VOA慢速英语2020 “Loose”和“Lose”的区别

Loose and Lose

This weeks question comes from Vukeni of South Sudan.Vukeni writes: What is the difference between "loose" and "lose"?

本周的问题来自南苏丹的乌肯尼。乌肯尼写道：“loose”和“lose”的区别是什么？ 

This morning, I heard some people debating about it.

今天早上，我听到一些人在争论这个问题。 

Dear Vukeni,

亲爱的乌肯尼， 

It makes sense that people were debating the difference between "loose" and "lose."

人们争论“loose”和“lose”的区别是有道理的。 

The two words are commonly mistaken, even by native English speakers!It is probably because the words are close in spelling and pronunciation.

这两个单词经常被误认，甚至是以英语作为母语的人也会误认！这可能是因为这两个单词在拼写和发音上都很接近。

In speaking, both words use the vowel¹ sound /u/.But "lose" ends in the /z/ sound, while "loose" ends in the /s/ sound.In writing, "loose" has only one more -o than "lose."

读法上，这两个单词都使用元音/u/。但是“lose”结尾发/z/的音，而“loose”结尾发/s/的音。写法上，“loose”只比“lose”多一个字母“o”。

They may look and sound alike², but the two words are unrelated.

它们可能看起来和听起来很像，但这两个单词毫无关联。 

Lets start with "lose," which is a verb."Lose" has many meanings.Today, I will tell you about three.

让我们从“lose”开始，它是一个动词。“Lose”有很多意思。今天，我将告诉你们三个意思。 

It can mean "to fail to win," such as a game or competition:

它可以表示“未能获胜”，例如游戏或比赛： 

We lost the tennis game last night.Better luck next week.

昨晚我们输了网球赛。希望下周好运。 

Notice that the past form is "lost," not "losed."That is because "lose" is an irregular verb.

要注意，其过去式是“lost”，而不是“losed”。那是因为“lose”是一个不规则动词。 

"Lose" can also mean "to misplace (something)" or to be unable to find it.People can lose many kinds of things.Heres an example:

“Lose”还可以表示“丢失（某物）”或“找不到某物”。人们会丢失很多东西。这里有一个例子： 

Oh no! The airport lost my bags.Now I have nothing to wear to the wedding.

噢，不！机场把我的行李弄丢了。现在我没有可以穿着去参加婚礼的衣服了。 

"Lose" can also mean "to have less of something as time passes" as in this:

“Lose”还可以表示“随着时间的流逝，拥有的东西越来越少”，例如： 

Grandma has been losing her eyesight for a few years.These days, I usually help her walk around.

几年来奶奶的视力一直在下降。这些天，我经常带着她四处走走。 

A person can also lose sleep, weight or hair, or something nonphysical,such as memory, interest or contact.

一个人也可能会失眠、减肥或掉头发，或者失去一些非物质的东西，比如记忆、兴趣或联系。 

Now, lets talk about the word "loose."

现在，让我们来谈谈“loose”这个单词。 

"Loose" is an adjective³ that means "not tightly⁴ attached or held in place."Many things can be loose, like clothing:

“Loose”是一个形容词，意思是“不紧贴着或固定住”。很多东西都可以是宽松的，比如衣服： 

Excuse me, these shoes are a little loose.Do you have a smaller size?

抱歉，这双鞋有点松。你有小一点的码数吗？ 

Lots of other things can be loose, such as nails when they are not securely⁵ attached,teeth when they are ready to come out or wires when they are not tightly connected.

许多其他事物也会松动，比如没有牢固固定住的钉子，要掉的牙或没有紧紧连接好的电线。 

Though "loose" is an adjective, it can take verb form.The verb is "loosen⁶."To loosen means "to make loose," as in this:

虽然" loose "是形容词，但它也有动词形式。其动词形式是“loosen”。“To loosen”是指“使变松”，如下所示：

When he left the meeting, he quickly loosened⁷ his tie.

他离开会场后迅速松开领带。 

In the example, notice that the past form ends in -ed."Loosen" is a regular verb.

在这个例子中，请注意，“loosen”的过去式是以ed结尾。“Loosen”是一个规则动词。 

And thats Ask a Teacher for this week.

以上就是本周《名师答疑》的全部内容。 

Im Alice Bryant.

爱丽丝·布莱恩特为您播报。 

1 vowel   

n.元音；元音字母

参考例句：

• A long vowel is a long sound as in the word"shoe ".长元音即如“shoe” 一词中的长音。
• The vowel in words like 'my' and 'thigh' is not very difficult.单词my和thigh中的元音并不难发。

2 alike   

adj.同样的，相像的；adv.一样地；同程度地　

参考例句：

• The twins are so alike that I can't tell which is which.这对双胞胎一模一样，我分辨不出谁是谁。
• All stories seemed dreadfully alike,no matter who told them.看来，不管谁讲，故事都是千篇一律的。

3 adjective   

n.形容词；adj.形容词的，用作形容词的

参考例句：

• Don't apply that adjective to me.不要用那个字眼来形容我。
• The adjective loose has several senses. 形容词loose有几个义项。

4 tightly   

adv.紧紧地，坚固地，牢固地

参考例句：

• My child holds onto my hand tightly while we cross the street.横穿马路时，孩子紧拉着我的手不放。
• The crowd pressed together so tightly that we could hardly breathe.人群挤在一起，我们几乎喘不过气来。

5 securely   

adv.安心地，安全地；牢固地；被妥善保管地

参考例句：

• She chained the wolf securely to the post.她用铁链把那只狼锁在那根柱子上。
• The straps hold the baby in securely.带子把婴儿安全地系在里面。

6 loosen   

vt.放松，松开，解除（便秘等），放宽；vi.变松，松弛

参考例句：

• I must take some exercise and loosen up my muscles.我必须活动活动使肌肉放松些。
• The medicine may loosen your cough.这种药能减轻你的咳嗽。

7 loosened   

v.解开( loosen的过去式和过去分词 )；放松；松弛；（使）放松

参考例句：

• He has loosened the soil up with a fork. 他用耙松过土了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The new policies loosened up foreign trade. 新政策使对外贸易有了更大的灵活性。 来自《简明英汉词典》