“为什么问这个？”男孩问道。

“这样我们就能通知你的家人了。”

“没必要，他们都知道我叫什么名字！”

11　A giant American car sped into a sleepy English village. The driver rolled down his window and shouted to a villager.

"Tell me. Am I on the right road to William Shakespeare's house?"

"Yes, but there's little use in hurrying to get there."

"Why?"

"He's dead! He died years ago."

精品译文　一辆美国的大汽车开进了一座宁静的英国村庄，司机摇下车窗冲着一个村民大喊。

“告诉我，我现在是在去威廉·莎士比亚的房子的路上吗？”

“没错，不过不必这么匆匆忙忙地赶过去。”

“为什么？”

“他已经死了！他很多年以前就死了。”

三、句型三：there is no doing sth.

意思相当于it's impossible to do sth.或we can't do sth.，表示“不可能做某事”。请看例句：

12　There is no telling what will happen tomorrow.

精品译文　谁也无法预知明天会发生什么。

13　There's no knowing the future.

=It's impossible to know the future.

=We can't know the future.

精品译文　谁也无法预知未来。

此外还有：there is no denying the fact that...，there is no gainsaying the fact that...，意思都是“毋庸置疑”。

思维总结

本节介绍了动名词作主语的两种结构：一是放在句首，此时的谓语要用单数形式；二是放在句末，此时只适用于特定的句型结构中。读者需要记住这些句型结构。

思维训练

Exercise 5.1

1. 把下面括号中的汉语句子译成正确的英文。

"Eye-Q" quiz

When caring for your eyes, it's important to know the facts. Try taking this short quiz to discover your "eye-Q".

True or False?

1. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　（长时间看电脑屏幕）damages your eyes.

False. Prolonged use of computer screens can certainly cause tired eyes and headaches, but it will not damage your eyesight.

2. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　（吃胡萝卜）will improve your eyesight.

False. Carrots do not improve existing eyesight. They do contain vitamin A, which your eyes need, but an overall balanced diet is more essential for good eyesight.

3. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　（在昏暗的灯光下看书）will harm your eyes.

False. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　（在昏暗的灯光下看书）can cause your eyes to become irritated and tired, but no permanent damage will occur. Try resting your eyes from time to time and read in good lighting.

4. If you start wearing glasses, your eyes will get worse.

False. Some people claim that 　　　　　　　　　　　　（戴眼镜）has made their eyes worse. No evidence exists for this concern. Some far-sighted people, however, may depend on their glasses more than other eyeglass users.

5. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　（长久阅读小字会伤眼）will hurt your eyes.

False. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 will only cause eye fatigue, not lasting damage. To rest your eyes, try looking out the window or at something far away.

6. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　（不戴眼镜）can make your eyesight worse.

False. You will not harm your eyes by forgetting to use your eyeglasses. Young children with strong prescriptions, however, should always wear their glasses. This helps their eye muscles develop correctly.

2. 选择最佳答案填空。

7. It's no use 　　　 me not to worry.

A. you tell

B. your telling

C. for you to have told

D. having told

8. It's no good 　　　 money on make-up.

A. of you to waste

B. for you to waste

C. to waste

D. your wasting

9. It's no good 　　　 me. You'd better 　　　 someone else.

A. to ask/to try

B. to ask/try

C. asking/tried

D. asking/try

10. 　　　 what John will be doing next.

A. No saying

B. There's no to say

C. There's no saying

D. Not to say

11. There is 　　　 that this has been a difficult year for the company.

A. not to deny

B. not denying

C. no denying

D. without denying

12. It's a waste of time 　　　 with such a silly fellow.

A. trying to reason

B. tried to reason

C. for trying to reason

D. to trying reasoning

13. There was 　　　 telling how much work we had done by the time you came that morning.

A. not

B. hardly

C. no

D. not any

14. It is 　　　 for him any longer; we might as well go without him.

A. not use to wait

B. no use of waiting

C. no use waiting

D. no use to wait





5.2　动名词的作用（二）：作宾语

动名词主要就是放在某些特定的动词后面或者介词后面作宾语，此外还可以用在某些特定的句型结构中。本节就从这三方面来讨论动名词作宾语的用法。

5.2.1　在动词后面作宾语

这些动词（短语）后面一般要用动名词作宾语：admit, advise, anticipate, appreciate, avoid, consider, contemplate delay, deny, detest, discuss, dislike, encourage, endure, enjoy, escape, excuse, fancy, favor, feel like, finish, forbid, forgive, give up, can't help, imagine, involve, leave off, mention, mind, miss, overlook, permit, postpone, practice, prohibit, put off, resent, resist, risk, can't stand, suggest, tolerate, understand等。

请看例句：

1　Many of the things we do involve taking some risk in order to achieve a satisfactory result.

妙语点睛　动词involve后面需要接动名词，所以用taking而不说to take。

精品译文　要想取得满意的结果，我们必须冒一些风险。

2　Putting in a new window will involve cutting away part of the roof.

妙语点睛　动词involve后面需要接动名词，所以用cutting而不说to cut。

精品译文　要想安装一扇新窗户就必须把房顶打掉一块。

3　Being a bad-tempered man, he would not tolerate having his lectures interrupted.

妙语点睛　动词tolerate后面需要接动名词，所以用having而不说to have。

精品译文　因为脾气不好，所以他不能容忍自己讲课被打断。

4　Peter, who had been driving all day, suggested stopping at the next town.

妙语点睛　这是2000年6月份的四级考试题。动词suggest后面需要接动名词，所以用stopping而不说to stop。

精品译文　彼得因为已经开了一整天的车了，所以他建议在下一个小镇停车休息。

5　They are considering buying the house before the prices go up.

妙语点睛　这是1989年1月份的四级考试题。动词consider后面需要接动名词，所以用buying而不说to buy。

精品译文　他们正在考虑买下这栋房子，以防房价再上涨。

6　She was so angry that she felt like throwing something at him.

妙语点睛　这是1992年6月份的四级考试题。动词短语feel like后面需要接动名词，所以用throwing而不说to throw。

精品译文　她当时是那么生气，以至于真想找东西砸他。

一名现年28岁的澳大利亚男子蒂姆·科普三年前突发奇想，决定重走“成吉思汗之路”。2004年6月，他骑马从蒙古出发，途经哈萨克斯坦、俄罗斯、乌克兰和匈牙利，于2007年9月22日抵达匈牙利小镇乌普兹塔西泽，行程达一万公里。在结束自己的长途跋涉生活之后，他说：

7　I can't imagine saying goodbye to the horses. It's become my way of life for the last three years.

妙语点睛　该句的谓语imagine后面要接动名词saying，而不能说to say。

精品译文　我无法想象跟马告别。在过去三年里，这已经成为我的生活方式。

8　Richard Doran, a professional radio host in China, remains skeptical that such shows are actually improving mutual understanding. "They still ask if we know how to use chopsticks," he says. "Can you imagine a European television station putting a Pakistani immigrant family on television and asking if they'd learned to use a knife and fork yet?"

妙语点睛　与上一句的imagine后面直接用动名词saying不同，在该句中，谓语动词imagine后面接了一个名词短语a European television station，然后再接两个动名词putting和asking。二者一起构成了动名词的复合结构a European television station putting...and asking...，其中名词短语a European television station充当动名词的逻辑主语。关于动名词的逻辑主语，我们将在5.5节详细介绍。

精品译文　理查德·多兰（中文名董漠涵）在中国是一名专业的电台主持人，他对外国人参与中国的电视节目能否真正增进中国与外界的相互了解依然持怀疑态度。“中国的节目主持人依然会问‘你们会用筷子吗？’这类问题，”他说，“你能想象一个欧洲的电视台采访一个巴基斯坦移民家庭，然后问他们‘你们学会使用刀叉了吗？’这类的问题吗？”

从以上这个例句我们看出，在这类动词后面，还可以接动名词的复合结构（详见5.5节）。再比如下面这句话：

9　I will overlook your being so rude to my sister this time but don't let it happen again.

妙语点睛　该句的谓语overlook后面接了物主代词your，然后再接动名词being，二者一起构成了动名词的复合结构your being...，其中your是动名词being的逻辑主语。

精品译文　这次你对我妹妹态度粗鲁就算了，但下不为例。

5.2.2　在介词后面作宾语

在介词后面不能直接用动词原形作宾语，必须改为动名词。不过，对于介词to稍微有些特殊，因为它既可以是不定式的小品词从而后面接动词原形，也可以是介词从而后面要接动名词。因此，读者遇到to时，必须搞清楚它是作为介词还是作为不定式的符号。为了便于读者掌握，笔者总结了常见的介词to短语，都必须接动名词，而不能接动词原形。这些短语有：look forward to, object to, be/get used to, prefer doing to doing, in addition to, be accustomed to do/doing, amount to doing（意味着）, take to doing（开始喜欢做）, devote...to doing/be devoted to doing, dedicate...to doing/be dedicated to doing, be averse to doing, be opposed to doing, get round to doing, the alternative/approach/solution to doing等。请看例句：

1　I am looking forward to hearing from you.

精品译文　我期待你的来信。

2　I am used to sleeping with the lights on.

精品译文　我习惯了开着灯睡觉。

3　I am accustomed to sleeping with the lights on. /I am accustomed to sleep with the lights on.

精品译文　我习惯了开着灯睡觉。

4　The students object to increasing their tuition.

精品译文　学生们反对提高学费。

5　After a long delay I finally got round to making inquiries into the matter.

精品译文　拖了很长时间以后，我才终于抽出时间来过问这件事。

现在的上班族中间很流行“拼车（carpooling）”，于是有了下面这段话：

6　As an alternative to using a single-occupancy vehicle, carpooling involves two to five commuters sharing a vehicle. The more people in a carpool, the greater the savings. Depending on the arrangements made, one person can do all the driving and be reimbursed by the riders.

Carpooling can limit use of personal vehicle for daily commuting, reduce air pollution, save time by using High Occupancy Vehicle Lane and provide useable time for riders--read, sleep, work and talk. It is also a viable solution for employees who do not drive.

Carpooling can be encouraged through computerized matching of riders with similar commute patterns and preferences.

妙语点睛　这里的to是介词，后面接动名词using。另外，involve后面接的就是上面提到过的动名词的复合结构two to five commuters sharing a vehicle，其中two to five commuters充当动名词sharing a vehicle的逻辑主语。

精品译文　作为单人驾车之外的选择，拼车是指两到五个通勤者共乘一辆车。拼车的人越多，省的越多。一个人可以自始至终驾车，而由其他乘车人付费，就看如何安排了。

拼车可以减少用于日常通勤的私车的数量，减少空气污染，使用拼车专行道从而可以节省时间，而乘车人也有了可支配的时间，用来阅读、睡觉、工作和谈话。对于不开车的员工来说，拼车也是解决通勤问题的可行之道。

通过电脑匹配的方式，可以让有相似通勤模式和偏好的人更容易寻找到共同的乘车人，从而鼓励人们拼车。

7　Many people don't understand the difference between idle time and leisure time. Idle time amounts to wasting or stealing time; leisure time is earned. Procrastinating amounts to not working.

精品译文　许多人不知道无聊时光和闲暇时光的区别。无聊时光意味着浪费时间，而闲暇时光则意味着忙碌之后的休闲，是应该享受的。拖延就意味着不在工作。

关于这样的短语，需要大家在平时的学习过程中注意不断地积累和总结。

5.2.3　在特定的句型中作宾语

英语中有很多固定的句型结构是要求接动名词作宾语的，下面我们一一列举：

一、“做某事遇到了麻烦/困难”

最常见的是表示“做某事遇到了麻烦/困难”，或“做某事很开心”。具体如下：



我们先来看下面这个四级考试的听力题：

1　Woman: How do you find your new apartment?

Man: Well, it's quite nice really, although I have a hard time getting used to living in a big place.

妙语点睛　我们看到，这里的短语have a hard time后面接了getting这个动名词。另外get used to的后面也要求接动名词，所以用living。

精品译文　女：你觉得你那新公寓怎么样？

男：哦，真的很好，尽管我一时还没有适应住这么大的房子。

这里要提醒大家注意：How do you find...这个句型的含义是“你觉得……怎么样”，是在向对方征询意见或看法的，不要误解成“你是怎么发现……的”，比如这句话不能理解成“你是怎么找到你的新公寓的？”如果要表达后者的意思，则要用过去时，说成“How did you find...?”

再看下面这个“租房难”的例句，这是一道TOEFL听力题：

2　A: We are having all kinds of trouble finding a new apartment for next year. What about you?

B: My roommate and I decided that this year we'd stay put.

精品译文　A：我们在为明年找房子租，遇到了各种麻烦。你怎么样？

B：我和我的室友决定今年不搬家了。

我们再来看下面这几个旧TOEFL听力题：

3　A: You certainly have a lot of clocks. There seems to be one in every room.

B: My family gave them to me because I have trouble keeping track of the time.

精品译文　A：你有这么多钟表啊，好像每个房间里都有一个。

B：这是我家里给我的，因为我很难守时。

4　A: I had a hard time getting through this novel.

B: I know how you feel. Who can remember the names of 35 different characters.

精品译文　A：这本小说我很难再继续看下去了。

B：我知道你的感受，有谁能够一下子记住里面35个不同人物的名字啊！

5　A: I'm having a hard time keeping up in my biology class. I'm seriously considering hiring a tutor.

B: A word of advice, don't make a mistake I made last semester and wait until after the midterm exam to do it.

精品译文　A：生物课我有点跟不上了，我在认真考虑是否要请一个家教。

B：给你忠告，你可别犯我上学期犯过的错误，等到期中考试之后才去请家教。

下面是一个美国教授谈到语言学习时说的一番话：

6　For a North American or European, languages such as Chinese, Korean, and Japanese have what is like pictograph or ideographic type of language. Native speakers of European languages often have a very difficult time in learning one of the Asian languages, as our ears are not attuned to the sounds or characters of the language. In China, I am like a child in terms of the language, and illiterate in terms of being able to read or write Chinese. If I could read and write in Chinese, I would need to recognize at least 3, 000 or more characters.

Chinese also have a hard time learning the European languages such as English, French, Spanish, Italian, or German, because each of these languages is filled with many idioms which don't make much sense in terms of the formal language that they learn.

妙语点睛　我们看到，这里的短语have a very difficult time和have a hard time后面都接了动名词（in）learning，不能说to learn。

精品译文　对于北美人或欧洲人来说，汉语、韩语和日语等语言就像是图画语言或表意文字。以欧洲语言为母语的人往往会发现这些亚洲语言很难学，因为我们的耳朵生来就不适应这些语言的发音或写法。在中国，在语言方面我像是一个孩子，就汉语的读写能力而言，我则像是文盲。如果我希望能够具备中文的读写能力，我则需要认识至少3, 000汉字或更多。

中国人在学习欧洲的语言方面，比如英语、法语、西班牙语、意大利语或德语等，也常常会感到困难，因为这些语言中含有大量的成语，而这些成语，如果按照他们所学的正式的外语来解释，并没有什么意思。

7　When we moved to Canada a few years ago, we had a hard time communicating with foreigners, so we started to read a lot of English books and magazines to improve our conversation and listening skills.

精品译文　我们几年前刚搬到加拿大时，和老外交流非常困难。所以我们开始大量地阅读英语书籍和杂志来提高我们的口语和听力技巧。

8　They turn the volume up full blast（以最大的音量）and begin to party. The music is so loud that we have a hard time carrying on a conversation without raising our voices.

精品译文　他们把音量开到最大，开始举行聚会。音乐声音太大了，如果我们不提高嗓门就很难继续谈话了。

下面这句话说出了要勇于面对变化、保持乐观的道理：

9　I have learned, however, that change always seems more difficult at the outset, and if I work hard at remaining positive and view changes as opportunities to grow, I have an easier time dealing with them.

精品译文　不过，我已经明白，变化一开始似乎总是更困难。但是，如果我努力保持乐观积极的心态，并且把变化当作是成长的机会，我就会比较容易应对变化。

但要注意下列短语的后面要接不定式：take the trouble to do sth., trouble to do sth., have (no) time to do sth.。比如：

10　I worked so late in the office last night that I hardly had time to catch the last bus.

妙语点睛　这是1999年的考研题。这里不说had time catching...*。

精品译文　我昨晚加班到很晚，几乎都来不及赶末班车了。

二、表示“情不自禁”，“不得不”的短语

这些短语包括：can't help doing, can't resist doing, can't keep from doing, can't hold back from doing和can't keep back from doing等等。请看例句：

11　No one can help liking Tom; he is such a cute boy.

精品译文　没有人不喜欢汤姆，他实在太可爱了。

不过要注意下面的短语要接动词原形，但它们的意思不变：can't help but do, can't but do和can't choose but do。

三、其他句型结构

此外，还有其他一些短语，比如be worth doing,表示“值得做”。注意这些短语要用主动形式，但表示被动的意思。

12　The book is worth reading.

精品译文　这本书值得一读。

还要注意这个句型结构：be worthy of being done/to be done。比如上面这个例句可以改写为：

The book is worthy of being read.

The book is worthy to be read.

再比如be busy doing这个句型结构。请看例句：

13　The money will be used to keep a space vehicle on the moon busy sending back to the earth photographs and other information about the surface of the moon.