wake 作动词讲时我们都不陌生，表示「醒来；唤醒」。
比如Wake up! It's twelve o'clock. 醒醒吧！已经12点钟了。
wake up to do sth
表示「醒来之后...」，最常见的是wake up to find ...醒来之后发现...
比如：He woke up to find himself alone in the house. 他醒来时发现屋里只有他一个人。
再比如电影《恋恋笔记本》里的一句话：
Allie woke up to find her world completely changed.
wake up to sth
这是一个惯用词组，表示「意识到；认识到」，英文释义是：to start to understand that a situation or problem exists.
我们在写作文时经常需要表达「意识到；认识到」这个意思，除了realize sth, be aware of sth，以后还可以用wake up to sth来替换。
注意此处的to为介词，后面跟sth或doing sth。我们来看一些例子：
《经济学人》中国专栏曾刊登一篇关于抑郁症的文章，标题是这样写的：
China wakes up to its mental-health problems.
中国开始注意精神健康问题。
《纽约时报》一篇关于精神疾病的文章也用到了这个词：
Attitudes are beginning to change and China is waking up to the prevalence of mental illness.
态度在转变，中国开始意识到精神疾病的流行。
再比如，《经济学人》一篇关于加拿大抢人才的文章有这样一句话：
Canada is gambling that by the time America wakes up to the cost of discouraging immigrants its tech sector will have secured some of the best talent.
加拿大盘算着，等到美国意识到遏制移民的代价，加拿大的科技行业已经笼络了大部分顶尖人才。
英剧《性爱自修室》里也出现过这个表达：
They're just starting to wake up to its benefits.
如果仅用一个名词无法完整地表达意思，我们可以用句型：sb wakes up to the fact that 句子来表达。
举两个简单的例子：
People should wake up to the fact that people with disabilities have got a vote as well.
人们应该认识到残疾人同样也享有投票权。
It’s time you woke up to the fact that it’s a tough world.
你该清醒地认识到这是一个残酷的世界了。
be a wake-up call
wake-up 是「起床；醒来」的意思，call则是「电话」的意思，wake-up call字面的意思是叫人起床的一通电话，比如酒店可以提供的wake-up call service，翻译为「叫醒服务」。
be a wake-up call则表示「警钟，提醒」。英文释义是：an event that shocks people into taking action about a difficult or dangerous situation.
我们来看一些例句：
《经济学人》讲世界经济的一篇文章里就提到:
The prescription for the weaklings is simple: heal thyself. Rather than waiting for America to solve their problems, the laggards should treat the recent spate of bad news as a wake-up call.
给疲软经济体的良方很简单:自我医治。与其等待美国帮他们解决问题，他们应该将近年来一连串的坏消息视作警示。
《纽约时报》讲瑞幸咖啡的丑闻的一篇文章有这样一句话：
“The Luckin coffee scandal is just one of many examples of Chinese fraud, and it should be a major wake-up call for policymakers and regulators that the time for action is now,” said Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida.
“瑞幸咖啡的丑闻只是中国众多欺诈案例之一，这应该给政策制定者和监管机构重重地敲响警钟：现在是采取行动的时候了，”佛罗里达州共和党参议员马可·卢比奥说。
美剧《无耻之徒》里也出现过这个短语：
I know that this car accident was a wake-up call for him.
我知道，这场车祸对他来说无疑是敲响了一记警钟。
wake up and smell coffee
字面上的意思是「醒来闻到咖啡香」，咖啡可提神醒脑,因此这个俚语就引申为「清醒一点；认清事实」的意思，英文释义是：used to tell someone that they are wrong about a particular situation and must realize what is really happening.
我们来看一个《金融时报》关于英国自由民主党的文章中的例句：
Ed Daveys calls on Lib Dems to "wake up and smell the coffee" after becoming leader. Former cabinet minister says UK centrist party has "lost touch" with voters and must listen more.
艾德·戴维斯(Ed Daveys)呼吁自由民主党当选英国中间派反对党领袖后要“认清现实”。该内阁大臣声称英国的中间党派已“脱离”了选民，他们必须更多地倾听选民的心声。
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