第五节 写作词汇的使用

一、词的语体色彩

词是构成篇章的最小单位。从写作的角度讲，词可以根据其语体特色分为普通词（例如begin, buy, drink）、书面词语（如commence, purchase）、口语体词汇（如kid, vim）。对于写作初学者，在写作中根据语体来选择词汇是比较困难的，但尽量要避免使用俚语，也不要追求书面语词汇。力求准确地使用普通词汇即常用词汇，应是我们写作的原则。例如：

People often collect things. Stamps, books and records are fairly common. But the strangest collection I have ever seen belongs to a man who possesses 150 clocks. There are clocks in every room of his house. Each clock keeps its own time, so chimes can be heard almost any time during the day and night. In her opinion, however, there is something even worse than dust and noise. Even with so many clocks around, she never knows what time it is!

本段通篇均使用普通词汇，但表达语意到位，浅显易懂，幽默风趣，语言可读性非常强。对于写作初学者，建议使用常用词，通俗易懂，直接明了，非常用词则抽象难懂应尽量避免，例如：

二、辨析词义与正确选词

（一）词汇的本意和引申意

词汇的本意指其基本含义，引申意义往往指从本义发展出来的意义、暗示的意义或感情色彩。例如country, nation, state和land的本义均含有“国家”的意义，但其引申意义却各有不同。Country着眼于国家的版图领土，nation着重于一个国家的民族，state强调国家的政体，land较模糊地从地理学角度着眼于一个国家，但常含较浓的感情色彩，因此常构成mother-land, father-land, home-land等复合词和词组。

试比较：

Japan is an island country.

Please name your neighboring countries.

We are a peace-loving nation.

The modernization program has won the support of the whole nation.

China belongs to the Third World states.

Ours is a state-owned enterprise.

He died for his mother-land.

（二）词汇的广义与狭义

词汇均有广义和狭义两种意义，因而在表达某一具体思想时，需要予以选择。如：

（1）农业是国民经济的基础。

Agriculture is the foundation of the national economy.

（2）在这一地区，农业和林业同等重要。

In this area, farming is as important as forestry.

（三）词汇的多义性

英语词汇十分丰富，与汉语词汇一样，常常一词多义、一词多性，一个词语有多种具有相互联系的词义、不同的词性，在不同的语境中可以表达多种不同的意义，也可呈现不同的词性。如多义词develop, 《朗文当代英语辞典》中列出的develop动词义项有：

（1）to grow or gradually change into a larger, stronger, or more advanced state．如：

Knowledge in the field of genetics has been developing very rapidly.

（2）to make a new idea, plan, or product become successful over a period of time．如：

Scientists are developing new drugs to treat arthritis.

（3）to start to have a feeling or a quality that then becomes stronger．如：

It was in college that he developed a taste for rugby football.

（4）to make an argument or idea dearer, by studying it more or by speak ing or writing about it in more detail．如：

We will develop a few of these points in the seminar.

（5）to use land for the things that people need．如：

The land was developed for low-cost housing.

（6）to make a photograph out of a photograph film．如：

Did you ever get the pictures developed？

再如major一词有三种词性：

（1）形容词，adj. very large or important, when compared to other things or people of a similar kind.

There are two major political parties in the US.

（2）名词，n. the main subject that a student studies at college or university.

Her major is history.

（3）动词，v. to study something as your main subject at college or university.

He is majoring in political science.

（四）词义的强弱

在写作中要结合语境与语气的强弱选择恰当的词汇。如：

（1）他极其生气。

His anger knew no boundness.

（2）反动派的暴行激起了人民极大的愤怒。

The atrocities of the reactionaries roused the people to great indignation.

indignation比anger显得更有力量，因为这个词的外延含有“义愤”的意思，其语体色彩较为正式和庄重。

再如surprised和shocked都表示“惊讶”，但词义强弱有很大区别，surprised表示吃惊，而shocked表示震惊。

（五）词义的褒贬色彩

文以表意。人们通过文字表达感情与对事物的态度，态度不同就会使用含有不同感情色彩的词，或肯定、赞扬、否定、鄙视。在写作中，应依据词义的褒贬色彩选择恰当词汇来表达作者的感情色彩。

如I like to work with that（resolute/stubborn）person．此句中由like来看，应选用褒义词，resolute表示“坚决的，刚毅的”, stubborn表示“倔强的”，因此选用resolute。

再如They preach idealism whereas we advocate materialism．其中用preach（宣扬）和advocate（提倡）来表达对idealism与materialism的不同态度。