英文裡,「Get」一個人扛起了所有的活
如果英文動詞要打加班卡,"get" 一定是累垮的那一個。你 get up、get dressed、get coffee、get to work、get over a cold,還要 get along with 你的同事——這一切都在午餐前發生。"Get" 可能是這個語言裡最忙的動詞,而它的片語家族龐大無比。讓我們給它應得的關注。
快速解答
Get 的核心是「進入一個新的狀態或位置」——移動、取得、變成。這讓它非常適合用在關於「變化」和「移動」的片語動詞上。Get up = 起身進入直立的狀態。Get over = 跨過一個困難。Get by = 帶著剛好夠用的東西過下去。Get through = 一路移動到另一邊。一旦你把 "get" 聽成「進入一個新狀態」,它那許多面貌就不再爭著搶你的注意力。
核心概念
Get 講的是「過渡」。某樣東西改變、抵達或轉變。質詞接著替這種過渡命名:up 把你抬起,over 載著你跨過障礙,through 把你推到終點,by 用最低限度擠著你過關,into 把你拉進去,out of 把你拽出來,away 讓你逃脫,back 把你帶回,along 讓你順順地伴在某人身旁前進。感受那股移動,意思就會排好隊。
自然範例
Get up
從床上或座位上起身。"I get up at six on weekdays." "Please get up — that's my seat."
Get over
兩種意思,都跟「跨過某樣東西」有關:
- 從疾病或苦難中恢復。 "It took her a month to get over the flu."
- 不再為某件事困擾。 "He still hasn't gotten over the breakup."
Get along (with)
擁有良好、友善的關係。"Do you get along with your neighbors?" "The two of them just don't get along."
Get by
靠著手上最低限度的東西勉強過下去。"We can get by on one salary for a while." "My grammar isn't great, but I get by."
Get into
進入,或變得深入投入、感興趣。"How did you get into photography?" "She got into a good university." 它也可以表示惹上爭執或麻煩:"Don't get into a fight."
Get out of
逃避一項義務,或躲開某件事。"He always tries to get out of doing the dishes." 字面上,它可以表示走出去:"Get out of the car."
Get through
完成、撐過去,或聯絡上某人:
- 完成一項任務。 "I have a hundred emails to get through."
- 撐過一段難熬的時光。 "We'll get through this together."
- 以電話聯絡上。 "I couldn't get through to the office all morning."
Get away (with)
Get away 意思是逃脫或來一趟短程旅行。"Let's get away for the weekend." 加上 with,它就表示做了壞事卻沒被處罰:"He cheated and got away with it."
Get back
返回,或取回。"What time did you get back last night?" "I finally got my book back from her."
意思翻轉對照組
同一個動詞、三個質詞、三種不同的人生:
- "She got over the deadline stress."(從中恢復)
- "She got through the deadline."(撐過去/完成了)
- "She got out of the deadline."(完全逃開了)
恢復、撐過、逃開——全由騎在 "get" 上的那個質詞決定。
常見錯誤
- "I get up from the bed at seven." → "I get up at seven." · "Get up" 已經隱含「離開床」的意思;多出來的片語沒有必要。
- "She gets along her sister." → "She gets along with her sister." · Get along 在人的前面需要 "with"。
- "He got away from cheating." → "He got away with cheating." · 要表達「逃過懲罰」,用 "with",不是 "from"。
- "I couldn't get through with the office." → "I couldn't get through to the office." · 以電話聯絡上某人時,用 "to"。
考試陷阱
聽力部分很仰賴 get 系列的片語動詞,因為它們口語又慣用。一段考題對話可能包含:"Don't worry, you'll get over it." 逐字硬讀的人聽到的是身體上的移動,但意思是「你會在情緒上走出來」。策略是:當 "get over" 後面接的是一種感受、一場疾病或一個問題,而不是一道牆或一道籬笆時,就把它讀成「從……中恢復」,而不是「爬過去」。把質詞對上受詞的類型,慣用語就會自己解開。
小練習
- It took weeks to get _____ such a bad cold. (recover from)
- We don't earn much, but we get _____. (manage)
- He never gets _____ his coworkers. (have a good relationship)
- She somehow got _____ with arriving late every day. (escaped punishment)
- I have three chapters to get _____ tonight. (finish)
解答
- over——Get over 意思是從疾病或苦難中恢復。
- by——Get by 意思是靠最低限度勉強過下去。
- along with——Get along with 意思是擁有友善的關係。
- away——Get away with 意思是逃過懲罰。
- through——Get through 意思是完成一定份量的工作。
一句總結
| 片語動詞 | 常見意思 |
|---|---|
| get up | 從床上/座位上起身 |
| get over | 恢復 / 不再受困擾 |
| get along (with) | 擁有良好關係 |
| get by | 靠最低限度勉強過活 |
| get into | 進入 / 變得感興趣 |
| get out of | 逃避 / 躲開 |
| get through | 完成 / 撐過去 / 以電話聯絡上 |
| get away (with) | 逃脫 / 逃過懲罰 |
把 "get" 聽成「進入一個新狀態」,英文裡最操勞的動詞終於可以放鬆了。
