(1) pair指使用时彼此不能分开的两件东西构成的物品,这两件东西可以连在一起,也可以不连在一起,但缺一不可。一对;对;一双;分两个相连接部分的物体;两个共事(或有特殊关系)的人;俩;(同时驯养的)两个同类的鸟(或兽);一起拉车的两匹马等;
指由同一种材料制成的两个配套的物体,属于一个不可分割的整体,缺少其中之一则无法使用,谓语动词用单数还是复数取决于这两者是一个整体还是两个事物或人的组合。a pair of gloves/shoes/earrings, etc.
一副手套、一双鞋、一对耳环等
a huge pair of eyes
一双大眼睛
a pair of trousers/pants/jeans, etc.
一条长裤、裤子、牛仔裤等
a pair of faded jeans.
一条褪色的牛仔裤
a pair of glasses/binoculars/scissors, etc.
一副眼镜、一架双筒望远镜、一把剪刀等
a pair of swans
一对天鹅
a pair of hands一个能做事的人;人手;正在工作的人
We need an extra pair of hands if we're going to finish on time.
要想按时完成任务,我们就要再增加一个人。
Colleagues regard him as a safe pair of hands.
同事认为他办事可靠。
That's not the right way to hold a pair of scissors.
那样拿剪子不对。
I put on a new pair of nylon socks.
我穿上了一双新尼龙袜。
She clamped a pair of headphones over her ears.
她把一副耳机戴在两边耳朵上。
Every couple is not a pair.
同床异梦,貌合神离。
It is not every couple that is a pair. 成双未必能配对(天下夫妻多,珠联璧合少)。
I found a couple of boots in the bedroom but they don't make a pair.
我在卧室里找到了两只靴子,但它们不是一双。
Not very couple is a pair.
成双未必能配对。
A good and protective pair of trainers is essential.
一双又好又具备保护性的跑鞋是必不可少的。
A pair of pretty, faded pink antique curtains was the starting point for the room's colour scheme.
一幅漂亮的褪色仿旧粉色窗帘是房间色彩搭配的基调。
A pair of dancers are performing on the dance floor.
一对舞伴正在舞池里表演。
He is wearing a pair of glasses.他戴着一副眼镜。
I'm going to treat myself to a new pair of shoes.
我打算给自己买双新鞋。
Don't tell me you've split another pair of pants!
你不会又把一条裤子撑破了吧!
She was wearing a tight pair of jeans.
她穿着一条紧身牛仔裤。
How many pairs of shoes do you have? 你有多少双鞋?注:a/every/each/this/that pair of something作主语,谓语动词用单数。This pair of shoes fits me well.这双鞋我穿很合脚。A pair of sunglasses is lying on the table.桌子上有一副太阳镜。She felt as if every pair of eyes in the room was on her.她觉得房子里的每一双眼睛都在看她。
We divide into pairs and each pair takes a region
我们分成两人一组,每一组负责一个区域。
pair也可以指人,相当于couple指的是“同样立场、一起做同样事情或某种关联的两个人,作主语时谓语用复数。注:a pair of somebody作主语,谓语动词用复数。The pair were matched for age.这一对是按年龄配成的。
Mr Thomson and his brother are funny pair. (不能用couple)
汤姆森和他的兄弟是有趣的一对。
A pair of robbers were trying to kidnap his wife.两个强盗正试图绑架他的妻子。The pair are looking for sponsorship from local businesses.两人正在寻找当地企业的赞助。
Get pairs of students to act out the dialogue in front of the class.
叫学生两人一组在课堂上演出这个对话。
Get the students to do the exercise as pair work
让学生两人一组做练习。
Students worked in pairs on the project.
学生两人一组做这个项目。
A pair of children were kicking a ball about.两个孩子在周围踢球。
The pair are planning a trip to India together.那对夫妻计划一起去印度旅行。
A pair of teenage boys were smoking cigarettes.(两个人作主语用复数)
两个十来岁的男孩正在吸烟。
The pair were reconciled after Jackson made a public apology.
杰克逊公开道歉之后,这两个人又言归于好了。(两个人作主语用复数)
A pair of oxen, yoked together, was used.
把两头牛用轭套在一起使唤。(两个动物却用了单数)
(2) couple表示“两个相同的人或物(two things of the same kind)”,指人或物。指夫妻(或关系密切的两个人)用couple,也能用pair。couple表示“夫妇,夫妻”且用作主语时,谓语动词可用单数(视为整体,尤其是当有each, every, only one等修饰时);也可以是复数(考虑其个体)。The couple was/were married last week.这一对夫妇是上星期结的婚。Each couple was asked to complete a form.要求每一对夫妇填一张表。The couple is/are spending their honeymoon.那对新婚夫妇正在度蜜月。
The young couple are quarrelling with each other.这对年轻夫妻在吵架。An old couple from Shanghai is moving in our apartment.一对老夫妇搬进了我们的公寓。(视为整体)
They are a couple in the real world as well as in the movie.
他们在电影和现实生活中都是一对夫妇。
The two of them made a handsome couple.
这对As a couple they are not very well matched.
作为夫妻,他们并不十分般配。
夫妻男俊女靓。
We soon became friendly with the couple next door.
我们很快就和隔壁的夫妇友好相处了。
The couple went to great pains to keep their plans secret.
这对夫妇煞费苦心,对计划守口如瓶。
特别要注意:a couple of有时指“几个,两三个”,当couple作主语,此时表示复数意义,用作主语时,谓语动词要用复数。a couple of作主语谓语用复数。
a couple of cars/days
两(或几)辆汽车/两(或几)天I've come to crash on your floor for a couple of nights.
我来你家打几个晚上的地铺。
She contrived to spend a couple of hours with him every Sunday evening.
每周星期日晚上她都设法与他待上几个小时。
We went there a couple of years ago.
我们几年前去过那里。
She already has a couple of good wins under her belt.
她已将几项冠军收入囊中。
Our beach house is just a couple of miles from the ocean.
我家滨海的房子离大海只有几英里。
We perched on a couple of high stools at the bar.
我们坐在酒吧的几个高脚凳上。
I've only been here a couple of weeks and I don't really know the set-up.
我刚来几个星期,对这里的组织情况不大了解。
We walked uptown a couple of blocks until we found a cab.
我们向市郊走了好几条街才找到一辆出租车。
It's only a couple blocks away.
那地方离这里只有几个街区。
A couple of weeks later my mother went into hospital
几周后我母亲住进了医院。
Fishing is possible for a couple of hours either side of high water.
涨潮期前后几小时内都可以捕鱼。
They met a couple of times but they didn't really connect.
尽管他们见了几次面,但仍未真正建立起良好的关系。
I think the trouble will clear up in a couple of days.
我想问题几天内就会解决。
The builder has a couple of jobs on at the moment.
目前这家建筑商有几项工程在进行。
I used to smoke, but I gave up a couple of years ago.
我以前抽烟,但几年前就戒掉了。
I've seen her a couple of times before.
我以前见过她几次。
They spent a couple of nights here last September.
去年9月他们在这儿呆了几晚。
Suffice to say, it was more than a couple of years ago!
我只想说,那是几年前的事了!
He would make an appointment with her to straighten out a couple of things
他将和她约个时间把几件事情理清楚。
He walked a couple of miles.他步行了好几里。There are a couple of girls waiting for you.有两个女孩在等你。
A couple of teenagers were kissing and cuddling on the doorstep.
一对年轻人在门阶上亲吻拥抱。《牛津高阶英汉双解词典》
The couple plan to wed next summer.
这俩人计划在夏天结婚。
The couple are Hollywood's hottest property.
这对搭档是好莱坞最走红的人物。
The couple were charged with grand/ petty larceny.
那对夫妇被指控犯有重大/轻微盗窃罪。
The couple have sought help from marriage guidance counsellors.
这对夫妇已经向婚姻指导顾问寻求帮助。
The couple were swept away by the strong current.
这对夫妻被巨大的水流卷走了。
The couple share a love of gourmet cooking.
这夫妇俩都有烹饪美食的嗜好。
50 years on, the couple are still devoted to one another.
50年过去了,这对夫妇仍然深爱着彼此。
The couple seem to spend less and less time together
两口子在一起的时间似乎越来越少。
The couple had been dating for almost three years
这对情侣相恋已近3年。
The couple was/were married in 1976.
这对夫妇于1976年结婚。
The couple made an unsuccessful attempt at a compromise.
这对夫妇试图和解但未成功。
They hugged each other like a couple of lost children
他们相互紧抱在一起,就像一对迷路的孩子。
A couple of fuzzy pictures have been published.
有几张模糊的照片刊登了出来。
The couple have no children.
这对夫妻没有孩子。
There are a couple more files to read first.
还有几份档案要先看一看。
The company employs no more than a couple of dozen people.
这个公司顶多雇用了几十个人。
There are a couple more files to read first.还有两份文件要先读。
,