Ask & Learn聞問切英語(yǔ)口語(yǔ):Luxury or Luxuries?

讀者 Anthony 讀報(bào)時(shí)看到下面兩句：

1. Daily baths were a luxury that most families could not afford.

2. It is revealing to realise that some so-called necessities in modern life - showers, changes of clothes, keeping up our looks, and many others - may be luxuries that can be done without.

Anthony 問為什么在第一句 daily baths 這個(gè)眾數(shù)的主語(yǔ)后面是一個(gè)單數(shù)的補(bǔ)語(yǔ) luxury，而第二句中 so-called necessities 也是眾數(shù)，后面的補(bǔ)語(yǔ) luxuries 卻用了眾數(shù)？

我們先看看比較簡(jiǎn)單的第二句。句中的necessities 是指showers、changes of clothes、keeping up our looks 一類的日?；顒?dòng)，我們可以很清楚地一、二、三……一項(xiàng)一項(xiàng)數(shù)出來，所以后面的賓語(yǔ)luxuries，也是以眾數(shù)出現(xiàn)，這不難明白。

我們?cè)倏椿氐谝痪洹１砻嫔蟙aily baths 也不是眾數(shù)嗎？其實(shí)我們應(yīng)該這樣去理解：這里的daily baths 指的不是洗了多少個(gè)澡，而是每天可以洗澡這事，因此也就應(yīng)該把它看成是單數(shù)了。

換句話說，這里的daily baths，或者應(yīng)該看成 "taking daily baths"。

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