原书 PDF 第 57—60 页
That mistake is ____ corrected. A. able to be B. able of being C. capable to be D. capable of being《“多项选择”难题详解》(华东化工学院出版社,1992年,p.178)认为这道题只能选D(capable of being),而不能选A(able to be),因为capable的主语不一定是“某人”,也可以是“某物”“某事”,而able的主语则必须是“某人”。请问be able的主语必须是“某人”吗?
就我们的阅读范围而言,be able 的主语也可能是“某物”“某事”。例如：
A good auditorium will assure that the sound is able to be heard from every seat. (TOEFL) 好的礼堂能保证每个座位的听众都能听到声音。
这个句子跟上面的考题很相似。
able/capable
The human ribs are capable to move so as to allow room for the lungs to expand during breathing.
请指出这个句子的毛病并加以分析。
从结构上说,与 able 不同, capable 作表语时,其后应当跟 of sth. 或 of doing sth.,而不能跟 to do sth.。这是各类标准考试所经常考核的一个内容。
从语义上说,able 一般用于褒义,不用于贬义,而 capable 既可用于褒义,也可用于贬义。例如:
The situation is capable of improvement. (ALD) 这情况可以改善。
He's capable of any crime. (ALD) 他什么坏事都做得出来。
请做下面的英语试题：
Because he was greatly troubled by his conscience, Hamlet was incapable to kill the A B C D king. (TOEFL)
have been able to
No really satisfactory photograph has ever been taken of one in a wild state, no zoologist, however intrepid, has been able to keep the animal under close and constant observation in the dark jungles in which he lives. (New Concept English, Book 4, L. 5)
[原译1]至今还没有摄到过一张真正令人满意的处于野生状态的大猩猩的照片。没有一个动物学家，不管他多么大胆，能在大猩猩生息所在的阴暗的丛林里对它进行细致和持久的观察。（中译本）
[原译2]我们没有拍过一张真正满意的处于野生状态中的猩猩照片，不管一个动物学家多么大胆，他也不能在猩猩所生活的黑暗的丛林里进行严密而长期的观察。（中译本）
我不明白为什么动物学家不能在丛林里进行长期而严密的观察。
两个译本的译者都没有把英语动词的现在完成时 (has been able) 的时态意味 (迄今为止这一段时间的情况) 正确地表达出来。他们把 has been able 误译为 is able 或 will be able 了。从译文看,似乎原作者认为“动物学家永远不可能在……丛林里进行观察”。其实原作者根本就没有这个意思。原作者的意思是:“动物学家迄今未能”。
[试译]……迄今还没有一个动物学家，不管他多么勇敢，曾在猩猩所生活的黑暗的丛林里对它们进行过持久而严密的观察。
was( were) able
葛传架:《英语惯用法词典》(p.114)说:“I was able to do it. (指经常的或一次的能力,并不意味着实行。)” 这种说法是否符合英语的实际情况？
这是葛老在40多年前说的。现在人们对英语的研究已有了长足的进步。实际上，was（were）able to通常表示一次性的事件，而较少表示经常性事件，这是它与could的区别之一，其次，was（were）able to总是意味着实行（成功地实行），而并不表示潜在的能力，这是它与could的区别之二，见 （was able to/could）。 请翻译下列句子：
was able to/could $^{2}$
（1）Gauss was able to show by a theoretical analysis that the field arose within the solid earth ... [北大《英语》(三), p. 101]
[原译]高斯通过理论分析能够证明场是在地球实体内产生的……(教参)
(2) After years of difficulty, Whittle was, however, able to build his first engine. [清华大学《英语教程》(三), p. 163]
[原译]经过几年的艰苦努力，怀特终于能够制造出他的第一台发动机。（教参）
(3) Many of the materials listed above as examples of organic compounds were once believed to be products of living organisms — and so were called organic. Following much laboratory experimentation, however, chemists were able to demonstrate that certain products, which had previously been considered the results of vital or living processes, could be produced in the laboratory.
[原译]上面作为有机化合物的例子列举的许多物质,曾一度被认为是有生命的生物的产物,所以称作有机的。然而,在进行了许多实验室实验以后,化学家们能够证明,以前认为是生命过程产物的某些物品,却是可以在实验室制造出来的。(《科技英语的理解与翻译》,p.20)
根据我的汉语语感我觉得上列诸译文中打着重号的部分有点不对味儿。但毛病出在什么地方呢？我又说不出来。
以上各句把 was/were able to 一律译成“能够”，是不尽妥当的。例(1)、(2)、(3)中的 was/were able to + infinitive，似可以分别译作“……（终于）证明了”“……终于制造出了”“……证明了……”。
请做下面的英语试题：
He confessed that for months he was scarcely being able to look at the lawyer without becoming angry. (TOEFL)
Biologists are predicting that they have been able to alter genes and control heredity. (TOEFL)
was able to/could $^{3}$
He worked very hard, and was able to pass his examination.
[原译]他很用功,能考及格。(《英语疑难词典》,外研社,02,p.149)
was able to pass his examination 可以译为“(可)能考及格”吗?
上面的译文是对 was/were able to 的又一典型误译。见上条。
[试译]他学习很努力,因而通过了考试。
was able to/could $^{4}$
有一本英语词典上说：“could 用来表示 can 的过去时态，相当于 was able to”。这种说法似乎不大精确，您说呢？
我们在上条中已经讲了它们之间的一个重要区别: could 表“潜能”, was able to 表“动作的完成”, 此外, 它们之间还有一个重要的区别, 就是 could 可以用来表示过去习惯性动作的完成, 而 was able to 却无这种用法。
I could run after a bus and catch it twenty years ago, but I can't do that now. (CGEL) 20 年前,我能在后面跑着追上公共汽车,现在不行了。
was( were ) not able to/could not
我已知道,could 表示潜能。I could pass the examination. 是说“我曾有能力通过考试。”，而不是指“我成功地通过了考试”。而 I was able to pass the examination. 则是指“我确实成功地通过了考试”。也就是说,was(were) able to 是强调动作的完成。但是,我不明白,它们在否定句中是否也存在这个区别。
在肯定句中 could 表“潜能”, was(were) able to 表“动作的完成”, 这种区别, 在否定句中就不复存在了, 两者都可以表示“动作的未完成”:
They will stay for about a week. 请问 about 在这里是什么词?
about 在这里不是介词,而是副词,作“大约”“大概”解。