英语比较结构的翻译

英语“比较结构”的含义

英语中有许多less than，more than，as much as，形似比较结构的短语，但并没有比较的意思。对这种结构的意思应根据词典和上下文来辨认，不能想当然。

1. less…than

Hitler’s mistakes gave Roosevelt the victory; just as at Waterloo it was less Wellington who won than Napoleon who lost.

当less…than后面的成分相同时，这个结构并没有比较意义，而是“与其说……不如说是”

希特勒犯下的错误使罗斯福取得了胜利；正如在滑铁卢战场上，与其说是威灵顿打胜了，不如说是拿破仑战败了。

It was a curious exchange, less a debate than a quarrel between two aggressive men.

这是一次奇妙的交锋，与其说是两个好斗的人之间的一场辩论，不如说是一次吵嘴。

比较：

Even the dullest work is to most people less painful than idleness. less…than后面的成分不同，可以译成比较结构。

对大多数人来说，再单调乏味的工作也要比无所事事好受。

2. no less + adj. (than)

Those higher up on the social ladder are no less anxious. Their lives are no less empty than those of their subordinates.

no less (…than) 的结构没有比较的意思，作为一个固定词语，它的意思是“同样”。

那些社会地位高的人同样感到焦虑。他们的生活如同他们手下人的生活一样空虚。

As regards our foreign policy, it is no less our interest than our duty to maintain the most friendly relations with other countries.

关于我们的对外政策，维持和其他国家的友好关系，既是我们的义务，也同样是我们的利益。

3. no / nothing / little more (better) than

与not more than 不同，no / nothing / little more (better) than 没有比较的意思。前者是“不多于”、“不超过”，而后者是“只”、“不过是”、“就是”。

One can tell the difference almost at a glance for a spider always has eight legs and an insect never more than six.

人们一眼就能注意到蜘蛛和昆虫的区别，因为蜘蛛总是有八条腿，而昆虫的腿只有六条。

4. more than + n.

more than + n. 是“不只是”、“不仅仅是”，同样没有比较的意思。

I discovered that more than desire and feeling were necessary to write and I dropped the ideas.

我发现，要写作，需要的不仅仅是愿望和情感，于是我放弃了写作的念头。

5. more than + a.

这个结构具有加强语气的作用。意为“非常”、“岂止……而已”。

I was more than surprised that she had been telling the truth.

我感到非常惊奇，原来她讲的都是真话。

Those first shovels were more than symbolic of the start of construction of the first research laboratory.

那铲起的头几锹土不仅只是象征着第一个研究实验室的动工。

6. do more than + v.

Colleges and universities across the nation have decided to do more than talk about the rise in student cheating.

全国各地的大学已决定不仅仅只是空谈学生考试作弊日益严重这一问题了。

也就是说，do more than + v. 意为not only。

Led by a self-confident America, the Europeans did more than merely follow.

在充满自信的美国领导下，欧洲国家不仅仅是亦步亦趋。

7. no more…than

If machines really thought as men do, there would be no more reason to fear them than to fear men.

句中的no more…than 结构同样没有比较意义，其意为“不……，正如……不”。

如果机器真的能和人一样思维，那么就没有理由害怕它们，正如没有理由害怕人一样。

8. not…any more than

这个结构和no more…than 意思一样，也作“不……，正如……不”解。

There was a huge library near the river, but I knew that Negroes were not allowed to patronize its shelves any more than they were the parks and playgrounds of the city.

河边有一个很大的图书馆，但我知道它是不容许黑人去光顾的，就如市里的公园和体育场不让黑人进去一样。

It was never intended by Nature, Hitler claimed, that all races should be equal, any more than individuals are equal.

希特勒宣称，上帝从不认为所有民族应当平等，正如个人不平等一样。

9. more…than

Americans are far more race-conscious than they are class-conscious. more…than 结构并不总是有比较的意思。当than 前后结构一致时，它的意思是“与其说……不如说”。

与其说美国人有阶级意识，还不如说他们有种族意识。

The explanation is that they are more proud of than frightened by the gadgets of mass destruction.

个中的原因就是他们对大规模的毁灭性武器与其说有一种害怕心理，不如说有一种自豪感。