英語世界：Lack or lack of？

IsaacZ

【转贴】来源：香港文汇报

韩 Sir 资深英语教师



　用英语写作，学生常犯的错误，很多时候是把英语世界内的词类 (word class)混淆不清地使用，应该用动词时用了名词，应用名词时却用了形容词等等。令学生更困扰的是有些英语词汇，同一个字可作不同词类，用起来便错漏百出了。其中一个最易犯错的是 “lack”这个又是名词又是动词的英文字。试找出下列句子的错处：

　1. He is lack of confidence to write in English. (他缺乏信心用英语写作。)
　2. She lacked in will-power to finish the task. (她缺乏毅力完成任务。)
　3. The students failed because they were lacked practice. (学生因为缺乏练习而失败了。)
　4. The song is lacking of originality. (那首歌曲欠缺原创性。)

　应该怎样纠正呢？我的建议如下：

　1. He lacks confidence to write in English.
　2. She lacked will-power to finish the task.
　3. The students failed because they lacked practice.
　4. The song is lacking in originality.

　头三句的“lack”，应是动词。当“lack”用作动词时，是一个及物动词 (transitive verb)，可直接带一个受词 (object)，所以在第一和笫二句是不需有介系词 (preposition)，“of”和“ in”是多余的。第三句虽然没有错加介系词，但是把“lacked”写成“were lacked”，变成了被动语法 (passive voice)，也是不必要的。

lacking变了形容词 须加介系词

　第四句的“lacking”，原来变了形容词 (adjective)，所以必须加入介系词 (preposition)，而当 “lacking”是形容词时，就不能用“of”，而必须用“in”。

　那么，甚么时候用“of”？当“lack”是名词时，便必须用“of”了。看下列例句：

　1. The lack of resources put immense pressure on the teachers.
　(资源短缺 令教师承受极大压力。)
　2. Johnson fell asleep in class due to a lack of sleep last night.
　( 昨晚缺乏睡眠，尊逊今天在课堂上睡著了。）

　3. The lack of integrity led to the principal's downfall.
　(缺乏诚信是那校长垮台的主因。)

　4. The policy makers‘ lack of consideration for teachers’plight threw the education sectors into turmoil. (政策制定人对教师困局的冷漠使教育界陷入一片混乱。)

　考考您，看看您能否纠正下列句子的错误：

　1. The old man lacked of money .

　2. Hong Kong is lacking of natural resources.

　3. The project was cancelled because there was lacked volunteers.

　4. People in distress often find something lacking of their lives.

　(Key : 1. The old man lacked money.

　2. Hong Kong lacks natural resources.

　3. The project was cancelled because there was a lack of volunteers.

　4. People in distress often find something lacking in their lives. )

farmer

{:soso__10017666544099281011_3:}学习了大叔！