Hardly, barely
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Hardly, barely
Hardly和barely含义为'刚刚','不很多',或者'几乎不':
The weather is so bad that he can hardly see the road. 天气太糟了，他基本看不清路。
After his accident, he could barely walk. 他发生了事故之后，几乎不能行走了。
I can barely hear you. 我几乎听不清你说什么。
须注意hardly和barely都有否定含义。尽量避免使用其他否定，要不然语法上就不正确了:
You can barely walk, can you? (而不是can't you?)你几乎不能走路了，你能吗？
They hardly know anybody here. (而不是nobody)他们在这里几乎不认识任何人。
练习 1
Luna: The other day I saw a dragon flying along the freeway! I could believe my eyes.
Susie: What a coincidence, because right now I can't believe my ears.
Luna: I said: THE OTHER DAY I SAW -
Susie: I didn't say I had hearing.
Susie: What a coincidence, because right now I can't believe my ears.
Luna: I said: THE OTHER DAY I SAW -
Susie: I didn't say I had hearing.
Luna: The other day I saw a dragon flying along the freeway! I could barely 1 believe my eyes.
Susie: What a coincidence, because right now I can't believe my ears.
Luna: I said: THE OTHER DAY I SAW -
Susie: I didn't say I had trouble 2 hearing.
Susie: What a coincidence, because right now I can't believe my ears.
Luna: I said: THE OTHER DAY I SAW -
Susie: I didn't say I had trouble 2 hearing.
1 barely: 'Barely' is the best choice here. Luna is saying that she was so surprised that she 'doubted' what she saw.
1 almost: 'Almost' does not fit in this particular construction.
1 nearly: 'Nearly' does not make sense here. We cannot use 'nearly' with an abstract verb such as 'believe'.
2 trouble: 'Trouble' is the best choice here. Susie is saying that she did not have difficulty hearing what Luna said.
2 hardly: 'Hardly' cannot be used in a construction such as this. We cannot use 'hardly' before the -ING form of the verb.
2 almost: 'Almost' cannot be used in a construction such as this. When followed by had, we cannot use 'almost' before the -ING form of the verb.
练习 2
Bob: I got in a car accident this morning.
Susie: Oh my! Are you alright?
Bob: Yes, I'm fine. Luckily, God picked up my car and set it down out of harm's way.
Susie: Excuse me? God picked up your car?
Bob: I know! I can believe it myself!
Susie: Oh my! Are you alright?
Bob: Yes, I'm fine. Luckily, God picked up my car and set it down out of harm's way.
Susie: Excuse me? God picked up your car?
Bob: I know! I can believe it myself!
Bob: I almost 1 got in a car accident this morning.
Susie: Oh my! Are you alright?
Bob: Yes, I'm fine. Luckily, God picked up my car and set it down out of harm's way.
Susie: Excuse me? God picked up your car?
Bob: I know! I can hardly 2 believe it myself!
Susie: Oh my! Are you alright?
Bob: Yes, I'm fine. Luckily, God picked up my car and set it down out of harm's way.
Susie: Excuse me? God picked up your car?
Bob: I know! I can hardly 2 believe it myself!
1 almost: We use 'almost' to say that the accident 'nearly' happened, but it was avoided.
1 hardly: Because we know that Bob did not actually get in a car accident, we cannot use 'hardly'. If Bob 'hardly' got in the accident, it would mean that the accident actually occurred. Although, one cannot 'hardly' have a car accident: either you have one or you don't.
1 barely: Because we know that Bob did not actually get in a car accident, we cannot use 'barely'. If Bob 'barely' got in the accident, it would mean that the accident actually occurred. Although, one cannot 'barely' have a car accident: either you have one or you don't.
2 hardly: 'Hardly' is the best choice here. It describes Bob's surprise and bewilderment. 'To hardly believe something' expresses great surprise.
2 nearly: 'Nearly' cannot be used in this construction. We cannot use 'nearly' with an abstract verb such as 'believe'.
2 never: 'Never' does not make sense here. However, we could say: 'I would have never believed it was possible'.
练习 3
Polly: I went to this party the other night, but I know anybody.
Susie: I don't know how that feels.
Polly: Can't you at least pretend to sympathize with my problems?
Susie: I can hear you, you'll have to speak up.
Susie: I don't know how that feels.
Polly: Can't you at least pretend to sympathize with my problems?
Susie: I can hear you, you'll have to speak up.
Polly: I went to this party the other night, but I didn't 1 know anybody.
Susie: I really 2 don't know how that feels.
Polly: Can't you at least pretend to sympathize with my problems?
Susie: I can barely 3 hear you, you'll have to speak up.
Susie: I really 2 don't know how that feels.
Polly: Can't you at least pretend to sympathize with my problems?
Susie: I can barely 3 hear you, you'll have to speak up.
1 didn't: We use 'didn't' (did not) here because Polly is trying to say that she 'did not know any people at the party'. This is the best choice here.
1 hardly: We cannot use 'hardly' here because the phrase requires a past tense verb, as Polly is talking about an event that happened in the past. 'Hardly' is an adverb which describes the extent of something, and doesn't belong in this construction. We could say, however: 'I hardly knew anybody'.
1 not: We cannot use 'not' here because this construction requires a verb. In English, terms like 'no' and 'not' don't usually create and carry the negation of a phrase or sentence.
2 really: We use 'really' here as an intensifier, to emphasize that Susie truly doesn't know how it feels 'not to know' anyone at a party.
2 hardly: 'Don't' carries the negation in this sentence. The adverbs 'hardly' and 'barely' are considered negative terms, and so using them in a sentence which is already negative creates a double negative, which is grammatically incorrect in English.
2 possibly: 'I don't know' is a definitive declaration which cannot be qualified with a word like 'possibly'.
3 barely: The adverb 'barely' is considered a negative term. It describes the extent or degree of a feeling, action or thought. Susie tells Polly that she can't 'really' hear what she is saying. We know that Susie does not hear Polly because she says 'speak up', which means 'please speak more loudly'.
3 possibly: 'Possibly' does not make sense here. We would not say 'I can't possibly hear you' because Susie is sure about whether or not she can hear Polly, there is no sense of possibility here.
3 equally: Although 'equally' is grammatically correct in this case, it does not make sense. There is no reason for Susie to say this, and it has no place in the context of the dialogue.
练习 4
Mick asks Bruno if he is "working hard, or hardly working".
Mick wants to know if Bruno is or if Bruno .
Mick wants to know if Bruno is or if Bruno .
Mick asks Bruno if he is "working hard, or hardly working".
Mick wants to know if Bruno is working intensely 1 or if Bruno is working just a little 2.
Mick wants to know if Bruno is working intensely 1 or if Bruno is working just a little 2.
1 working intensely: This is correct. The question "(are you) working hard?" asks about the intensity or difficulty of someone's work. The entire question which Mick asks Bruno (Working hard or hardly working?) is a pun, or a play on the words "hard" and "hardly".
1 having difficulties working: This is incorrect. Although the word "hard" sometimes expresses that someone is having difficulties or troubles (as in the question 'are you having a hard time?), this is not the case here.
1 enjoying his work: This is incorrect. The question "(are you) working hard" is not related to the pleasure someone takes in working.
2 is working just a little: This is correct. Mick asks if Bruno is "hardly" working. "Hardly" is synonymous with "barely". It means "just a little". Example: I hardly know him = I know him only a little (I've only met him once or twice).
2 is not working at all: This is incorrect. "Hardly" does not mean "not at all", but rather "just a little".
2 is working too much: This is incorrect. "Hardly" doesn't indicate an "excess" of something.
2 is working like he usually does: This is incorrect. "Hardly" doesn't indicate "habit" or being accustomed to something.
练习 5
"Bruno Delavigne is hardly fit to run a company."
"Hardly" shares a similar meaning with .
"The future doesn't look bright for the Delavigne Corporation." "Bright" shares a similar meaning with in this context.
"The future doesn't look bright for the Delavigne Corporation." "Bright" shares a similar meaning with in this context.
"Bruno Delavigne is hardly fit to run a company."
"Hardly" shares a similar meaning with barely 1.
"The future doesn't look bright for the Delavigne Corporation." "Bright" shares a similar meaning with promising 2 in this context.
"The future doesn't look bright for the Delavigne Corporation." "Bright" shares a similar meaning with promising 2 in this context.
1 barely: This is the best choice here. The terms "hardly" and "barely" share a very similar meaning: "only just" or "almost not". Example: "I barely have enough money to buy food, so I only bought bread and potatoes". To say that Bruno is "hardly fit to run a company" indicates that Sigourney has a low opinion of Bruno's ability to manage the Delavigne Corporation.
1 merely: This is incorrect. The term "merely" shares a similar meaning with "only", "simply", and "just". Example: "I merely wanted to know the time - I didn't want to hear your life story!" This is not the same meaning as the term "hardly".
1 almost: This is incorrect. The term "almost" means "nearly" or "not entirely". Example: "We're almost home now, so you'll be able to go to the toilet soon." This is not the same meaning as the term "hardly".
1 unlikely: This is incorrect. The term "unlikely" means "improbable" or "doubtful". Example: "It is unlikely that we will ever meet again, my love." This is not the same meaning as the term "hardly".
2 promising: This is the best choice here. The term "bright" has several different meanings, and here it means "promising", "hopeful", or "favourable". Example: "This young man is a bright prospect for the future of our company."
2 intelligent: This is incorrect. Although the term "bright" can mean "intelligent" or "clever" in another context, it does not make sense in this sentence.
2 light: This is incorrect. Although the term "bright" can mean "light" or "illuminated" in another context, it does not make sense in this sentence.
2 obvious: This is incorrect. The term "obvious" refers to something "evident" or "apparent". However, the term does not share a similar meaning with "bright" in this context.
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