劉美君‧英文是有道理的 Making Sense of English

Q:

I have a question below. All of them are habitual tenses. But what is the difference between 

"He eats apples" and

"He would eat apples."

A:

"He eats apples."  --> states a fact/habit of the person.  --> It is a fact that he eats apples,

"He would eat apples." --> states a judgment about the person's choice/habit. --> It is my judgment that he would eat apples,

The auxiliary 'would' expresses a judgment about the person's preference/intention or possibility/certainty.

The difference is subtle but there is a difference since they are two different forms!

Q:

劉老師您好，謝謝妳分享"英語語法的溝通功能"影片於交大開放式課程中，搭配著"英文是有道理的"書本交互學習，真的受益良多但有一個問題想請教，問題如下
___ in the late 1800's, many of the coastline's lighthouses remain standing today, having withstood the forces of nature for decades.
(A) Built
(B) Building
(C) Been built
(D) Having built
(A)正確答案，是分詞構句，省略Being，問題是為什麼是採主動分詞的Being Built而不是被動分詞的Been built，
是因為語意中，BE動詞是狀態的連接，所以這個狀態是一直持續到現在，而不是停留在過去嗎?

A:

(Being) built 就是表達被動的分詞 (BE+ 過去分詞), Being 是 V-ing, 放在句首, 作為分詞用!

Q:

In the two following sentences, why is the sentence with "believe" accepted by us but the sentence with "think" forbidden?
a. I believe him to be smart.
b. *I think him to be smart.

A:

a. I believe him to be smart.

​b. *I think him to be smart.

因為這兩個動詞的語意類型不同:

'believe' 有及物的用法: I believe you. I believe it. 後面可以接直接受詞, 表達相信的對象.

但是think 沒有及物用法: 不能說 *I think you. 只能說: I think about him or I think that he is smart.

因為"想" 是認知動詞,後面要結子句, 表達思想的內容.

所以 ​I believe him to be smart. 是believe及物用法的延伸, 而think 沒有這個選項!

Q:

He is strong, brave and, above all, honest.
時不時會在文章中，看到有些句子將逗號置於and後面，即『and,』，不知道是筆誤，還是其實有文法解釋？

A:

When a comma is used at a place it is not normally used, it must be there for a special purpose in communication: It is a pause, to hold your attention to the following highlight. It is an interruption in utterance for a surprising or unexpected assertion/emphasis. The pause is a break in the flow of information that may build up semantic suspension for the following message.

In your example, it is a pause that is meant to be added before 'above all' for a special effect, i.e., to draw your attention to what is going to be highlighted:

He is strong, brave and, above all, honest.