它们太常见了：名词补论

We’ve not yet dealt with important features of nouns and associated functions and structures, including some you may already know. Here we discuss several of them. 我们尚未涉及名词的一些重要特征，以及与之相关的功能和结构，其中包括一些你可能已经知道的。在这里，我们来讨论其中的若干项。

THE COMMON AND THE PROPER

普通名词与专有名词

You may already know about common and proper nouns. Common nouns are words like man, woman, child, city, state. They name general, nonspecific persons or things. Proper nouns name particular persons or things, and they’re capitalized: Henry, * Annie, Herbert, St. Louis, Missouri. (There are no improper nouns, and if there are, being very proper ourselves, we refuse to discuss them.) 你可能已经知道普通名词和专有名词。普通名词是诸如 man、woman、child、city、state 这样的词。它们指称一般的、非特定的人或事物。专有名词指称特定的人或事物，并且首字母大写：Henry、Annie、Herbert、St. Louis、Missouri。（并不存在不 Proper* 的名词；即便有，鉴于我们自己非常讲究规矩，也拒绝讨论它们。）

Usually, it’s easy to know when to capitalize a noun, but there can be uncertainly about words that may—or may not—be official titles: 通常，我们很容易知道何时该将名词大写，但对于那些可能是——也可能不是——正式头衔的词，有时会拿不准：

I spoke with Doctor Smith yesterday. I spoke with the doctor of obstetrics yesterday. 昨天我与史密斯医生谈了话。昨天我与那位妇产科医生谈了话。

The president of the club lives in that white house. The President lives in the White House. 俱乐部的会长住在那栋白色的房子里。总统住在白宫。

Context often has a great deal to do with this. (When Dr. Smith has his business cards printed, the words Doctor of Obstetrics are capitalized.) To make these decisions, notice what is being done in contexts similar to yours. 语境往往与此大有关系。（当史密斯博士印制他的名片时，Doctor of Obstetrics 这几个词是大写的。）要做出这些判断，请注意在你类似的语境中别人是怎么做的。

Dictionaries can help us make these distinctions, but it’s also helpful to notice what other writers do in similar situations. 词典可以帮助我们做出这些区分，但留意其他作者在类似情形下怎么做也很有帮助。

PLURAL NOUNS

复数名词

As you know, we make most nouns plural by simply adding –s to the end. 如你所知，我们把大多数名词变为复数，只需要在词尾加上 –s。

If a word ends with s, x, z, sh, or ch, we add –es: *basses, boxes, * dishes, churches, and many others. 如果一个词以 s、x、z、sh 或 ch 结尾，我们加上 –es：basses、boxes、dishes、churches，以及许多其他的词。

But there are quite a few exceptions—called irregular ** plurals—and for these, all of us may need to refer to a dictionary at times. The easiest irregular plurals are those that don’t change from singular to plural: *Sheep, deer, *and *moose *don’t change. 但也有相当多的例外——称为不规则复数**——对于这些词，我们所有人有时都可能需要查阅词典。最简单的不规则复数是那些单复数形式不变的词：*sheep（羊）、deer（鹿）*和 moose（驼鹿） 没有变化。

Still other familiar irregulars change a vowel within the word (mice, men, teeth, and more) or add –en: oxen, children. 还有一些我们熟悉的不规则词会改变词内元音（mice、men、teeth 等），或者加上 –en：oxen、children。

With a noun that ends with a consonant and o, we usually use –es for the plural: heroes, zeroes, potatoes. 以辅音加 o 结尾的名词，我们通常用 –es 构成复数：heroes、zeroes、potatoes。

But there are other nouns that end with a consonant and o that take only -s. Some of these are musical terms from Italian: *pianos, * cellos, solos. 但也还有其他以辅音加 o 结尾的名词，只加 -s。其中一些是来自意大利语的音乐术语：pianos、cellos、solos。

A noun that ends with a vowel followed by o also takes only –s for the plural: patios, radios, rodeos, zoos. 以元音加 o 结尾的名词，复数也只加 –s：patios、radios、rodeos、zoos。

With some nouns that end with f or fe, follow the familiar rule: Change the f to v and add –es: calves, halves, knives, wives. But other plurals that end with f or fe take only –s: *roofs, proofs, * handkerchiefs, beliefs. 对于某些以 f 或 fe 结尾的名词，遵循熟悉的规则：把 f 改为 v 再加 –es：calves、halves、knives、wives。但其他以 f 或 fe 结尾的复数只加 –s：roofs、proofs、handkerchiefs、beliefs。

You probably recall that in nouns that end with a consonant and y, we change y to i and add –es: armies, ladies, rallies. But when a vowel precedes y, we add only –s: *bays, boys, alleys, * valleys. 你可能记得，在以辅音加 y 结尾的名词中，我们把 y 改为 i 再加 –es：armies、ladies、rallies。但当 y 前面是元音时，我们只加 –s：bays、boys、alleys、valleys。

And then there are a number of words from Latin or Greek that retain their original plural forms or something similar. To us, these plurals seem quite irregular: 此外，还有许多来自拉丁语或希腊语的词，保留了它们原来的复数形式或与之相近的形式。对我们来说，这些复数显得相当不规则：

alumnae phenomena alumni radii criteria stimuli media theses nebulae vertebrae alumnae（女校友） phenomena（现象） alumni（男校友/校友） radii（半径） criteria（标准） stimuli（刺激物） media（媒体） theses（论文） nebulae（星云） vertebrae（椎骨）

We’ll remind you again that a dictionary always helps with words like these. Most writers will use few of these Latin and Greek plurals, but we all need to remember some, including (probably) these: 我们再次提醒你，遇到这类词，词典总能帮上忙。大多数作者很少使用这些拉丁语和希腊语复数，但我们都需要记住一些，包括（很可能）以下这些：

• medium (the singular) and media, as in *the medium of * television • criterion and criteria • phenomenon and phenomena • crisis and crises • medium（单数）和 media，如 the medium of television（电视媒介） • criterion 和 criteria（标准） • phenomenon 和 phenomena（现象） • crisis 和 crises（危机）

Almost every profession and academic subject has its special terms that include certain irregular plurals, and it’s a good idea to learn them as soon as possible for your professional writing. 几乎每一种职业和学科都有其包含某些不规则复数的专门术语，为了你的专业写作，尽早学会它们是明智的。

It’s also helpful to know that almost no one uses memorandum and memoranda anymore; we simply write memo or memos. And for most purposes today, data is accepted as both singular and plural. 同样有帮助的是要知道，如今几乎没有人再用 memorandum 和 memoranda 了；我们干脆写作 memo 或 memos。而且在今天的大多数场合下，data 既被当作单数也被当作复数来接受。

GREAT INDECISIONS: POSSESSION AND

莫大犹疑：所有格与

APOSTROPHES

撇号

It’s usually easy to indicate possession in English nouns; with singular nouns, we add an apostrophe and –s: *man’s, woman’s, * child’s, Oliver’s, Stanley’s. 在英语名词中表示所有关系通常很容易；对于单数名词，我们加上撇号和 –s：man’s、woman’s、child’s、Oliver’s、Stanley’s。

With plurals, we add a lone apostrophe after the final –s: friends’, students’, teachers’. 对于复数，我们在词尾的 –s 之后加一个单独的撇号：friends’、students’、teachers’。

But the English language sometimes makes things a bit trickier. When a plural does not end in –s, we make the possessive form with the apostrophe first, then –s, like the regular singular possessive: men’s, women’s, children’s. 但英语这门语言有时会把事情弄得复杂一点。当一个复数不以 –s 结尾时，我们构成所有格的形式是先把撇号放在前面，再加上 –s，就像规则的单数所有格一样：men’s、women’s、children’s。

Now comes the frustrating part: Suppose a singular noun ends in –s, like boss or Ross, Charles or Bess? For the possessive, do we add only an apostrophe? (*Ross’, Charles’, or Bess’ *?) Or do we add an apostrophe and –s? (Ross’s, Charles’s, or Bess’s?) 现在到了令人头疼的部分：假设一个单数名词以 –s 结尾，比如 boss 或 Ross、Charles 或 Bess？构成所有格时，我们只加一个撇号吗？（Ross’、Charles’ 或 Bess’？）还是加撇号再加 –s？（Ross’s、Charles’s 或 Bess’s？）

The sad truth is that American English has no universally accepted* way of marking possession in these cases. Some authorities insist on one way, some on another. 令人无奈的真相是，美式英语在这种情况下并没有普遍接受的所有格标记方式。有些权威坚持一种方式，有些则坚持另一种。

In your professional writing, you must find out which way your organization prefers and stick to it. If your organization has no standard way, persuade your leaders to adopt one of the standard style guides (like the Associated Press Stylebook) to answer such questions. 在你的专业写作中，你必须弄清你的机构倾向于哪一种方式，并坚持使用它。如果你的机构没有标准方式，就说服你的领导采用某一种标准文体指南（如 Associated Press Stylebook（《美联社文体手册》））来解答这类问题。

In this book, we create possessives with –’s after singulars ending in s, like this: 在本书中，我们对以 s 结尾的单数采用 –’s 来构成所有格，如下所示：

The boss’s desk Ross’s desk Bess’s desk 老板的办公桌罗斯的办公桌贝丝的办公桌

APPOSITIVES

同位语

An appositive is a noun or pronoun that usually appears im- mediately after another noun to rename the first noun and provide additional information about it. The appositive is usually enclosed in a pair of commas, although we may sometimes use dashes or pa- rentheses depending on our desired style, tone, or emphasis. 同位语是一个名词或代词，通常紧接在另一个名词之后出现，用来重命名第一个名词并提供关于它的额外信息。同位语通常用一对逗号括起来，不过有时我们也可能根据想要的文体、语气或强调，使用破折号或括号。

More than one appositive is possible, and sometimes the ap- positive has modifiers of its own: 可以有不止一个同位语，而且有时同位语本身还带有自己的修饰语：

My boss, Mr. Smith, was talking to my parents. 我的老板，史密斯先生，正在和我的父母说话。

Mr. Smith, my wonderful boss, was talking to my parents. 史密斯先生，我那了不起的老板，正在和我的父母说话。

My boss—that bore, that ogre, that man whom I hate more than any other person living, with the possible exception of my English teacher—was telling my parents that I have a bad attitude. 我的老板——那个讨厌鬼，那个怪物，那个比世上任何活人都更让我憎恨的人（也许我的英语老师除外）——正在告诉我的父母，我的态度很不好。

In the sentences above, the appositives all rename the subject (My boss or Mr. Smith), and for that reason they are considered part of the subject. 在上面这些句子中，这些同位语都重命名了主语（My boss 或 Mr. Smith），因此被视为主语的一部分。

In the third example, the dashes are helpful to mark the beginning and end of the long, complicated appositive phrase because the phrase itself contains three commas. 在第三个例子中，破折号有助于标出那个冗长而复杂的同位语短语的开头和结尾，因为这个短语本身包含了三个逗号。

Nominal clauses can be appositives: 名词性从句也可以作同位语：

The physicist’s idea, that multiple universes exist, baffles me. 那位物理学家的想法——即多重宇宙存在——让我困惑不解。

My question—who killed Colonel Mustard in the library?— remains unanswered. 我的问题——谁在图书馆里杀了马斯塔上校？——仍然没有答案。

His topic, why climate change is happening, was timely. 他的话题——为何气候变化正在发生——很及时。

When pronouns are used as appositives, their case (nomina- tive, objective, or possessive) should match the function of the nouns they rename. In the example below, the appositives rename the object (judges) of a preposition, so the pronoun is in the ob- jective case: 当代词用作同位语时，它们的格（主格、宾格或所有格）应当与它们所重命名的名词的功能相匹配。在下面的例子中，同位语重命名了介词的宾语（judges），所以代词用的是宾格：

The photos were given to the judges, Eric and me. 这些照片被交给了评委，埃里克和我。

In the next example, the appositives rename the subject (judges), so the pronoun is in the nominative case: 在下一个例子中，同位语重命名了主语（judges），所以代词用的是主格：

The judges, Eric and I, will study the photos. 评委们，埃里克和我，将研究这些照片。

Sometimes structures look like appositives but are not. For instance, a compound noun phrase, joined with or, can be used to indicate a synonym: 有时某些结构看起来像同位语，其实却不是。例如，一个由 or 连接的复合名词短语，可以用来表示同义词：

The common dog, or *Canis lupus familiaris, belongs to the Canidae family. 普通的狗，即 Canis lupus familiaris（家犬），属于犬科家族。

Mergenthaler’s typesetting machine (or Linotype) was completed in 1884. 梅尔根塔勒的排版机（即 Linotype（莱诺整行铸排机））于 1884 年制成。

The noun after or is not an appositive, despite the punctuation. But remove the conjunction *or *and the same sentences now contain appositives that are, again, synonyms of the preceding noun phrase: 尽管有标点，or 后面的名词并不是同位语。但去掉连词 or 后，同样的句子现在就包含了同位语，而这些同位语又是前面名词短语的同义词：

The common dog, *Canis lupus familiaris, belongs to the Canidae family. 普通的狗，Canis lupus familiaris（家犬），属于犬科家族。

Mergenthaler’s typesetting machine, the Linotype, was completed in 1884. 梅尔根塔勒的排版机，Linotype（莱诺整行铸排机），于 1884 年制成。

Don’t confuse the appositive with adjectives that appear after the noun they modify: 不要把同位语与出现在它们所修饰的名词之后的形容词混淆：

The children, noisy and enthusiastic, dashed through the living room. 孩子们，又吵又热情，冲过了客厅。

THE EXPLETIVE THERE

引导词 there

An expletive, as the term is used in grammar, is a word inserted into a sentence that adds nothing to the meaning but alters word order in ways that are sometimes useful. As we use 引导词（虚词），就语法中使用该术语而言，是指插入句子中的一个词，它不增加任何意义，却会以有时很有用的方式改变词序。正如我们在这里

the term here, expletives are not swear words, although the term sometimes has that meaning, too: “Where are my [expletive deleted] glasses?” 使用该术语，引导词不是骂人的话，尽管这个术语有时也有那种含义：“我的 [此处删除粗话] 眼镜在哪儿？”

The most commonly used expletive is there, which can be added to a sentence to temporarily take the place of the subject. 最常用的引导词是 there，它可以加到句子中，临时取代主语的位置。

This expletive postpones the appearance of the subject, which may be a noun or a pronoun, until after the first word of the verb* * (that is, after the first auxiliary or after the main verb when there is no auxiliary). The expletive is never the actual subject. 这个引导词把主语（可以是名词或代词）的出现推迟到动词的第一个词*之后（也就是说，在没有助动词时，在第一个助动词之后，或在主要动词之后）。引导词永远不是真正的主语。

Compare these pairs of sentences, in which the complete subject is underlined: 比较下面成对的句子，其中完整的主语加了下划线：

A painting by Degas is hanging in the museum. There is a painting by Degas hanging in the museum. 一幅德加的画正挂在博物馆里。There 有一幅德加的画正挂在博物馆里。

Two men were looking for you. There were two men looking for you. 两个男人正在找你。There 有两个男人正在找你。

The expletive there has no grammatical function in the second sentence. It has only a stylistic function, to stand in for the true subject, postponing the subject until later in the sentence, as shown above. 引导词 there 在第二句中没有任何语法功能。它只有一种文体功能，即代替真正的主语，把主语推迟到句子较后的位置，如上所示。

In English, expletive constructions are the usual way to say certain things: 在英语中，引导词结构是表达某些内容的通常方式：

There will now be a short intermission. There 现在将有一段短暂的幕间休息。

We don’t say, *A short intermission will now be *(though we can say We’ll now have a short intermission.) 我们不会说 A short intermission will now be（尽管我们可以说 We’ll now have a short intermission.（我们现在要有一段短暂的幕间休息。））

Somewhere there is a place for us. 某处there 有一个属于我们的地方。

We can’t say, Somewhere a place for us is or *A place for us is * somewhere. 我们不能说 Somewhere a place for us is 或 A place for us is somewhere（某处有一个属于我们的地方 / 一个属于我们的地方在某处）。

In both of the cases above, the expletive there postpones the subject to the end of the sentence, where the subject (*a short * intermission; a place for us) receives special emphasis. 在上述两种情况中，引导词 there 都把主语推迟到句末，在那里主语（a short intermission（一段短暂的幕间休息）；a place for us（一个属于我们的地方））得到了特殊的强调。

Don’t confuse the expletive there with the adverb of place there. Here’s a useful test: Can you replace there with here and retain the original general sense of the sentence? If yes, then there is an adverb. 不要把引导词 there 与表示地点的副词 there 混淆。这里有一个有用的检验方法：你能否用 here 替换 there 而保留句子原本的大意？如果可以，那么 there 就是副词。

ADVERB: Your keys are over there. (Compare: Your keys are over here.) 副词：你的钥匙在那边。（比较：Your keys are over here.（你的钥匙在这边。））

ADVERB: There are your keys. (Compare: Here are your keys.) 副词：那里是你的钥匙。（比较：Here are your keys.（这里是你的钥匙。））

EXPLETIVE: There are keys all over the place. (We wouldn’t usually say, Here are keys all over the place.) 引导词：There 到处都是钥匙。（我们通常不会说 Here are keys all over the place.（这里到处都是钥匙。））

Here are a few more examples of subjects postponed by the expletive there: 这里还有几个主语被引导词 there 推迟的例子：

A dog is growling in the yard There is a dog growling in the yard. 一只狗正在院子里咆哮。There 有一只狗正在院子里咆哮。

A boy is building something on our porch. There is a boy building something on the porch. 一个男孩正在我们的门廊上搭什么东西。There 有一个男孩正在门廊上搭什么东西。

In Chapter 20, we’ll learn about the use of *it *as an expletive. 在第 20 章，我们将学习把 it 用作引导词。

NOUNS OF DIRECT ADDRESS

呼语名词

In written dialogue and letters, as in daily conversation, we sometimes use the names of the people we’re addressing. These names are called nouns of direct address: 在书面对话和书信中，正如在日常交谈里一样，我们有时会用到我们所称呼的人的名字。这些名字被称为呼语名词：

Mr. Smith, I’d like to speak with you, please. I don’t like to be disappointed, and you, Renfru, disappoint me. 史密斯先生，我想和您谈谈，麻烦了。我不喜欢失望，而你，伦弗鲁，让我失望了。

Sometimes nouns of direct address are common nouns that apply to one person or an entire audience: 有时呼语名词是适用于一个人或整个听众的普通名词：

My friend, I hope you will take my advice. 我的朋友，我希望你会接受我的劝告。

This news, my friends, should comfort us all. 这个消息，我的朋友们，应该会让我们大家都感到安慰。

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to our forty-first annual vase juggling competition. 女士们、先生们，欢迎来到我们第四十一届年度花瓶杂耍大赛。

The noun of direct address is always enclosed by a pair of commas, and it has no grammatical function in the sentence. That is, it’s not considered part of the subject or the predicate. It has a social function: to get the attention of the person addressed, or to clarify who is being addressed. 呼语名词总是被一对逗号括起来，它在句子中没有语法功能。也就是说，它不被视为主语或谓语的一部分。它具有一种社会功能：引起被称呼者的注意，或者澄清被称呼的是谁。

Sometimes, if the context doesn’t resolve ambiguities, readers may confuse nouns of address and appositives: 有时，如果语境不能消除歧义，读者可能会把呼语名词和同位语混淆：

Your supervisor, Mr. Watley, told you to finish that project. 你的主管，沃特利先生，叫你完成那个项目。

If Mr. Watley is the supervisor, then the words Mr. Watley are an appositive. If Mr. Watley is the person being addressed, then Mr. Watley is a noun of direct address. We can usually depend on the larger context to clarify this. 如果沃特利先生就是那位主管，那么 Mr. Watley 这个词就是同位语。如果沃特利先生是被称呼的对象，那么 Mr. Watley 就是呼语名词。我们通常可以依赖更大的语境来澄清这一点。

POINTS FOR WRITERS

写给作者们的要点

1. Restrictive and non-restrictive appositives.

1. 限制性同位语与非限制性同位语

Here comes a distinction that is seldom understood and often ignored. 下面要讲一个很少被理解、且常被忽视的区别。

Sometimes the pair of commas is not used with the appositive, depending on the larger context. In the first example below, the writer has more than one daughter; in the second, he has only one: 有时，根据更大的语境，这对方逗号并不与同位语一起使用。在下面的第一个例子中，作者不止有一个女儿；在第二个例子中，他只有一个：

My daughter Mary plays the tuba. My daughter, Mary, plays the tuba. 我的女儿玛丽吹大号。我的女儿，玛丽，吹大号。

In the first example, Mary is a restrictive appositive: it re- stricts (or limits) the meaning of daughter. In the second example, the non-restrictive appositive Mary simply provides supplemen- tary information. (And in this case the commas contribute nothing to understanding the sentence.) 在第一个例子中，Mary 是一个限制性同位语：它限制（或限定）了 daughter 的含义。在第二个例子中，非限制性同位语 Mary 仅仅提供了补充信息。（而在这里，逗号对理解句子毫无贡献。）

Here are more examples of restrictive appositives, followed by non-restrictive examples: 下面是更多的限制性同位语例子，其后跟着非限制性的例子：

RESTRICTIVE: My cousin Bob plays the harmonica. NON-RESTRICTIVE: My cousin, Bob, plays the harmonica. 限制性：我的表兄鲍勃吹口琴。非限制性：我的表兄，鲍勃，吹口琴。

RESTRICTIVE: Our custodian Mr. Halley does good work. NON-RESTRICTIVE: Our custodian, Mr. Halley, does good work. 限制性：我们的管理员哈雷先生工作做得很好。非限制性：我们的管理员，哈雷先生，工作做得很好。

In both cases the restrictive appositive, without the commas, is used to identify a specific cousin or custodian out of many. 在这两种情况下，没有逗号的限制性同位语，都是用来从众多人中辨认出某个特定的表兄或管理员。

When in doubt, add the commas. Few (if any) readers will object, or even notice, if you’re wrong, and the commas seldom if ever alter the meaning of the sentence significantly. But if you add the first comma, don’t forget the second. 拿不准时，就加上逗号。几乎没有（即使有也极少）读者会反对，甚至不会注意到你加错了，而逗号很少——即便有也几乎不会——显著改变句子的意思。但如果你加了第一个逗号，别忘了第二个。

EXERCISES

练习

15a. What’s the difference in writing between regular* *plural nouns, possessive nouns, and plural possessive nouns? Write an example that illustrates each category, using words that have regular plurals. 15a. 普通复数名词、所有格名词和复数所有格名词在书写上有什么不同？请各写一个例子来说明每一类，使用具有规则复数的词。

For example: cats, cat’s, and cats’. 例如：cats（猫，复数）、cat’s（猫的，单数所有格），和 cats’（猫的，复数所有格）。

15b. Write plural, singular possessive, and plural possessive forms of the following nouns: woman, ox, church, tomato, piano, medi- um (e.g., the medium of TV),* boss, and octopus*. Use a dictionary when you need to. 15b. 写出下列名词的复数、单数所有格和复数所有格形式：woman（女人）、ox（牛）、church（教堂）、tomato（番茄）、piano（钢琴）、medium（媒介，如 the medium of TV（电视媒介））、boss（老板），和 octopus（章鱼）。需要时请查词典。

15c. In the following sentences, identify the sentences that con- tain nouns of address, appositives, and expletives, and underline those structures. In sentences with expletives, identify the com- plete subject of the sentence. A sentence may contain more than one of these structures. In some cases, the function of the phrase may not be clear within the limited context. 15c. 在下面的句子中，找出那些含有呼语名词、同位语和引导词的句子，并给这些结构加下划线。在含有引导词的句子中，指出该句的完整主语。一个句子可能含有不止一种这样的结构。在某些情况下，该短语的功能在有限的语境中可能并不清晰。

Examples: 示例：

My brother Ed has left. [Appositive] Dwight, see if his brother has left. [Noun of address] There are no printer cartridges in the supply closet. [There is an expletive, and no printer cartridges is the subject.] 我的兄弟埃德已经离开了。[同位语] 德怀特，去看看他兄弟走了没有。[呼语名词] 储藏室里没有打印机墨盒了。[There 是引导词，而 no printer cartridges 是主语。]

Dr. Kildare, you can speak with my assistant.
基尔戴尔医生，您可以和我的助手谈。
June, speak with my physician, Dr. Kildare.
琼，和我的医生基尔戴尔医生谈一谈。
Your brother, Alice, is remarkable.
你的兄弟，爱丽丝，很不寻常。
There is rain forecast for tomorrow.
预报明天有雨。
It is clear that Ed is a menace.
很清楚，埃德是个祸害。