在英语中,副词可以修饰形容词,这是天经地义的事,但不是千篇一律地修饰形容词,它们要遵循一定的规则。牢记这个规则,少走弯路,提高用词的准确性。
一、可分级形容词是可以通过在其前面放置可分级副词来修改,使它们变弱,变强或发生改变的形容词。
常见的可分级形容词:
angry
big
busy
cold
deep
fast
friendly
good
happy
high
hot
important
long
popular
rich
strong
tall
warm
week
young
常见的可分级副词:
dreadfully
extremely
fairly
hugely
immensely
reasonably
slightly
unusually
二、不可分级形容词是不能通过在其前面放置分级副词来修改使其发生变化的形容词,这类形容词没有比较级和最高级,它们表示完全存在或不完全存在的特性,表示事物不会有不同的等级。
常见的不可分级形容词:
excellent
awful
terrified
dead
impossible
unique
chemical
digital
domestic
常见的不可分级副词:
utterly
absolutely
completely
totally
nearly
virtually
essentially
mainly
三、修饰原则是:除了个别副词, 可分级副词只能修饰可分级形容词,不可分级副词只能修饰不可分级形容词,例如:
可分级副词修饰可分级形容词,例如:
a bit small 有点小
dreadfully cold 极冷
unusually hot 异常炎热
extremely difficult 极其困难
slightly sad 略带悲伤
不可分级副词修饰不可分级形容词,例如:
absolutely tiny 极小的
utterly freezing 完全冻僵的
fully boiling 完全沸腾的
virtually 几乎不可能
completely devastated 完全崩溃了
以下是错误的例子:
absolutely small
a bit tiny
utterly cold
dreadfully freezing
fully hot
unusually boiling
virtually difficult
extremely impossible
completely sad
slightly devastated
四、特殊规则
有些程度副词如:really, fairly, pretty 和 quite,它们既可以修饰可分级形容词,也可以修饰不可分级形容词,例如:
really small
really tiny
pretty cold
pretty freezing
fairly difficult
fairly impossible
quite sad
quite devastated
五、enough
1、一般情况下,enough 作限定词或代词,例如:
限定词:
I didn't have enough clothes to last a week.
我的衣服不够一周穿的。
Is there enough room for me?
有足够的地方给我吗?
代词:
I’ve had enough.
我受够了。
You’ve studied enough.
你学的够多了。
解析:这两句的 enough 是代词,不是副词,因为 enough 不能修饰动词。
2、enough 也可以作程度副词,但跟其他程度副词不一样,它只能修饰动词和形容词,不能修饰副词,且经常跟在它所修饰的词后面,例如:
He didn’t finish the exam quickly enough.
他没有很快完成考试。
I’ll be happy enough to be back home.
我会很高兴回家的。
The play was interesting enough, but I wouldn’t go see it again.
这出戏很有趣,但我再也不去看了。