- 认识这个词(基础篇)
词:universal
英英释义:existing everywhere or involving everyone
例句:The desire to look attractive is universal.
2. 体会这个词 (进阶篇)
我很都很熟悉“universe”是“宇宙”,其实它的形容词形式“universal”也是个常见并且实用的好词。当想表示某种情况非常普遍时,我们可能会立刻想到 common,popular,prevalent,其实在很多时候也可以用 universal。
比如我们常说“爱美之心,人皆有之”,就可以说成:
The desire to look attractive is universal.
或者
It’s a universal trait to want people to find you attractive.
当我们想表示“全民xx”这层意思时,就可以用到 universal。比如“全民医保”就可以说成“universal health care”,“普世价值”可以是“universal values”。《经济学人》曾在一篇特别报道中评价美国是“the only large rich country without universal health care”。
universal 的副词形式 universally 也很常见,当想强调普遍程度时就可以用到它。比如《傲慢与偏见》中的经典开篇第一段中就用到了“universally acknowledged”:
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.
根据这段话我们也可以提取常见句型 It is a universal truth that… 比如《经济学人》中就出现过:
It is a universal truth of human nature that a dollar tomorrow is worth less to us than a dollar today.
- 从认识到会用(作业)
1)使用《牛津英语搭配词典》查“universal”,了解它作为形容词时的常用搭配。
among
在… 中普遍:
These practices remain universal among the islanders.
翻译下面的句子:
中国的全民教育取得了巨大的进步。
A tremendous progress has been made among the universal education in China.
(参考翻译:China has made remarkable progress toward/towards universal literacy. 或者 China has made giant strides in universal access to education.)
3)结合自己的生活、学习、工作、兴趣等,想象在什么语境下会用到这个表达。先简要描述这个场景,再造句。
场景: It is universally acknowledged that education anxiety is now prevalent among middle-class.