詞語：unique
unique是什麼意思
簡明英漢詞典
unique
[ju:5ni:k]
adj.
唯一的, 獨特的
美國傳統詞典[雙解]
unique
u.nique
AHD:[y?-n?k「]
D.J.[ju86ni8k]
K.K.[ju6nik]
adj.（形容詞）
(1)Being the only one of its kind:
唯一的；僅有的：作為其類型中唯一的：
the unique existing example of Donne's handwriting.See Synonyms at single
多恩僅存的手稿參見 single
(2)Without an equal or equivalent; unparalleled.
獨一無二的：沒有相等的或相當的；空前未有的
(3)Characteristic of a particular category, condition, or locality:
獨特的：特殊類型、條件或地方的特點的：
a problem unique to coastal areas.
屬於海岸區域的問題
(4)Informal Unusual; extraordinary:
【非正式用語】 不平常的；特別的：
spoke with a unique accent.
用獨特的腔調說話
語源
(1)French
法語
(2)from Old French
源自 古法語
(3)from Latin ?s * see oi-no-
源自 拉丁語 ?s *參見 oi-no-
繼承用法
unique「ly
adv.（副詞）
unique「ness
n.（名詞）
用法
Over the course of the century unique has become the paradigmatic example of the class of terms that do not allow comparison or modification by an adverb of degree such as very, somewhat, or quite. Thus, most grammarians believe that it is incorrect to say that something is very unique or more unique than something else, though phrases such as nearly unique and almost unique are acceptable. In the most recent survey the sentence Her designs are quite unique in today's fashion scene was unacceptable to 80 percent of the Usage Panel. · Critical objections to the comparison and degree modification of absolute terms date to the 18th century and have been applied to a wide group of adjectives including equal, fatal, omnipotent, parallel, perfect, and unanimous. According to the standard argument, such words denote properties that a thing either does or does not have but cannot have to a qualifiable degree. Thus if unique is properly used to mean 「without equal or equivalent,」 something either is unique or it isn't, and phrases such as very unique and more unique can only betray a weakening of the sense to mean something like 「unusual」 or 「distinctive.」 It is true that comparison and modification of unique are often associated with the style favored by copywriters, as in the advertisement announcing that Omaha's most unique restaurant is now even more unique or in the claim that a new automobile is So unique, it's patented. But modification of unique is also found in the work of reputable writers, where it may lack any connotations of hyperbole. A painting is described as the most unique of Beckman's self-portraits, and a travel writer states that Chicago is no less unique an American city than New York or San Francisco. The relative acceptability of these usages reflects the semantic subtlety of unique itself. If we were to use unique only according to the strictest criteria of logic, after all, we might freely apply the term to anything in the world since nothing is wholly equivalent to anything else. Clearly, then, when we say that a restaurant or painting is unique, we mean that it is worthy of inclusion in a class by itself according to certain implicit but generally accepted criteria. Thus a legitimately unique painting might be one that realizes an unparalleled aesthetic vision, but not one that is rendered only in pigments whose names begin with the letter o; and a legitimately unique restaurant might be one that serves 18th-century French cuisine according to the original recipes, not one that has been installed in a converted sardine cannery. Given this understanding, it is not inherently impossible to think of uniqueness as a matter of degree, in the sense that one painting or restaurant may be more or less worthy of inclusion in a class by itself than some other. · What is troubling about the copywriters' use of unique is not that the word has become a synonym for unusual. Rather, it is the copywriters who are using the word in conformity with strict logic. Uniqueness is claimed for a restaurant in virtue of some trivial properties of its decor or menu, or for a resort hotel that simply happens to have a singularly picturesque view of the bay. Though it may be true that such properties render these things logically unique, they do not constitute legitimate grounds for putting the things into a class by themselves according to the criteria ordinarily invoked when things are sorted into classes. In fact, the abuse of unique can be cloying even when no modification or comparison is involved; when we read an advertisement for a line of sportswear that features a unique selection of colors, we may suspect that the distinctive properties of the color selection are not so remarkable as the advertiser would have us believe. But it is not surprising that these uses of unique should lend themselves to promiscuous modification and comparison; for once it is granted that uniqueness can be claimed for any product or service that is somehow distinctive from all its competitors, it is inevitable that an increase in uniqueness will be seen in every minor innovation.See Usage Note at equal, infinite, parallel, perfect
在本世紀整個過程中unique 已成為不能由程度副詞，例 very、somewhat 或 quite， 比較或修飾的一類術語的例證。 因此，多數語法學家認為說某事是very unique 或 more unique than 是不正確的， 雖然短語例如nearly unique 和 almost unique 是可接受的。 在最近的調查中，句子Her designs are quite unique in today's fashion scene （她的設計在現今流行樣式的場面中是很獨特的） 對用法專題使用小組的百分之八十成員是不可接受的。 對純粹術語的比較和程度修飾的主要異議可追述到18世紀，並已廣泛用到許多形容詞中，包括equal, fatal, omnipotent, parallel, perfect 和 unanimous。 根據標準論據，這些單詞表示一事有或沒有但不能有可修飾的程度的性質。於是如果unique 適當地用於表示「沒有相等或相當的」，則某事是唯一的或不是唯一的， 而短語像very unique 和 more unique 僅能表露出說明某事像「不尋常的」或「獨特的」的意義的減弱。 的確，unique 的比較和修飾常與撰稿人喜歡的文體相聯繫， 如在廣告中稱Omaha's most unique restaurant is now even more unique（奧馬哈城的最獨特的餐館現在甚至是更加獨特） 或聲稱新汽車是 So unique, it's patented（如此獨特，它取得了專利權）。 但是unique 的修飾也在著名作家的作品中發現， 那裡可能缺乏誇張法的任何涵義。描述一張油畫為the most unique of Beckman's self-portraits（最獨特的貝克曼的自畫像）， 一位旅遊作家敘述Chicago is no less unique an American city than New York or San Francisco（芝加哥比紐約或舊金山是不遜獨特的美國城市）。 這些用法的相對可接受性反映unique 自身語義的巧妙。 如果我們僅按照邏輯的嚴格標準使用unique ， 則我們終於會自由地把此術語使用於世界上的任何事，因為沒有完全等同於另一事的事。於是，顯然當我們說餐館或油畫是獨特的時，我們意味著根據某種隱含的但可普遍接受的判據它是值得包含在一個等級內的。於是合理獨特的油畫可能是實現空前未有的審美型的，而不是僅給予名字以字母O開始的顏料； 合理獨特的餐館可能根據原來的食譜提供18世紀法國菜餚的餐館，而不是配備轉換的沙丁魚罐頭食品的餐館。按這樣瞭解，將獨特性視為程度問題不是本來就不可能的，在這個意義上一張油畫或一個餐館或多或少可能是極好的有價值的內涵物而不是其他。關於撰稿人使用unique 的困惑不是此單詞已成為 unusual 的同義詞。 相反地，正是撰稿人使用此單詞與嚴密的邏輯相一致。對餐館聲稱獨特性是由於它的佈置或菜單的某些不重要的性質，或者對於人們常去的旅館僅因為有海灣的獨一無二地別緻的景象。雖然這樣的性質使得這些事logically 獨特的可能是真實的， 但是當事情進行了分類，根據平常實行的判據把這些事情自身放到一類，他們不組成正常的基礎。事實上unique 的濫用會使人發膩，即使在沒有涉及修飾或比較的時候； 當我們讀運動服裝的unique selection of colors（顏色的獨特選擇） 的一行廣告時， 我們會懷疑顏色選擇的獨特性質並非廣告商希望我們所認為的那麼明顯。但不必驚訝於unique 的這些用法應當適用於雜亂的修飾和比較； 就這一次可以承認，獨特性能用來指任何產品或服務，它們與所有的競爭者相比較有某種程度的特色，在每一小的創新中可以看到獨特性的增加是必然會發生的參見 equal， infinite， parallel， perfect
現代英漢詞典
unique
[jJ5ni:k]
adj.
(1)唯一的，獨一無二的
(2)獨特的；少見的
a rather unique position
特殊的情況
That building is unique because all the others like it were destroyed.
那座建築很獨特，因為所有像它那樣的其他建築都毀壞了。
現代英漢綜合大辭典
unique
[ju:5ni:k]
adj.
(1)唯 一的, 僅有一種可能的, 僅產生一種結果的
(2)無與倫比的; 獨特的
(3)珍奇的
(4)【數、物】單價的; 單值的
unique feature
特色[點, 性]
unique opportunity
極難得的機會
unique copy
珍本
詞性變化
unique
[ju:5ni:k]
n.
獨一無二的人[物]
繼承用法
uniquely
adv.
習慣用語
unique to...
只有...才有的
參考詞彙
見 only
用法詞典
unique
來自拉丁語unicus