一期谈到代名词的误用,特别是代名词的数和所指引的主语的数不符,使得后头谓语动词的数也跟着出差错,真是差之毫厘,失之千里,不可不察。
这里要指出一些方向,以避免因代名词的错误而使句子的意思模糊不清。
怎样避免代名词的错误呢?
㈠不要用同个代名词指引两个性别一样的名词,如:
① Mr Li told Mr Lin that he was wrong.
这里的 he 既可指林先生,也可指李先生,含糊不清。应该改为 ②或③:
② Mr Li said to Mr Lin, "I am wrong."
③ Mr Li said to Mr Lin, "You are wrong."
㈡避免把代名词和它所指引的名词隔开太远,如:
④ The man leaned over the bench for hours working on the plan. It was too low to be comfortable.
这里的代词 it 离开名词 the bench 太远,结果关系不清楚,因为在位置上,它更适合指引 the plan.在这种情况下,只好避开 it,而用名词,即 the bench.
㈢避免滥用指示代词“this, that”或关系代词“who, which, that”泛指上文的内容。例如:
⑤ Tom's brother is an accountant, and this is the profession everyone envies."
这里的 this 指“accountant”。“会计师”是一种专业人士,和后头的“专业”(profession)并不相称,因此要把 this 改为 accountancy(会计工作),才合句子的意思。
⑥ The profit from the business was large, which I realised sometime later.
这里的“which I realised sometime later”是句形容词分句,应该出现在先行词后面,不应该脱离出来而独立。如果要用它来修饰全句话,更不合逻辑,应该改为⑦或⑧:
⑦ I realised sometime later that the profit from the business was large.(主句 + 名词分句)
⑧ The profit from the business was large. I realised this (matter) sometime later.(单句 + 单句)