问英语｜英语常见问题解答

south¹

问

All those left undone may sound greatly in theory, but even the truest believer has great difficulty when it comes to specifics. (全国研考,99-19)

答案为 B。但是,我认为 greatly 并没有错误,因为 sound 是个动词,用副词 greatly 修饰它,不是正合适吗?

答

上句中的 sound 是个连系动词。如同其他的连系动词(look, feel, smell, taste)一样，要求用形容词、名词或介词短语来作它的表语(主语补足语):

That sounds good. 这听起来很好。
That sounds a reasonable idea. 这听起来是个好主意。
Your idea sounds like a good one. 你的想法听起来是很好的。
That sounds very interesting! I'll buy some frozen peas at the supermarket on my way home. 这听起来很有趣！我回家时在超级市场要买些冻豌豆。
‘Disappointment?’ Fache demanded, sounding hostile now. (Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code) “失望?”法希问道,语气中充满敌意。(《达·芬奇密码》)
It all sounded utterly absurd. (Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code) 这听起来十分荒唐。(《达·芬奇密码》)

练习

请做下面的英语试题：

I find it hard to believe what the writer says in his recent book though it sounds reasonably. (上海会考,93-26)

south¹

south/southern

问

（1）Most of North and South China will have a cold wet day.

(2) The Shute family lived in the southern part of the USA.

south 和 southern 都可用作形容词, 它们有无区别呢?

答

有人提出一个大体的使用趋势: 当明确地划定地域范围或政治范围时, 使用 south, north, west, east。例如 South Africa(南非), South America(南美), North America(北美), South China(华南), North Pole(北极); 当对地域不作明确的划分时, 则使用 southern, northern, western, eastern, 例如, Southern Africa(南部非洲), Southern England(英国南部), the northern climate(北方气候), the western United States(美国西部), eastern customs(东方的习俗)。但是, 上述说法并不是绝对严格的使用规则。例如, 北美是 North America, 而北欧却是 Northern Europe。

south²

south of

问

At present, the biggest nature park for milu deer in China is the Nanhaizi Milu Park, which is about 20 kilometres south of Beijing.

学生问我句中的 south 是什么词,我很难回答。

答

south、north等表示方向的词既可以用作名词，又可以用作形容词或副词，这是没有争议的：

The town is to the south of London. (名词) 那个镇子位于伦敦的南面。
The room faces south, so we get a lot of sun. (副词) 这房间面向南, 因此阳光很充足。但是, 对于 south(north) of 结构中的 south(north), 语言学家们却存在着不同的看法。有些人认为, south(north) 是名词, 前面省略了 to the(即 south of = to the south of)。另一些人则认为是副词。
Edinburgh is (a long way) north of London. 爱丁堡位于伦敦以北(很远的地方)。
I was living in a house just south of Market Street. 我住在市场街以南的一所房子里。
a town east of the Danube 多瑙河以东的一个城镇