动词发誓; 咒骂

名词咒骂; 发誓，宣誓

1. 咒骂;诅咒;说脏话
If someone swears, they use language that is considered to be rude or offensive, usually because they are angry.

e.g. It's wrong to swear and shout...
破口大骂是不对的。
e.g. They swore at them and ran off.
他们骂了他们后就跑掉了。

2. 发誓要;郑重承诺
If you swear to do something, you promise in a serious way that you will do it.

e.g. Alan swore that he would do everything in his power to help us...
艾伦许诺要尽其所能帮助我们。
e.g. We have sworn to fight cruelty wherever we find it...
我们发誓要见恶除恶。

3. 发誓，郑重声明，保证(所说属实)
If you say that you swear that something is true or that you can swear to it, you are saying very firmly that it is true.

e.g. I swear I've told you all I know...
我发誓我已经把我所知道的全都告诉你了。
e.g. I swear on all I hold dear that I had nothing to do with this...
我以身家性命担保，我和这件事无关。

4. 使发誓，使承诺(保守秘密)
If someone is sworn to secrecy or is sworn to silence, they promise another person that they will not reveal a secret.

e.g. She was bursting to announce the news but was sworn to secrecy.
她急不可待想宣布这个消息，但却发过誓要守口如瓶。

5. see also: sworn

相关词组：swear byswear in

不及物动词（心脏等）跳动; 搜索; （风、雨等）吹打; （鼓）咚咚地响

及物/不及物动词接连地击打

及物动词打败; 敲打; 控制; 避免

名词节拍; （鼓的）一击; 管区

形容词[美国口语]大吃一惊的; [常作 B-]“反传统一代”成员的; 摇滚音乐的; [口语]（体力或情绪上）疲劳不堪的

形容词较好的; 更合适的; 能力更强的; 好转的

副词更好地; 更; 更妥

动词胜过; 上进

名词更好者; 更有才智者

1.

2.

3. 更；更大程度上
If you like one thing better than another, you like it more.

e.g. I like your interpretation better than the one I was taught...
你的解释比我以前学过的更让我喜欢。
e.g. I'd like nothing better than to join you girls...
我最喜欢和你们女孩子在一起了。

4. （病情、伤势）好转的，减轻的
If you are better after an illness or injury, you have recovered from it. If you feel better, you no longer feel so ill.

e.g. He is much better now, he's fine...
他现在好多了，身体状况不错。
e.g. The doctors were saying there wasn't much hope of me getting better.
医生们说我好转的希望不大。

5. （用于建议、警告、威胁、发表意见等）最好
You use had better or 'd better when you are advising, warning, or threatening someone, or expressing an opinion about what should happen.

e.g. It's half past two. I think we had better go home...
现在两点半了。我想我们最好还是回家吧。
e.g. You'd better run if you're going to get your ticket...
想买到票的话，你最好跑几步。

6. 更大成就；更好行为；更好待遇
If you say that you expect or deserve better, you mean that you expect or deserve a higher standard of achievement, behaviour, or treatment from people than they have shown you.

e.g. We expect better of you in the future...
我们希望将来你有更大的成就。
e.g. Our long-suffering mining communities deserve better than this.
我们长期受苦受难的采矿群体应该得到比这更好的待遇。

7. 上司；上级
Your betters are people who have a higher status or rank than you do.

e.g. Sit down and be quiet in front of your elders and betters.
在长辈和上级面前要老老实实地坐着。

8. 超越；胜过；超出
If someone betters a high achievement or standard, they achieve something higher.

e.g. He recorded a time of 4 minutes 23, bettering the old record of 4-24...
他用时4分23秒，刷新了4分24秒的原纪录。
e.g. As an account of adolescence it could hardly be bettered.
作为描写青春期的书，它已几臻完美。

9. 提高；改善
If you better your situation, you improve your social status or the quality of your life. If you better yourself, you improve your social status.

e.g. He had dedicated his life to bettering the lot of the oppressed people of South Africa...
他毕生致力于改变南非受压迫人民的命运。
e.g. Our parents chose to come here with the hope of bettering themselves.
我们的父母选择来到这里，希望能够改善自己的生活。

10. （用于构成以 good 和 well 开头的复合形容词的比较级，如 well-off 的比较级为 better-off）
Better is used to form the comparative of compound adjectives beginning with 'good' and 'well.' For example, the comparative of 'well-off' is 'better-off.'

11. （用于建议）最好，更好
You can say that someone is better doing one thing than another, or it is better doing one thing than another, to advise someone about what they should do.

e.g. You are better eating just a small snack than hurrying a main meal...
你最好简单吃点快餐，不要着急着慌地吃正餐。
e.g. Wouldn't it be better putting a time-limit on the task?...
是不是给这项任务规定一个时限比较好？

12. 好转；变好
If something changes for the better, it improves.

e.g. Dreams of changing the world for the better.
让世界变得更美好的梦想

13. （嫉妒、好奇心、愤怒等感情）使不能自制
If a feeling such as jealousy, curiosity, or anger gets the better of you, it becomes too strong for you to hide or control.

e.g. She didn't allow her emotions to get the better of her.
她没有感情用事。

14. （在比赛、打斗或争论中）战胜，打败
If you get the better of someone, you defeat them in a contest, fight, or argument.

e.g. He is used to tough defenders, and he usually gets the better of them.
他习惯了彪悍的后卫，通常都能战而胜之。

15. （因阅历丰富）不至于…
If someone knows better than to do something, they are old enough or experienced enough to know it is the wrong thing to do.

e.g. She knew better than to argue with Adeline...
她不至于和阿德琳发生争执。
e.g. It's bad enough to have anyone joke about such a serious matter but a member of the police force should know better.
拿这么严肃的事情开玩笑已经够糟的了，身为一名警察更不应该这样做。

16. 比…更了解（或更渊博、更有经验）
If you know better than someone, you have more information, knowledge, or experience than them.

e.g. He thought he knew better than I did, though he was much less experienced...
虽然他经验远没有我丰富，但他认为他比我懂行。
e.g. My sister still claims she cheated on us at cards, but I know better.
我妹妹仍然说她和我们玩牌的时候捣了鬼，其实我心知肚明。

17. （用于建议）不如，最好
If you say that someone would be better off doing something, you are advising them to do it or expressing the opinion that it would benefit them to do it.

e.g. If you've got bags you're better off taking a taxi...
你要是大包小包的，不如打的算了。
e.g. Their stance seems to be that a baby or child is better off in its country of birth.
他们似乎认为婴儿或者小孩还是呆在自己出生的国家为好。

18. 胜过；超过
If you go one better, you do something better than it has been done before or obtain something better than someone else has.

e.g. Now General Electric have gone one better than nature and made a diamond purer than the best quality natural diamonds.
现在通用电气公司已经制造出了巧夺天工的钻石，其纯度比最好的天然钻石还要高。

19. （表示赞成、表扬或鼓励）很好，这就对了
You say 'That's better' in order to express your approval of what someone has said or done, or to praise or encourage them.

e.g. 'I came to ask your advice — no, to ask for your help.' — 'That's better. And how can I help you?'
“我来征求你们的意见——不对，请求你们帮助。”——“这还差不多。我们怎么帮助你？”

20. 这样更好；那更好
You can say 'so much the better' or 'all the better' to indicate that it is desirable that a particular thing is used, done, or available.

e.g. Use strong white flour, and if you can get hold of durum wheat flour, then so much the better...
使用高筋白面粉，如果你能弄到硬粒小麦面粉，那就更好了。
e.g. If there's good skiing, breathtaking scenery and you don't need to catch a plane, all the better!
如果有好的滑雪场、令人叹为观止的美景，又不用赶飞机，那就再好不过了。

21. 越…越好
You can use expressions like 'The bigger the better' or 'The sooner the better' to say that you would prefer it if something is big or happens soon.

e.g. The Irish love a party, the bigger the better...
爱尔兰人喜欢聚会，规模越大越好。
e.g. The fewer things in the room the better.
房间里的东西越少越好。

22. 为了更好地…；以便更有效地…
If you do something the better to do something else, you do the first thing in order to be able to do the second thing more effectively.

e.g. She came on every ride herself, the better to instruct her eager pupils.
每一个骑乘项目她都要亲自试一试，以便更好地指导她那些跃跃欲试的小学生。

23. 重新考虑后决定不做
If you intend to do something and then think better of it, you decide not to do it because you realize it would not be sensible.

e.g. Alberg opened his mouth, as if to protest. But he thought better of it.
阿尔伯格张了张嘴，似乎想要申辩，但想想又放弃了。

24. 不论好坏；不管结果怎样
If you say that something has happened or been done for better or worse, you mean that you are not sure whether the consequences will be good or bad, but they will have to be accepted because the action cannot be changed.

e.g. I married you for better or worse, knowing all about these problems.
这些问题我都知道，不管怎样我还是嫁给了你。

25. better the devil you know - see devil
discretion is the better part of valour - see discretion
your better half - see half
against your better judgment - see judgment
to be better than nothing - see nothing
the better part - see part

名词阴影; 影子; 鬼，幽灵; 隐蔽处

及物动词投阴影于; 使朦胧; 跟踪，尾随; 预示

不及物动词渐变; 阴沉

形容词阴影的; 影子内阁的; 非正式的

1. 影子
A shadow is a dark shape on a surface that is made when something stands between a light and the surface.

e.g. An oak tree cast its shadow over a tiny round pool...
一棵橡树的影子投射在一洼圆形的小水池上。
e.g. Nothing would grow in the shadow of the grey wall...
灰墙的背阴处什么东西也长不出来。

2. 阴影;背光处;阴暗处
Shadow is darkness in a place caused by something preventing light from reaching it.

e.g. Most of the lake was in shadow.
湖面的大部分都处在背阴中。
e.g. ...a combination of light and shadow.
光与影的结合

3. 在…上投下阴影;遮蔽
If something shadows a thing or place, it covers it with a shadow.

e.g. The hood shadowed her face.
风帽挡住了她的脸。

4. 跟踪;尾随;盯梢
If someone shadows you, they follow you very closely wherever you go.

e.g. The supporters are being shadowed by a large and highly visible body of police.
拥护者们被大队警察明目张胆地跟踪。

5. (英国在野党的)影子内阁的
A British Member of Parliament who is a member of the shadow cabinet or who is a shadow cabinet minister belongs to the main opposition party and takes a special interest in matters which are the responsibility of a particular government minister.

e.g. ...the shadow chancellor.
影子内阁的财政大臣

6. 毫无疑问;千真万确
If you say that something is true without a shadow of a doubt or without a shadow of doubt, you are emphasizing that there is no doubt at all that it is true.

e.g. It was without a shadow of a doubt the best we've played.
毫无疑问这是我们表现最出彩的一次。

7. 在…的阴影之下;在…的光环下（显得逊色)
If you live in the shadow of someone or in their shadow, their achievements and abilities are so great that you are not noticed or valued.

e.g. He has always lived in the shadow of his brother.
他一直活在他哥哥的影子中。

8. 大不如从前;不及当年
If you say that someone is a shadow of their former self, you mean that they are much less strong or capable than they used to be.

e.g. Johnson returned to the track after his ban but was a shadow of his former self.
约翰逊在禁赛结束后又回到了跑道上，但已找不回当初的状态。