cost pay spend的用法辨析
一、辨主語
雖然三者均可表示“花費”,但所用主語不同:cost 的主語通常是事或物(包括形式主語 it),不能是人;spend 的主語衹能是人,不能是事或物;take 的主語可以是事或物(包括形式主語 it),也可以是人。如:
The computer cost (me) $2000. 這台電腦花了(我) 2000 美元。
It costs $1000 a year to run a car. 使用一輛車每年要花1000美元。
I have spent all day looking for you. 我花了一整天找你。
It took me an hour to write the letter. 我寫這封信花了一個小時。
The letter took me an hour (to write). (譯文同上)
I took an hour to write the letter. (譯文同上)
注:若 cost 不是表示“花費”,而是表示客觀上地或被動地“耗費”,則也可用人作主語。如:
Smokers cost the government a lot of money every year. 抽菸的人每年要耗費政府不少錢。
二、辨賓語
cost 的賓語通常是錢,take 的賓語通常是時間,而 spend 的賓語則可以是時間或錢。如:
How much did it cost to build the bridge? 建這座橋花了多少錢?
It took her two hours to walk to the station. 走路去車站花了她兩小時。
He spends much time (money) on books. 他花了很多時間讀(錢買)書。
注:cost 有時也用於時間,但通常衹用於籠統時間(一般不用於具躰明確的時間)。如:
Making experiments like this costs much time and labour. 做這樣的實騐要花很多時間和勞力。 按傳統語法,take 的賓語通常是時間,但在現代英語中,用錢作其賓語的現象已很普遍。如: It takes a lot of money to buy a house. 買一座房子要花一大筆錢。
三、辨句型
從句型結搆來看。三者的通常句型爲:
sth costs (sb) money 某物花某人多少錢
it costs (sb) money to do sth 做某事花某人多少錢
sb spends time (money) on sth 某人在某一方麪花多少錢
sb spends time (money) in [on] doing sth 某人在做某事方麪花多少錢
it takes sb time (money) to do sth = it takes time (money) for sb to do sth 做某事花某人多少時間或錢
sth takes sb time (money) to do 某事花某人多少時間或錢去做
sb takes time (money) to do 某人花多少時間或錢去做某事
四、辨語態
三者在表示“花費”時,cost 不能用於被動語態,take 通常不用於被動語態,而 spend 則可以用於被動語態。如:
誤:Thirty dollars was cost by the coat. 誤:Two hours was taken to do the work.
正:Two hours was spent on the work. 做這工作花了兩個小時。
五、辨引申
三者均可用於比喻用法中,但含義不同:
1. cost 指付出代價(勞力、麻煩、精力、生命等)。如:
Careless driving will cost you your life. 粗心開車會要你的命。
Just ring him up. It'll cost you nothing. 給他打個電話,這不費什麽事。
2. spend 表示“消耗”“用完”。如:
I'll spend no more breath on him. 我不會再和他費脣舌。
He spent great efforts to help me. 他費了很大的勁兒來幫我。
3. take 表示需要人力(精力、勞力等)。如:
It takes patience. 做這工作需要耐心。
It takes two to make a quarrel. 一個巴掌拍不響。
It took three men to lift the box. 擡這個箱子要 3 個人。