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.
3. 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。
2)翻译下面的句子:
中国的全民教育取得了巨大的进步。
Universal literacy in China has made remarkable progress.
(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。
It is a truth universally accepted that students who could get higher grades have more chance to get a brighter future.
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