◎他差不多工作了一整天。
誤:He almost worked all day.
正:He worked almost all day.
析:almost 通常應放在被修飾語之前(如遇動詞be, 情態動詞, 助動 詞等, 則可置于其后)。以上誤句由于 almost 放在 worked 之 前, 其意為“差不多工作了(但實際上未工作)”, 不合原意。以 下一句也屬同樣錯誤:
◎我們當中幾乎每一個人都讀過這本書。
正:Almost every one of us read the book.
誤:Every one of us almost read the book.
析:以上誤句由于 almost 放在 read 之前, 其意為“差不多讀了 (但實際上沒有讀)”, 不合原意。
◎這遠遠不是你想像的那樣容易。
誤:It’s not almost so easy as you think.
正:It’s not nearly so easy as you think.
析:一方面, 英語習慣上不說 not almost, 另一方面, not nearly 是習語, 意為“遠遠不是”、“根本不像”等。又如:I can earny some money, but not nearly enough to live on.(我 可以賺些錢, 但遠遠不夠生活)。
◎幾乎沒有人相信他說的話。
誤:Nearly no believed what he said.
正:Almost no believed what he said.
析:no, none, nobody, nothing, never等詞連用時, 通常要用 almost 不用 nearly。
◎大多數人都同意馬上離開。
誤:Almost of the people agreed to leave at once.
正:Most of the people agreed to leave at once.
析:almost 是副詞(幾乎, 差不多),不要將其與 most(大多數)混淆。