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用法解析:单词词尾加s变新词

[2024年4月17日] 来源:BBC Learning English 编辑:Geilien.cn   字号 [] [] []  

内容简介

两位听众来信询问单词末尾加字母 “s” 后,单词的含义是否会发生变化,如 “mean” 和 “means”。简单来说:有些规则名词变复数的方式是加 “s”,单复数均指同一类事物。也有些单词加 “s” 后,并非原词复数,虽然两词所指的事物不同,但彼此有一定的关联。另有一些词在加 “s” 后,与原词所指的事物和使用的语境均无关。主持人 Beth 和佳莹在本期节目中分析这三类词语的用法。

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文字稿

(关于台词的备注: 请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。)

Beth
Hello and welcome to Question and Answer of the Week. I'm Beth.

Jiaying
我是佳莹。我们听一下本期节目中要回答的问题,有两名听众都有着类似的疑惑。问题如下:

Question
你好,有些单词加了字母 “s” 就是另外一种意思,不是第三人称单数,而是像 “mean” 和 “means”,还有 “premise” 和 “premises”。

Beth
Thank you for your questions! It's most common to add an -s to the end of a verb to form third person singular, like 'eat' and 'eats'.

Jiaying
除了 Beth 说到的在部分动词变第三人称单数时,在词尾加字母 “s” 的情况以外,我们也在英语名词后加 “s”,使其变为复数。比如:单词 “tree” 的复数 “trees”。这里,词本身的意思没有变化。但有时在单词后加 “s” 会改变词义。

Beth
Yes. Even if it seems like some words have completely different meanings with and without -s, such as 'mean' and 'means', there is usually still a connection between the two words.

Jiaying
通常情况下,在特定词语末尾加 “s” 后,虽然词义发生变化,但两者的含义是有关联的。

Beth
Let's look at an example – 'wood' and 'woods'. The singular uncountable noun, 'wood', is a natural material that comes from a tree and is used to build or make things, like tables and chairs.

Jiaying
是的,“wood” 指 “木头”,在末尾加上 “s” 后 “woods” 指 “树林”,也就是 “一片比森林小、被树木覆盖的区域”。

Beth
So, you can see the connection here between the material, 'wood', and a group of trees, 'woods'.

A similar example is 'time' and 'times'. They are both related to 'when'.

Jiaying
没错。“Time” 指 “时间,时间点”,加上 “s” 后,则指 “某事发生的次数”。“Time” 和 “times” 的意思不同,但都和某事发生的时间有关。来听一个使用了 “times(次数)” 的例句。

Example
I have been to Spain three times.
(西班牙我去过三次。)

Beth
So, again, 'time' and 'times' seem to have a different meaning but they both have a connection to 'when'.

So, Jiaying, we know there are words with or without -s that seem different but do have a connection in meaning.

Jiaying
是的,上面我们讲了在词尾加 “s”,意思发生改变、但仍有所关联的词。

接着来说另一类词。在英语中,一些词语虽然读音和拼写相同,但其含义却不相关,被称为 “同音同形异义词”。

Beth
OK. Let's look at an example of that now, with 'premise' and 'premises'.

Jiaying
单数 “premise” 指 “假定,前提”。请听例句。

Example
All investigations within the company were based on the premise that men and women are treated equally.
(公司内部的所有调查都以男女平等为前提。)

Jiaying
在 “premise” 后加 “s”,就变成了名词复数 “premises(房屋建筑的厂址,营业场所)”。

Beth
And, it's worth noting that its singular form is 'premise'. But, in everyday English, 'premises', with an -s, is always used. Have a listen to this example.

Example
The New Year party has been held at the same premises for about ten years.
(新年聚会已经有十年都在同一个场地举办。)

Beth
And a similar example can be seen with 'good' and 'goods'.

Jiaying
是的,大多数英语学习者应该都知道,“good” 作形容词时的意思是 “好的,令人满意的”。

“Good” 作名词加上 “s” 后指 “商品,货物,私人财产”。虽然 “goods” 的单数形式是 “good”,但 “good” 只用于官方文件中,而在口语交流中,基本都使用 “goods” 来表示 “商品,货品”。

Beth
That's right. Listen to this example.

Example
Countries want to import high-quality goods for a low price.
(各国希望以低价进口高质量的商品。)

Jiaying
在听众们的问题中还提到了单词 “mean” 和 “means”。

“Mean” 作形容词有 “刻薄的” 意思。比如:A bully is mean.(欺负他人是很刻薄的。)作动词时,“mean” 表示 “某事物的意思是…” 或 “意味着…”。

Beth
But, 'means' with an -s can be used to talk about the way something is done, often in the structure 'as a means of'.

Jiaying
在 “mean” 后面加 “s”,就变成了 “means”,指 “做某件事情的方法、手段”。请听例句。

Example
Some deaf people use sign language as a means of communication.
(一些聋人用手语作为交流手段。)

Beth
So, sometimes words appear to change their meaning when they're followed by an -s. But often there is a connection between them and sometimes they just look and sound the same, but have a different meaning.

Jiaying
好了,谢谢两位听众发来的问题。希望通过我们的讲解和例句,大家对单词末尾加 s 后,其含义是否改变有了更深入的理解。

欢迎大家向我们提问。你可以通过我们的微博账号 “BBC英语教学” 发送你的问题,也可以将问题发送至:questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk

Bye, everyone!

用法解析:单词词尾加s变新词