think如果當consider使用,就不是靜態動詞

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  86. get it是靜態動詞還是動態動詞,I got it的用法中got it是動態動詞嗎?
    get it是不是既可以是靜態動詞又可以是動態動詞,而know、understand只能作為靜態動詞?
    如果可以把get it看作是動作,那麼靜態動詞know可以看作為動作嗎?好像沒有I knew it表示我現在懂得

    know、understand表示理解的詞都是靜態動詞,那麼get it也應該屬於靜態動詞,那麼I got it不就應該表達成「我過去明白了」,而此時的語境是「你現在懂了」,那為什麼got it能成立?

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    1. get一般是靜態動詞,但如果說I'm getting it也通,意思是「我逐漸了解了」,這就不是靜態動詞了。know與understand則是比較明顯的靜態動詞。

      I got it可以表示「剛才你一解釋,我就聽懂了」,時間仍是過去。

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  87. 旋老師好
    如果有人問「Do you get it?」,下面哪些回答沒有問題?
    I get it. | I got it.
    I know it. | I knew it.
    I understand it. | I understood it.

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    1. I get it. | I got it.都行。
      若是know與understand,用現在式比較好。若用knew與understood,感覺像是「我早就知道」

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  88. These are some photos of our hermetic doors installed for wards of a hospital here in Taiwan.
    這句的 wards 前面該不該加定冠詞呢? 因為後面有修飾語,指出是醫院的 wards ,這樣感覺要加,但是我寫這句話時,心中沒有出現是哪些病房,只是泛稱醫院裡的各科病房,這樣不加 the 似乎也說得通。請問老師哪個想法才對呢? 謝謝。

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    1. 若加the,感覺是「全部都有」,不加the則像是some wards

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  89. 老師好
    請問老師幾個問題
    1.為什麼 cannot help 後面加Ving
    2.為什麼 cannot help but 後面加 VR
    3.為什麼 have no choice but 後面加 to V
    4.The festival is free for multiples who register in advance and for the
    residents of Twinsburg,( ) anyone- whether or not they have a
    twin-may join the fun for a small fee.
    空格答案給 although 請問老師可以填 but或while嗎?
    如果不行 差別是什麼?
    謝謝老師!

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    1. 1
      cannot help後面用Ving當它的受詞
      2
      對等連接詞but前面是原形動詞help,後面就需要原形動詞以符合平行對稱要求
      3
      對等連接詞but前面是名詞no choice,後面也需要名詞,而to V可以當名詞使用,也能搭配choice的意思
      4
      亦可,只要是連接詞就行。不過:although與while是從屬連接詞,整句的重點會在前面的主要子句。but是對等連接詞,並且否定上文,整句的重點會在後面的對等子句

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  90. 旋老師你好
    請問下列句型
    1. A is to B as/what C is to D 為什麼用 as 和 what
    2. As C is to D, so is A to B/ so A is to B
    可以請老師解釋這兩個句背後文法嗎
    3. 請問老師 the 的用法, 在中翻英如何使用
    下面這句:
    然而,它所鼓勵的「快速消費」卻製造了大量的廢棄物,造成巨大的污染問題。
    Nonetheless, the “fast consumption” it encourages produces a large amount
    of waste, and results in serious pollution problems.
    為什麼 fast consumption 前要加定冠詞the
    serious pollution problems 前不用加 the

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    1. 1
      比較正式的講法是A is to B what C is to D。其中what是複合關代,what C is to D是名詞子句。分成兩句來看:
      Yangmingshan(S) is(V) something(C) to Taipei.
      The Peak(S) is(V) something(C) to Hong Kong.

      後句的something和前句重複,改寫為關代that,成為:
      Yangmingshan(S) is(V) to Taipei something(C) that the peak is to Hong Kong.
      其中to Taipei移到前面,目的是讓關代that與先行詞something接近。後面的that子句是關係子句。然後再將先行詞something與關代that合併為複合關代what,成為:
      Yangmingshan(S) is(V) to Taipei what the peak is to Hong Kong(C).
      其中 what子句是名詞子句,在主要子句中當作主詞補語。

      如果用as,情況和下列(2)相同。

      2
      as是外加的從屬連接詞,as C is to D是副詞子句,修飾主詞子句so is A to B / so A is to B中的動詞is,其中so是副詞

      3
      在fast consumption後面有關係子句(that) it encourages指出是什麼consumption,因為有指定才要用定冠詞。後面的pollution problems則沒有指定

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  91. 老師好
    1. 底下兩句的 position 一個用不定冠詞,一個用定冠詞來限制範圍,請問差在哪裡? 我以為豎的擺法就只有一種,該用定冠詞,第二句用不定冠詞是有其他的意思嗎?
    Your seat should be in the upright position when the plane is landing.
    Please return your seat to an upright position and fasten your belt.

    2. pointing in a line that is at an angle of 90° to a flat surface
    in a line 的 in 是什麼意思? to 的意思是 對... 嗎?

    感謝老師解貨。

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    1. 1
      應該是the upright position比較合理
      2
      in a line是in a direction的意思。to是「對」

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  92. 老師您好
    Time 有一期的封面是法國總統,並且寫了 the next leader of Europe if only he can lead France.
    1 if only後面常接非事實語氣,為何可用can , 而不是could ?
    2如果寫成完整句子, He is /would be the next leader of Europe if only he can lead France. 則is 帶有很肯定的意味,而would be則猜測 ?


    For Macron to have a chance of remaking Europe—or ,for that matter, to emerge as a new world leader---he will need to fix his country
    3 For Macron to have= because Macron has a chance of remaking…. ?


    Statistics can seem like abstractions, numbers to be glossed over rather than felt as actual loss.
    4 numbers to be glossed及numbers glossed 在語意上的差別是 ?


    But if Macron is proved right, France could emerge as a far more important global power than it has been in decades. If he wins re-election in 2022, after his first five-year term as President, he would leave the Élysée Palace in 2027 at a sprightly 49 years of age—with plenty of time to form a radically different post-presidential role for himself. That is a long way in a future that remains shrouded in the mists. But if Macron pulls off his transformation at home, the ambitions he has to change the world—not just France—could be within reach. That club, after all, has an opening for a leader. •
    5That club是指什麼而且That club, after all, has an opening for a leader. •
    是在暗示 ?
    謝謝老師

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    1. 1, 2
      He will be the next leader of Europe if only he can lead France.句中採用can與will,表示這是「有可能」的事情。若用could與would,則表示「極不可能」
      3
      if Macron should have...
      4
      numbers to be glossed over還原為numbers that should be glossed over。而numbers glossed over還原為numbers that are glossed over。前者是不確定語氣,後者是事實語氣
      5
      that club指的應該是the world。下文暗示the world needs a leader

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  93. 旋老師你好,
    老師請問下列幾句:
    1. Even though the teacher was angry, he planned to forgive Jack, explaining
    what should be done and what could not be done during class rather than
    punish him.
    這裡punish 應該用原型punish還是過去式punished,請問如果用punish的話,為什麼? 用
    punished 的話,是因為對照 planned嗎?
    2. 句型 prefer to v rather than V,這裡 rather than V 是省略 to V 嗎?
    有些書上寫 rather than 放在句首可接原形動詞VR 或動名詞Ving,為什麼?
    3. He will not fool around in the future, and studies hard.
    請問老師這句有問題嗎? 前面子句是未來式,後面子句是現在式,是否應該改成
    He will not fool around in the future, and will study hard.
    4. Last week, Tom encountered a problem,that is to say, receiving an
    anonymous letter.
    這句是否有文法問題?為何用receiving?
    5. not only....but also 可否用在否定句?
    6. Teacher was so angry that he lost for words.
    這裡 teacher 是否加the
    7. come to office 和come to the office 差別在哪?
    感謝老師解惑!

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    1. 1
      rather than後面可以用原形動詞如punish him,是因為語氣:事實上punish的動作並沒有發生,所以不適合採用事實語氣。原形動詞punish在此相當於沒有to的不定詞,屬於不確定語氣。若把than當介系詞使用,後面接punishing,也是可以接受的用法
      2
      rather than是比較級,連接詞than要求平行對稱。前面若有原形動詞,後面就可以用原形動詞。
      3
      前後的時間可以不同
      4
      receiving...是動名詞片語,當作a problem的同位格
      5
      可以,只是感覺有點囉嗦。例如:Not only was he not punctual, but he also often failed to show up.
      6
      應該是The teacher was so angry that he was at a loss for words.。不過,就像my father有時只說Father(類似稱謂),在口語中直呼Teacher也行。
      7
      應該是come to the office「來到辦公室」。若是come into office,意思是「就任,就職」

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  94. 請問老師
    1. I have the same watch as you. 還原是 as you do. 同樣意思能不能把 as 當作準關代,寫成 ... as (the watch) you have 嗎?
    2. Few have such a beautiful voice as you. 這樣寫對嗎?
    謝謝老師。

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    1. 1
      as you, as you do, as you have都可以
      2
      這和I have the same watch as you的情況一樣,省略得比較多,但仍能看出是什麼意思,是可以接受的用法

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  95. 請教旋老師,no less than是否可以和no fewer than換用,在老師的文法書中明確指出,less只能搭配不可數名詞,但是自己卻屢屢在詞典中看到有less和複數名詞搭配的情況
    在韋氏詞典中,出現過:
    No less than half the students failed the test.
    She has had no less than a dozen job offers.

    此外,韋氏詞典中也有備註到
    It is also used instead of fewer with other sorts of plural nouns, although many people still consider this use incorrect.
    ◆Less than 10 people showed up. = Fewer than 10 people showed up.

    請問老師,
    Today I interviewed for no less than four jobs, but didn』t get any definite answer.(不佳)
    這句話是否會被當做病句處理?自己在寫的時候能不能使用less,鑒於韋氏詞典中也提到過◆She has had no less than [=no fewer than] a dozen job offers.
    no less than接複數名詞是否還是錯誤?因為多數人包括詞典也在使用這種用法,no less than是否能當作是特例處理?

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    1. 在GMAT考試的Sentence Correction單元中,no less than接複數名詞是常考的一種錯誤。這是因為GMAT考的是正式的學術性寫作,所以「對」「錯」的標準訂得非常高。字典中採用的是一般人可以接受的用法。

      還有一個例子:GMAT中常考的一個錯誤是different than,雖然大部分美國人都接受different than的用法。但是在正式的學術性寫作中,than只能用在比較級,而different不是比較級,所以不能這樣用,正確的用法是different from。

      「對」與「錯」要看場合。口語中是對的,寫作中時常會錯。一般人接受是對的,在正式學術性寫作中時常會錯。我在書中採取的是最高標準,GMAT考試就是採取這個標準。字典中採取的則是一般場合大部分人可以接受的標準。

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  96. should的一般用法表「竟然」時,過去式採用的不是should,而是should have done,這該如何理解?
    如:I am surprised that a lazy fellow like her should have succeeded.
    那will/can/should/may的過去時態,除了虛擬語氣以外,什麼時候還能用would/could/should/might have done表示語氣助動詞的過去式呢?

    I am fortunate to have been born into a good family.如果還原成 I am fortunate that I could have been born into a good family.
    can的過去式是could,而could have been這裡不是表猜測或用於虛擬語氣,怎麼理解這裡的could have been born?

    What if you could make a virus that would infect—and kill—cancer cells but leave healthy cells intact?
    這句話的語氣是條件語氣還是虛擬語氣?you could make a virus「你生產病毒」是否有可能?

    謝謝旋老師費心解答

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    1. 1
      should, could, would, might加完成式,如果用在特定句型中,可以表示「過去非事實」語氣。例如:
      I should have done something if I had had the chance.
      表示其實沒有機會。但是must, should, will, would, can, could, may, might加完成式,不搭配非事實語氣的句型,也可以表示單純的完成式。例如:
      I am surprised that she should have succeeded.
      事實上就是完成式she has succeeded,加上should只表示「意外、料想不到」的語氣,不是非事實語氣。
      2
      I am fortunate to have been born...還原為I am fortunate that I could have been born...,這裏用完成式could have been只是表達過去時間,並不表示非事實語氣(沒有搭配非事實語氣的句型),而且語氣助動詞後面只能接原形動詞,但是could be無法表達「過去時間」,所以只能用could have been來表達過去時間
      3
      what if you could語氣是「若有可能」,在本句中看不出「非事實語氣」(因為沒有搭配),所以應該是條件語氣

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  97. I would rather that you didn't say a word about it.
    I would rather you didn't tell them.
    句中say、tell的動作都發生在過去,如果用虛擬語氣的話,為什麼是使用過去簡單式didn't say,而不是使用過去完成式hadn't said?
    是否應該改成:
    I would rather that you hadn't said a word about it.
    I would rather you hadn't told them.

    The problem didn't solved because you didn't tell me earlier.
    如果要改寫成對過去的虛擬,應該改成1句還是2句?
    1.The problem would have been solved if you could have told me earlier.
    如果你早告訴我的話,問題可能就會被解決了
    2.The problem would have been solved if you could tell me earlier.
    這裡can的過去完成式應該選擇could do還是could have done?could是can的過去式,could能夠作為can的過去完成式嗎?

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    1. 1
      用完成式,表示「其實已經做了」
      2
      原句應該是The problem wasn't solved...。改為非事實語氣是The problem would have been solved if you had told me earlier。這種情況不適合採用不確定語氣。

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  98. 請教旋老師關於時態和語氣方面的問題
    Leave the test papers at the front desk when you have finished the test.
    既然是現在式代替未來式,那能否改寫成:Leave the test papers at the front desk when you finish the test.
    兩者的區別是什麼?

    The lake will be further polluted unless some measures are taken.
    能否改寫成:「The lake will be further polluted unless some measures have been taken.」?

    現在式代替未來式,既然都是在未來要完成的動作,那是否意味著用現在簡單式和現在完成式都是符合文法的?

    1. If he will go to New York tomorrow, he will see his brother.
    如果他願意明天去紐約,他會見到他的兄長
    虛擬語氣:2. If he would go to New York tomorrow, he would see his brother.
    上面兩句話的對錯?

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    1. 1
      兩種講法都行。have finished表示「已經寫完」,finish表示「寫完」
      2
      完成式have been缺乏支持,不好
      3
      完成式要有支持
      4
      都對,後者語氣比較保留

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  99. 旋老師您好
    Modern British architecture leaves a lot to be desired, says Charles.中Modern British,暗示這是「現代英式」,用於修飾的形容詞已經明確表示了限定意義,指代「現代英式」,而不是其他風格
    architecture前面可以加定冠詞the嗎,即the modern British architecture?
    The modern Chinese architecture is characterized by boldness.這句話表述可以嗎?

    After climbing for six hours, we could reach the top.
    這個句子有沒有文法錯誤?

    謝謝老師

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    1. 1
      modern British architecture與modern Chinese architecture的情況都和Chinese history相同,形容詞位置只是修飾語,不應加the
      2
      改為we reached the top較好,因為after...敘述的是事實語氣,應該搭配事實語氣的reached

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  100. I can't believe it that you couldn't answer the question the teacher raised.
    能否改寫成下面句子?
    I can't believe it you/your not being able to answer the question the teacher raised.
    I can't believe you/your not being able to answer the question the teacher raised.

    I find it amazing that you still look so young.
    是否能改寫成:I find it amazing you/your still looking so young.

    If you can only exercise once a week, that's better than is taking no exercise at all.
    這句話是否正確?

    謝謝旋老師解惑

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    1. 1
      第1種改法不行,第2種可以
      2
      不好。虛字it要求搭配that子句或不定詞片語
      3
      正確,但is多餘

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  101. 旋老師好,
    "This is how you should do it," my sister explained to me.
    為什不能倒裝成:"This is how you should do it," explained to me my sister.?
    "This is how you should do it," my sister explained angrily.
    為什不能倒裝成:"This is how you should do it," explained angrily my sister.?

    He would not have advanced the funds if he had known that the balance sheet falsely indicated the firm was solvent.
    能不能倒裝成:
    He would not have advanced the funds had he known that the balance sheet falsely indicated the firm was solvent.

    Neither Peter wanted the responsibility, nor did his wife.
    在詞典中看到了這句話,是否應該改成:Neither did Peter want the responsibility, nor did his wife.?

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    1. 1
      可以倒裝為"This is how you should do it," explained my sister to me.以及"This is how you should do it," explained my sister angrily.,原句錯在修飾語位置不當。倒裝句的動詞與主詞要先交代,否則會不清楚
      2
      可以
      3
      原句若是:
      Peter didn't want the responsibility, and he didn't ask for it.
      可以寫成:
      Neither did Peter want the responsibility nor did he ask for it.
      重點在強調didn't want與didn't ask。
      但原句若是:
      Peter didn't want the responsibility, and his wife didn't want the responsibility.
      則是改成:
      Neither Peter nor his wife wanted the responsibility.
      或是改成:
      Neither Peter wanted the responsibility nor did his wife.
      重點在強調Peter與his wife。因為neither修飾的對象就是Peter,所以不需要加did。

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  102. 旋老師好
    請老師解惑
    1. a wall which is painted green= a green-painted wall 請問老師 green-painted的
    green 是甚麼詞性,可以用來修飾 painted 嗎?
    2. coffee that tastes bitter= bitter-tasting 請問老師 tasting 是分詞嗎
    bitter 形容詞 bitter 可以修飾 tasting?
    3. If it's possible to ask why they joined the group beating, the monkeys
    would probably answer, "I don't know. That's how things are done around
    here."
    請問老師 這裡的名詞子句 why they joined the group beating 可以改成 名詞片語
    why to join the group beating嗎?
    4. 可以請老師解釋這句嗎 as you sow, so shall you reap
    as 和 you 不是都是連接詞嗎
    5. score more highly 得更高分,請問老師,這用法對嗎?

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    1. 1
      green是原來的補語,形容詞,與painted構成複合形容詞green-painted,green並非修飾painted
      2
      bitter是原來的補語,形容詞,與現在分詞tasting構成複合形容詞bitter-tasting,bitter並非修飾tasting
      3
      不好。不定詞是語氣助動詞的減化,例如how they could join成為how to join,where they could go成為where to go,仍然帶有不確定語氣。why they joined是確定語氣,沒有語氣助動詞,不能減化為不定詞
      4
      as是從屬連接詞,so是副詞。可以這樣改:as you sow, equally shall you reap。
      5

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  103. The textbook we used was the Norton Anthology, same as was used in American universities.
    請問老師這句話可以寫成 ", same as used in ..."嗎?謝謝。

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  104. 作者已經移除這則留言。

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  105. 旋老師好,請教老師:
    A: Is he in practice in the London area? 他是在倫敦開業嗎?
    B: Yes he is.
    A: I thought he was. 我本來就想他會的。
    問句用的是Is he,而且回答是肯定的,為什麼A用的是 I thought he was.而不是 I thought he is (in practice in the London area).呢?

    A: People say John has won a lot of money on the football pools. I am sure he is now sitting pretty.
    B: Oh, no.
    A: I thought he was. 我還以為是那樣。
    我當初的想法是錯誤的,John不是過得像我想像的那樣子,為什麼回答選用的是過去時 I thought he was. 而不是用虛擬語氣I thought he were (sitting pretty). ?是否可以理解為虛擬語氣,因為John不是過得像我想像的那樣子,不符合事實
    上面兩個對話中「 I thought he was.」的含義完全相反,一個是和預想一樣,一個是和預想不符合,應該怎麼從文法的角度解釋同一種表述「I thought he was」表示兩種相反的預想呢?

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    1. 1
      主要子句用過去式,從屬子句就可以用過去式
      2
      情況相同:主要子句用過去式,從屬子句就可以用過去式,並不表示非事實語氣。至於事實如何,要從上下文推斷

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  106. She told me she was getting married next June.
    這句話用的was getting married next June應該怎麼理解?
    我覺得有兩種解釋,但是不知道哪一個才是正確的解釋:
    1.she was not getting married next June.
    2.I am not sure whether she is getting married next June.

    I thought you were an ABC.
    I thought you were afraid of getting fat.
    這兩句一定要理解成「我當時的想法是錯誤」的嗎?不能理解成「我本來就覺得你是個ABC」和「我本來就覺得你很怕變胖」嗎?

    評論句和引用句的區別是什麼?怎麼判斷?兩者有什麼聯繫?
    評論句就是指沒有用的插入語嗎?

    感謝老師回復

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    1. 1
      因為主要子句動詞是told,從屬子句就可以用was。而因為時間是next June,從屬子句也可以用is,意思相同(都是要結婚),並無否定
      2
      在特定的上下文中,也可以作後者的理解
      3
      引用句如he said that..., 主要是交代這句話是誰說的。評論句如I guess, God knows, 只是一種口頭禪

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  107. Before his talk, he asked some students whether they knew what kind of animal the milu deer was and how many centers there were at present for the milu deer in China.
    句中「whether they knew what kind of animal the milu deer was and how many centers there were at present for the milu deer in China」為什麼都用的是過去時?
    能不能採用現在時「whether they know what kind of animal the milu deer is and how many centers there are at present for the milu deer in China」

    He told the students that he hopes that more people would care about the milu deer and more centers would be built to protect this animal.
    句中「more people would care about 」和「more centers would be built 」的時態為什麼沒有和「he hopes」保持一致?

    Professor Stevenson explained to the students that the milu deer had been very common in China a long time ago.
    句中的「the milu deer had been very common」能不能採用過去簡單式「the milu deer was very common」?

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    1. 1
      whether they knew要用過去式(因為是過去時間),後面兩個動詞可以用過去式(因為是過去時間)也可以用現在式(因為是事實)
      2
      would也可以用在現在時間
      3
      如果用was,時間和explained相同,容易造成混淆,不如用had been清楚

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  108. 請問老師使役動詞後面的受詞補語可以是動名詞嗎?好比說我要表達持續的動作: The coach made me practicing five hours at a stretch. 這樣寫對嗎?

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  110. 像Home is where your friends and family are.
    We shall visit where his father lived then.
    是否應該改成
    Home is the place where your friends and family are.
    We shall visit the place where his father lived then.?

    1.What caused the accident was a complete mystery.
    2.What caused the accident was a broken bottle.
    第一句的what是疑問詞,而第二句的what是複合關係代名詞嗎?
    由疑問詞what引導的名詞子句和由複合關係代名詞what引導的名詞子句的含義一定不同嗎?what的兩種改寫方式的語義不同嗎?

    I don't know what he is doing.
    I don't know the thing that he is doing.
    兩句話是否是一個意思?第一句的what he is doing可以通過the question改寫,但是如果由第二句改寫過來也可以,這種看法對嗎?

    謝謝旋老師解答

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  111. 旋老師在書中採用受詞the question來改寫名詞子句,但the question是空洞的,而疑問句有含義,如果wh-名詞子句只能用原句的受詞the question改寫而來,有些句子的名詞子句無法還原,怎麼理解老師在書中使用的the question?
    比如這些例句:
    She walked up to where I stood.
    April is when the lilacs bloom.
    I have a good idea where he may be hiding.
    The most important thing in fishing is how you prepare the bait.
    上面的名詞子句如何通過疑問句改寫?如果都理解成the question,那麼會變成
    She walked up to the question.
    The most important thing in fishing is the question.
    無法解讀其中的含義

    如果不通過the question改寫,又會出現誤用複合關係代名詞的錯誤,如Why he is eating so fast is that he has a meeting later.
    怎麼正確地通過疑問句改寫成名詞子句?

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