Same、similar 和 identical 的用法

Same 可當形容詞和代名詞用,前者意為「同一的;相同的;一樣的」,後者意為「相同的人;相同的事物」,指的是兩個或多個人事物完全相同。當我們使用 same 來比較人事物時,其前須有定冠詞 the。例如:

  • John and I went to the same school. (約翰和我曾在同一所學校唸書) (正)
    John and I went to same school. (誤)
  • These two tables are not the same. (這兩張桌子並不一樣) (正)
    These two tables are not same. (誤)

The same as

The same 後面是接 as 不是 that 或 than。例如:

  • I treat daughters exactly the same as sons. (我對女兒和兒子完全一視同仁) (正)
    I treat daughters exactly the same that sons. (誤)
    I treat daughters exactly the same than sons. (誤)
  • My new jacket is the same model as my old one. (我新外套的款式與舊外套一樣) (正)
    My new jacket is the same model that my old one. (誤)
    My new jacket is the same model than my old one. (誤)

The same + 名詞 + 子句
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One of + 複數名詞 + 關代 + 複數動詞

  • John is one of the few persons who know Spanish in our company. (約翰是我們公司裡少數懂西班牙文者之一) (正)
  • John is one of the few persons who knows Spanish in our company. (誤)

解說:先行詞是人,關係子句中的關係代名詞要用 who。先行詞是 one of + 複數名詞時,關係子句中的述語動詞要跟複數名詞一致,而不是跟 one 一致,所以要用複數動詞。

先行詞為人 + 事物時,關代要用 that

  • My daughter loves anybody and anything that is pretty. (我女兒喜歡任何漂亮的人事物) (正)
  • My daughter loves anybody and anything which is pretty. (誤)
  • My daughter loves anything and anybody who is pretty. (誤)

解說:當先行詞為人時,關係代名詞可以用 who 或 that;當先行詞為事物時,關係代名詞可以用 which 或 that;所以,當先行詞有兩個,一個是人, 一個是事物時,關代只能用 that。另一種判斷方式是,當先行詞為不定代詞時,關代要用 that。

Else 的用法

Else 是個副詞,可用在以 any-、every-、no- 和 some- 開頭的一群字後面來表示「其他;別的;另外」的意思。這群字包括 anybody、everybody、nobody、somebody、anyone、everyone、no one、someone、anything、everything、nothing、something 等不定代名詞以及 anywhere、everywhere、nowhere、somewhere (或美國口語的 anyplace、everyplace、no place、someplace) 等副詞。例如:

  • Anybody else would have condemned his foolish behavior. (換了誰都會譴責他的愚蠢行為)
  • Owen stayed at work when everybody else had gone home. (別人都回家了,歐文還在工作)
  • No one else can do it. (沒有其他人能做這件事了)
  • Tracy married someone else. (崔西嫁給別人了)
  • Is there anything else I can do for you? (我還能為你做什麼事嗎?)
  • There is nothing else on the desk except a sheet of paper. (書桌上除了一張紙外沒有其他東西)
  • Did you go anywhere else last night? (你昨晚有沒有到別的地方?)
  • If we don’t provide a good service, customers will go somewhere else. (如果我們服務不好,顧客就會到別的地方)
  • This animal is not found anyplace else in the world. (這種動物在世界其他地方都沒有)
  • You’ll have to sit someplace else. (你必須坐別的地方)

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Who’s 和 whose 的差異

Who’s 和 whose 的發音相同,但在英文中扮演截然不同的角色。不過,有些人還是三不五時會被這兩個常用詞所搞混,令人遺憾。Who’s 為 who is 或 who has 的縮寫,而 whose 為 who 的所有格,通常位在名詞前面,但它還可用作關係代名詞。

Who’s 的例句:

  • Who’s coming to fix the computer? (誰來修理電腦?) (正) - Who’s = who is。
  • Who’s Mary talking about? (瑪麗正在說誰?) (正) - Who’s = who is。
  • Who’s eaten the last apple? (誰吃了最後一個蘋果?) (正) - Who’s = who has。
  • Who’s John brought to my class? (約翰帶誰來上我的課?) (正) - Who’s = who has。
  • Whose John brought to my class? (誤)
  • You’ll soon know who’s who in this department. (你很快就會知道這個部門裡面誰是誰) (正) - who’s = who is。
    註:Who’s who 也是個片語,意為「名人錄;(總稱) 名人」,用作單數,如 a who’s who of the fashion industry (時裝界的名人錄)。

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Cleft sentences 中的關代不能用 which

  • It is books that are a key to the wide world. (書正是通往廣闊世界之鑰) (正)
  • It is books which are a key to the wide world. (誤)

解說:這是一種所謂「分裂句」(cleft sentences) 的強調句型 (It is/was + 被強調部分 + that 子句)。在此句型中,that 子句前的先行詞若是人,則 that 也可用 who 或 whom 來代替,其餘情況只能用 that,不能用其他關係代名詞。

一個句子使用了 11 個 that,其中 7 個還連在一起,但它仍有意義且語法正確

下句總共使用了 11 個 that,其中 7 個還連在一起,但它仍是個有意義且語法正確的句子 (以下稱為「本句」)。本句不僅以實例來呈現 that 的不同用法,而且使用 “it’s true (that)” 句型來說明,儘管都是 that,但吾人不能一體適用地看待所有 that 或任何 that,因為此 that 往往非彼 that。

It is true for all that that that that that that that refers to is not the same that that that that refers to.

現在就來說明這 11 個 that 在句中的詞類和用法。為了避免混淆,筆者依序在它們的後面加上阿拉伯數字。
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Q:在 I’ll face the fact that my girlfriend will move to Taipei tomorrow. 中,the fact that 的語法功能為何呢?

A:這句的意思為「我將要面對我女友明天搬到台北的事實」。儘管中文翻譯有「事實」二字,但它並非 “the fact” 的翻譯,而是筆者為了讓中文翻譯變得通順而加入的,因為 the fact that 中的 the fact 雖具有舉足輕重的語法功能,但本身並無意義。

The fact that 的語法功能有下列三項,其對英文寫作的幫助尤其宏大:

一、用來引導名詞子句

在許多情況中,當 that 所引導的名詞子句比較複雜時,若直接將其置於句首當主詞,可能會顯得「頭重腳輕」。這時我們通常使用形式主詞或虛主詞 it 來代替 that 子句,而將 that 子句置於句末。注意:that 子句當主詞時,動詞須用單數。例如:

  • That my son has passed all the exams makes me feel very happy.
    = It makes me feel very happy that my son has passed all the exams. (我兒子已通過所有考試,令我很高興)
  • That he lost his job suddenly worried his parents very much.
    = It worried his parents very much that he lost his job suddenly. (他突然失業,使他的父母非常憂慮)
  • That she did not go to Cindy’s birthday party surprised everybody.
    =It surprised everybody that she did not go to Cindy’s birthday party. (她未參加辛蒂的生日派對,讓大家很驚訝)

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Who, which, that 有無逗點的文法問題

如果由關係代名詞 who 或 which 所引導的關係子句 (即形容詞子句) 所提供的資訊,對於它所修飾的人或事物是必要的,那麼 who 或 which 的前面不可有逗點,而這種關係子句就叫做「限定關係子句」(restrictive relative clause),簡稱限定子句 (restrictive clause),此時 who 或 which 可用 that 來替代。

相對地,如果 who 或 which 所引導的關係子句所提供的資訊,對於它所修飾的人或事物並非必要,而是補充的或額外的資訊,那麼 who 或 which 的前面須有逗點,而這種關係子句就叫做「非限定關係子句」(non-restrictive relative clause),簡稱非限定子句 (non-restrictive clause),此時 who 或 which 不可用 that 來替代;申言之,that 所引導的關係子句前面絕對不可有逗點。

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Q:在 The house which Allen lives in is the oldest in the community. 這句中,which 是否可以用 where 來代替呢?

A:可以! Where 這個關係副詞所引導的關係子句或形容詞子句原本就是用來修飾先行詞為地點的名詞 (如 room, house, city, country 等等)。不過,若使用 where,就不可再用介系詞 (這裡是 in);若不用 where,則須有介詞,但介詞可以挪到 which 的前面,使其變成 The house in which Allen lives is the oldest in the community. (艾倫居住的房子是本社區最老舊的)。再者,在這句中,which 亦可用 that (關係代名詞) 來替代,但後面仍須保留介詞,且介詞不可挪到 that 的前面,因為 that 的前面不可有介詞;不過,由於 which 或 that 都是 (介詞的) 受詞,因此均可省略。

綜上所述,問題中的句子總共有五種寫法:

  • The house where Allen lives is the oldest in the community.
  • The house which Allen lives in is the oldest in the community.
  • The house in which Allen lives is the oldest in the community.
  • The house that Allen lives in is the oldest in the community.
  • The house Allen lives in is the oldest in the community.

茲再舉一例來加深大家對這種關係子句句型的印象 (在此使用另一地點介詞 at):

  • That is the restaurant where I will meet Cindy. (那是我要跟辛蒂會面的餐廳)
  • That is the restaurant which I will meet Cindy at.
  • That is the restaurant at which I will meet Cindy.
  • That is the restaurant that I will meet Cindy at.
  • That is the restaurant I will meet Cindy at.

所以,下面的句子都是錯的:

  • That is the restaurant which I will meet Cindy. (誤)
  • That is the restaurant that I will meet Cindy. (誤)
  • That is the restaurant I will meet Cindy. (誤)

至於另一關係副詞 when,則是用來修飾先行詞為時間的名詞 (如 time, day, year, century 等等)。它的用法與 where 雷同,但有兩個地方明顯不同,一是介詞不可以放在子句的末尾 (這與其他關係子句的介詞用法皆不同),二是 that 可視為關係副詞。例如:

  • I’ll never forget the day when I first met my wife. (我永遠不會忘記我和內人初次見面的那一天)
  • I’ll never forget the day on which I first met my wife.
  • I’ll never forget the day that I first met my wife.
  • I’ll never forget the day I first met my wife.

若使用 when,就不可再用介詞 (時刻用 at;日期用 on;月份、季節和年份用 in);若不用 when,則須有介詞,但介詞只能放在 which 的前面,若不用 which,則介詞要省略,不可放在句末。在 when 所引導的關係子句,我們可以用 that 來代替 when,因而這 that 被視為關係副詞。Which 在這兩種句型中皆是關代。

同樣地,茲再舉一例來加深大家對這種關係子句句型的印象 (在此使用另一時間介詞 in):

  • December is the month when the weather is usually the coldest. (十二月通常是天氣最冷的月份)
  • December is the month in which the weather is usually the coldest.
  • December is the month that the weather is usually the coldest.
  • December is the month the weather is usually the coldest.

所以,下面的句子都是錯的:

  • December is the month which the weather is usually the coldest in. (誤)
  • December is the month that the weather is usually the coldest in. (誤)
  • December is the month the weather is usually the coldest in. (誤)