前此,谈到动词形态和被动语态的关系,并且指出动词过去分词的重要,以及它是许多错误之源。
除此之外,其他类型的错误,也屡见不鲜,包括下列四种:
㈠不定式动词(the infinitive),如:
① An applicant was rejected, but the personnel manager who rang up with the bad news promised to help her looked for a job elsewhere.
凡在HELP+宾语后面出现的一定是不定式动词,可以带to ,也可以不带to,但是绝对不可以是其他形式的动词,因此 looked要改为look或to look。
另一个和MAKE有关的句型,也常有形态问题,如:
② The sight of the horrible animal made our blood ran cold.
③ The long distance between Singapore and China makes Singapores businessmen considering going to nearer countries to invest.
②里的ran和③里的considering都是动词形态之误,要分别改成run和consider才对。
要注意的是HELP后头的不定式动词可以有to或不带to,但MAKE后面的不定式动词绝对不可有to。
㈡过去分词(the past participle),如
④ Like other teaching methods, group discussion can assist students in solving recognising problems.
在英语里,过去分词和现在分词都可以转化为名词修饰语。前者表示被动及完成的活动;后者则表示主动及未完成的动作。④里的名词problems是已经认同的,因此现在分词recognising要改为过去分词recognised才合理。
同样的,⑤里的describing也要改为described。
⑤ The instructional techniques describing in the book have some striking features.
㈢原形动词,如:
⑥ Day in day out, housewives will lost contact with the outside world.
在英语助动词do, shall, have等或情态动词can, may, must等后面出现的是原形动词,其他形式的动词都不对。因此,⑥ 里的lost要改为lose。⑦和⑧里的spent 和 entrusted也应为spend和entrust。
⑦ Instead of joining violent demonstrators, students should spent their time studying.
⑧ Can mothers confidently entrusted their children to any day-care centre?
㈣动名词,如:
⑨ Prior to analyse teaching methods, it is important for the teacher to know something about the students learning strategies.
⑨里的prior to等于介词before,后头带宾语。其中一种宾语是动名词或动名词短语(gerund/gerund phrase)。显然的,原形的analyse要变成analysing。⑩里的engage和╆里的to repair and restore也非改成engaging和repairing and restoring不可: ⑩ They should concentrate on their studies instead of engage themselves in mobs. ╆ The authorities spent a lot of money to repair and restore damaged public buildings.
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