Ally

Mean well

發佈時間: 2016/07/20

Mean well

說話時,用字內容佔三分,語氣佔七分?再好的語氣,要是配上差勁的內容,即使心存好意(mean well),聽者也不容易接受,不是語氣和善就能減輕打擊。

Mean well中的mean一字是動詞,指「表示……的意思/意義」。句子用上mean well其實通常帶負面--有良好的意圖,但效果未必好。例如,I really know you mean well, but your comments are actually quite insulting.(我真的知道你心存好意,但是你的意見其實相當侮辱。)They meant well and didn't intend to hurt your feelings.(他們的本意是好的,並非想傷害你的感情。)

Mean well可以轉成形容詞well-meaning,將動詞mean的進行式meaning用作形容詞。Well-meaning解「善意的、好心的」,同樣常指「出於好意,但沒有成功」。例句:We received way too much parenting advice from well-meaning friends and family members. We just want them to stop telling us how to raise our child.(善意的朋友和家人實在給我們太多的育兒建議,真是希望他們停止告訴我們如何養育孩子。)

(本欄逢周一、三、五刊登)

撰文: Ally 最漂亮英文專業老師
欄名: WordDiscovery