问英语｜英语常见问题解答

问

（1）I recognized him at the first moment I saw him.

(2) We liked each other from the first instant we met.

(3) It was full dawn by the time he reached the road.

斜体部分与前面的名词是什么关系？如果是定语从句，那么其间省略了什么词语？

答

可以认为在名词中心词与定语从句之间省略了关系副词 that 或 when。实际上，也可以不省略这个 that 或 when：

At the first time that I saw him, I recognized him. 第一次看到他，我就认出了他。
I sent you the news from the first instant that I heard it. 我一听到这个消息, 就把它寄给了你。
At the first moment that he had said it he knew what mistake he had made. 他刚一说出了这件事，就知道他犯了一个什么样的错误。
There have been moments in history when remarkable progress was made in relatively short periods of time. 历史上有过这样的时候:在相当短的时期内取得了惊人的进步。

问

It was between 1830 and 1835 ____ the modern newspaper was born. A. when B. that C. which D. because (TOEFL)

书上给的答案为 that, 但是, 我认为也可以选 when, 因为先行词是时间词。

答

在定语从句中虽然也可以使用关系副词 when 或 where, 但是在强调句型中强调状语时, 通常使用关系副词 that, 而不使用 when 或 where。例如:

____ that Stephen Crane wrote The Red Badge of Courage. A. In New York B. New York C. It was in New York D. New York was where(TOEFL)
It is on July 22nd, 1990 ____ another eclipse of the sun was seen in Finland. A. when B. which C. where D. that (TOEFL)
It was only on Thursdays that he visited her. (CGEL) 只是在星期四他才去拜访他。
It's in the market that Julie buys her vegetables. (CGEL) 朱丽叶是在菜市场买菜。
It was then that Sophie heard it. (Dan Brown, The Da Vinci Code) 就在那时, 索菲听见有声音传来。(《达·芬奇密码》)

下面的 where 和 when 可看作是非正式语体用法：

It was yesterday when I saw him. 我是昨天看到他的。
It is at the schools and universities where our characters are moulded. 我们的性格是在中小学和大学塑造出来的。

that/when