Long vs. Lengthy: 英文單字的細微差別

「Long」和「Lengthy」兩個英文單字都表示「長」的意思,但它們的用法卻略有不同。簡單來說,「long」更常用於描述物理上的長度,例如時間、距離或物件的長度;而「lengthy」則更常形容過程或事件冗長乏味。 「Lengthy」帶有負面或至少是較不積極的意味,暗示著長度過長令人感到不耐煩。

讓我們看一些例句來更清楚地了解它們的差別:

  • The road is long. (這條路很長。) This sentence describes the physical length of the road. 這裡描述的是道路的實際長度。

  • We had a long discussion. (我們進行了一場長時間的討論。) Here, "long" refers to the duration of the discussion. 這裡「long」指的是討論持續的時間。

  • The movie was lengthy and boring. (這部電影冗長乏味。) "Lengthy" emphasizes the excessive length and implies a negative feeling about the movie's duration. 「Lengthy」強調了過長的時長,並暗示對電影時長的負面感受。

  • The process was lengthy and complicated. (這個過程冗長且複雜。) Again, "lengthy" highlights the undesirable length of the process. 同樣地,「lengthy」突顯了過程令人不悅的長度。

  • He has long hair. (他留著長髮。) "Long" describes the physical length of his hair. 「Long」描述的是他頭髮的實際長度。

  • The meeting was lengthy, lasting for over three hours. (會議冗長,持續了三個多小時。) This combines both aspects – the length (three hours) and the negative connotation of "lengthy". 這句話結合了兩個方面——時間長度(三個多小時)和「lengthy」的負面含義。

總之,記住「long」是普遍的長度描述詞,而「lengthy」則更常形容令人覺得過長、冗長,甚至乏味的過程或事件。

Happy learning!

Learn English with Images

With over 120,000 photos and illustrations