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Literate

“Literate” 可作形容词或名词。作形容词时,指”有读写能力的、识字的”,或引申为”在某一领域知识渊博的、通晓的”(如 computer-literate 懂电脑)。作名词时,指有文化、能读写的人。其反义词 “illiterate” 指文盲。

  1. “In the 19th century, only a small percentage of the population was literate.” (在19世纪,只有一小部分人口具有读写能力。)
  2. “She is highly literate in both classical and modern literature.” (她在古典文学和现代文学方面都很有造诣。)
  3. “Employers increasingly expect candidates to be digitally literate.” (雇主越来越期望求职者具备数字素养。)

源自拉丁语 “litteratus”(有学问的),来自 “littera”(字母、文字)。与 “letter”(字母)、“literature”(文学)同源。本义与”文字”直接相关,掌握文字即 literate。

  • 词根: liter/litera(字母、文字)
  • 后缀: -ate(形容词后缀,表示”具有…性质的”)

在西方历史上,literacy(识字率)是衡量社会发展的重要指标。中世纪时,只有神职人员和贵族多为 literate。现代延伸出 “media literate”(媒介素养)、“financially literate”(金融素养)等复合概念,指在特定领域的认知能力。

  • 固定搭配: “computer literate” (懂电脑), “financially literate” (有金融素养), “highly literate” (很有文化修养)
  • 名词: literacy(识字率、读写能力)
  • 副词: literately(有文化地)

Liter(来自 letter 字母)+ ate(具有)= 具有字母能力,即能读能写。联想 “literature”(文学)——懂文学的人就是 literate。

“The village elder was one of the few literate people in the region. He had taught himself to read by studying old newspapers, and now he helped neighbors write letters to family abroad. His literacy had become a bridge—connecting the isolated community to the wider world through the power of written words.” (这位村长是该地区少数有文化的人之一。他通过研读旧报纸自学识字,如今帮助邻居给海外家人写信。他的读写能力成了一座桥梁——通过文字的力量,将孤立的社区与更广阔的世界连接起来。)