张道真编《现代英语用法词典》阅读体会

badnumber

作者在序言里说：“这书如何使用，不同人可作不同考虑......一般来说，通读一遍是有好处的，虽然不可能都记住，但可以留下较深印象，以后查考比较方便，在运用语言时可比较自觉。阅读时不宜象看小说一样一溜而过，最好是细嚼慢咽不抢速度。如果可能的话，还可把某些例句译为汉语进行对比。要发展听说及写作能力的人，最好做些记忆工作，以加深印象......”我就照他说的，通读了一遍。这套书共5本，5000多页，如果真象他说的那样“细嚼慢咽不抢速度”，恐怕要好几年才能读完。我没那个耐心，只是走马观花“一溜而过”，即使是这样，还是花了将近两星期才读完。是否留下“较深印象”不敢说，倒是有些体会值得一说。
这本词典最大的特色就是例句多。例句对于理解词汇的确切含义和用法确实有很大帮助。记得我对common和ordinary，accurate和precise的区别，就完全是通过研读多条例句而理解的。但是光有例句也不行，总还要先知道词的释义。这本辞典的释义用的是中文，对于某些名词，中文释义简明扼要，比英文释义方便，但是对于动词和形容词就不好说了。
8 y1 `; i. b* o9 i中文和英文几乎完全对应的例子不是没有，比如：
" T+ q, a/ u. f) ^, S( }5 [4 w命悬一线When he was ill, his life hung by a thread.
这就是几乎完全对应，用中文释义并不影响理解。
$ B$ A. p$ Q: k6 i& G但这样的例子毕竟是少数。比如论持久战on protracted war，这个protract如果光从中文释义来理解，恐怕就不够precise了。这时候就要查英语释义了，比如韦氏的解释是to prolong in time or space : CONTINUE。
8 L0 k; \5 A- Y3 m0 [这个解释应该既accurate又precise了吧，但看了这个释义，或者背熟了这个释义甚至连同例句，你就真的理解了，能用了？我是还感觉似懂非懂的。
# w: a4 U$ V3 o  L5 F问题出在哪里？就是没有“感觉”。回想学习汉语的经验，那些词汇是怎么掌握的？最初或许是在课本上学到的，似懂非懂，然后在练习中，考试中用到，即使做对了，但自己写文章，仍然没有把握用。一直要到某天在某本书上看到一个例句，严格说是在某个段落，某个故事，总之是比句子更大的context里看到这个词，忽然“有感觉”了，从此，才算真正理解，并能运用了。
- W" Q/ N; k, o6 W* Z0 K# [所以我觉得学活用词汇，光是中文释义不够，加上英文释义，也不够，加上例句，也不够，需要更大的context，争取接触多了，在某个context中忽然获得了“感觉”，这才能掌握。
先说这些，有机会再写。

1209991128

为啥我看到的只有一本1000多页的？哪里来的五本？

pan

I recommend a more ... practical way of practicing your English.
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Write whatever you want to say in English. Be it your feelings about relationship with your boy/girlfriend, your regret about a mistake you made, or in this case, your review of a book that you think is worth the time.
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% \: ~6 b) R& bTry it, and you'll enjoy it.
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Pan.

218218

1209991128 发表于 2021-2-19 12:01
  Y# o; t) g. s. ]+ F! n为啥我看到的只有一本1000多页的？哪里来的五本？

老版的是5本

1209991128

218218 发表于 2021-2-21 15:32
1 U! f: b7 r1 ]4 `' ^8 X老版的是5本

新版好像只有英文例句，没有中文译文？

ksandkm

新版好像只有英文例句，没有中文译文？

littlebush123

有没有电子版的？张道真也是海归一枚，那个年代的学者，治学普遍很严谨，应该还是靠谱的

badnumber

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pan 发表于 2021-2-21 08:53
" d, I+ S' h$ g" o+ l: l" xI recommend a more ... practical way of practicing your English.

% H5 y: o1 t2 N; f, jWrite whatever you want to say in ...

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Thank you for your comment. "Once upon a time", I kept a short diary every day for around half a year. But it didn't seem to significantly improve my written English. Later I found out it's because my vocabulary, not words that I can only recognize but words that I can use in speaking and writing, was still limited. So writing practice alone is not enough to improve my writing. That's why I attempted to enlarge my "working" vocabulary in a couple of ways, including reading word usage dictionaries. But it didn't seem to work. Now I'm exploring more ways.

badnumber

littlebush123 发表于 2021-2-27 15:07
, \+ u. Y. y' Y! n1 Y1 j有没有电子版的？张道真也是海归一枚，那个年代的学者，治学普遍很严谨，应该还是靠谱的 ...

! k. p- P1 `: Z. {- W( V6 ]# X论坛里有扫描版（重排本，5000多页缩印为1700多页）

pan

badnumber 发表于 2021-2-28 22:23
, k& f. ]; B3 E0 |Thank you for your comment. "Once upon a time", I kept a short diary every day for around half a y ...

- M2 g1 s" W/ l8 t, I* }' S1 zHi Badnumber,
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It's a nice surprise to receive a message that is written in English here. I had decided not to participate in any discussions, but your message made me change my mind.

! j) y, V5 ?7 {3 ^6 `, A: ]+ e9 C3 LIn my previous message I meant to point out that one has to keep using what he learns in everyday communications; that's how we keep the language fresh and alive. By "using the language" I referred to chatting with others, by way of voice chatting or "thumbs-chatting", and by writing on a forum such as this one. It's different from reading and hearing all by yourself. I am not saying reading and listening is not important; it's just that you still have to strike a balance between "inhaling" and "exhaling".

' Z5 P1 {/ `+ i$ X$ `5 `That explains for your frustration about keeping a diary-writing habit not being the most helpful way. Writing a diary is still helpful, actually, but that is hardly better than a monologue, a soliloquy; you're your own audience. Therefore, the solution to that issue is staring us in the face: talk to or write to someone, rather than yourself, someone who can talk you back or write you back, preferrably a native English speaker. Go as deep into the subject as your English would allow. You will practice what you have learned, and will pick up new expressions along the way.
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Anyway, it's my humble learning experience talking. It has worked for me like a charm, and I hope you'll find it helpful, too.

Pan.

badnumber

pan 发表于 2021-3-1 08:50
Hi Badnumber,

0 f0 f9 i2 t9 ^" L4 Z( ^It's a nice surprise to receive a message that is written in English here. I had d ...

I think you have a point in the importance of communicating with others in English rather than a monologue.
' r3 y3 l/ g/ d& z3 g, ?Actually I have to use English in my daily work and I think my English is sufficient to deal with the routines. But I know my English is just a bit above the elementary level and would like to make it better, not for materialistic purpose but just for kind of self-satisfaction. Or I may say that I don't quite like English, but after all I did spend a lot of time learning that, which somehow ties me with English.

pan

Well, from the way you delve so deep in those heavy tomes, I'd say you seem to have a passion in English.
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I can say unabashedly that I love the language, but I balk at the idea of poring over such books. :D
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Anyway, whatever tickles your fancy.
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2 n1 Q8 \4 D& d; {* n9 cPan.