你問(wèn)我答
辨析四個(gè)表示“減輕”的動(dòng)詞：relieve、alleviate、allay、mitigate
內(nèi)容簡(jiǎn)介
一位聽(tīng)眾來(lái)信詢(xún)問(wèn)動(dòng)詞 “relieve、alleviate、allay” 和 “mitigate” 之間有何區(qū)別。其中，動(dòng)詞 “relieve”、“alleviate” 和 “allay” 的用法最容易被混淆，因?yàn)樗鼈兌伎梢悦枋?“緩解消極的感受”；而 “mitigate” 的用法則與其它三個(gè)詞不大一樣，它用來(lái)表示 “減輕” 什么？本期節(jié)目教你如何使用這四個(gè)近義詞。
文字稿
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Jiaying
大家好，歡迎收聽(tīng) BBC英語(yǔ)教學(xué)的 “你問(wèn)我答” 節(jié)目。I'm Jiaying.
Neil
And I'm Neil. Welcome!
Jiaying
本期節(jié)目的問(wèn)題來(lái)自一位聽(tīng)眾，問(wèn)題由我來(lái)代讀。
Question
'Relieve', 'alleviate', 'allay' and 'mitigate'. 感覺(jué)這幾個(gè)單詞的意思都差不多，請(qǐng)問(wèn)在使用時(shí)具體的區(qū)別是什么？謝謝。
Jiaying
這些動(dòng)詞的含義都與 “讓一件不好的事情變得不那么消極”有關(guān)。
Neil
Let's look at 'relieve'. 'Relieve' means to make an unpleasant feeling less strong. It doesn't have to be related to pain, although it can be.
Jiaying
是的，動(dòng)詞 “relieve” 的意思是 “減輕、緩和一種不愉快的、消極的感受”。這種感受可能但不一定和痛苦有關(guān)?！癛elieve” 的用法涵蓋的范圍很廣。比如我們可以說(shuō)：“relieve worries（緩解擔(dān)憂(yōu)）”、“relieve pressure（減輕壓力）”、“relieve boredom（解悶）”。
Examples
I did some meditation to relieve my exam worries.
（我靜心沉思了一會(huì)兒，以緩解我對(duì)考試的擔(dān)憂(yōu)。）
When I was pregnant, my boss gave me less work to relieve the pressure.
（我懷孕那會(huì)兒，老板減少了我的工作量，以減輕我的壓力。）
Neil
'Relieve' is not only used with people. The council might add extra traffic lights to relieve congestion on the roads.
Jiaying
“Relieve” 不僅可以用來(lái)表示 “緩解某人的負(fù)面感受”，還可以表示 “減輕問(wèn)題的嚴(yán)重性”。比如：The council might add extra traffic lights to relieve congestion on the roads. 市政廳可能會(huì)增設(shè)額外的紅綠燈來(lái)緩解交通擁堵。
Neil
Now let's look at 'alleviate'. It's most often used in relation to pain, and it means 'make it less severe'.
Jiaying
“Alleviate” 最常用來(lái)表示 “緩解身體上的痛苦和不適”。常見(jiàn)的包含動(dòng)詞 “alleviate” 的搭配有 “alleviate pain（減輕痛苦）”、“alleviate discomfort（緩解不適）” 和 “alleviate symptoms（緩解癥狀）”。聽(tīng)兩個(gè)例句。
Examples
The doctor gave the patient painkillers to alleviate his suffering.
（醫(yī)生給病人開(kāi)了止痛藥以減輕他的痛苦。）
I moved my father's pillow to alleviate the discomfort in his back.
（我調(diào)整了父親枕頭的位置，以減輕他背部的不適。）
Neil
OK. Now, let's look at 'allay'. 'Allay' means to cause someone to feel a strong emotion less. It's quite formal and is usually seen more in written texts than spoken English.
Jiaying
動(dòng)詞 “allay” 尤其常用來(lái)強(qiáng)調(diào) “減輕恐懼、擔(dān)憂(yōu)等強(qiáng)烈的負(fù)面情緒，從而使人平靜下來(lái)”。注意，使用 “allay” 的場(chǎng)合通常很正式，相比之下，它更常見(jiàn)于書(shū)面文字而不是口語(yǔ)交流中。聽(tīng)兩個(gè)例句。
Examples
The managers plan to allay workers' fears about redundancies by calling a meeting.
（經(jīng)理們準(zhǔn)備通過(guò)召開(kāi)一次會(huì)議來(lái)減輕員工們對(duì)裁員事宜的擔(dān)憂(yōu)。）
The teacher allayed the students' academic writing worries by giving them a list of useful phrases they could use.
（老師給了學(xué)生們一份他們可以在寫(xiě)作中使用的實(shí)用短語(yǔ)表，從而幫助學(xué)生們減輕了他們對(duì)學(xué)術(shù)寫(xiě)作的恐懼。）
Neil
Now, 'mitigate' is slightly different. It means to make something less unpleasant or harmful.
Jiaying
動(dòng)詞 “mitigate” 與前面講過(guò)的三個(gè)動(dòng)詞的含義略有不同?！癕itigate” 的意思是 “減輕一件事情產(chǎn)生的危害”，通常不用來(lái)描述緩解人的感受或情緒。比如：“mitigate the effects of something（緩解某事造成的影響）”。
Neil
For example, a city might limit tourist numbers to mitigate the effects of tourism.
Jiaying
是的，一座城市可能會(huì)通過(guò)限制游客的數(shù)量來(lái) “mitigate（減輕）” 旅游業(yè)造成的負(fù)面影響。聽(tīng)兩個(gè)使用了動(dòng)詞 “mitigate” 的例句。
Examples
To mitigate uncertainty, our manager first explained why she had called the unexpected meeting.
（為減少不確定性，我們經(jīng)理首先解釋了她為什么要召開(kāi)這次臨時(shí)會(huì)議。）
Safety measures are in place in order to mitigate risk.
（為減輕風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，安全措施已落實(shí)到位。）
Neil
So, although they are quite similar, these four words are used in different types of situations. Now, let's summarise, Jiaying.
Jiaying
好的，總結(jié)一下：在四個(gè)動(dòng)詞當(dāng)中，“relieve” 的用法最廣泛，可以表示 “緩解不愉快的、消極的感受” 或 “減輕問(wèn)題的嚴(yán)重性”。動(dòng)詞 “alleviate” 的用法與 “relieve” 相近，但 “alleviate” 則強(qiáng)調(diào) “緩解身體上的痛苦和不適”。動(dòng)詞 “allay” 強(qiáng)調(diào) “緩解強(qiáng)烈的負(fù)面情緒，從而使人平靜下來(lái)”，更常用于書(shū)面語(yǔ)而不是口語(yǔ)交流中。動(dòng)詞 “mitigate” 的意思是 “減輕危害”。
Neil
Remember, if you have a question about the English language you’d like to ask us, please send us an email. Our email address is: questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk
Jiaying
你也可以通過(guò)微博向我們提問(wèn)。我們的微博賬號(hào)是 “BBC英語(yǔ)教學(xué)”。Bye, everyone.
Neil
Bye!
