| 释义 |
scarcely
scarce·ly S0124400 (skârs′lē)adv.1. By a small margin; barely: We scarcely made it in time.2. Almost not; hardly: We scarcely ever used the reserve generator.3. Certainly not: They could scarcely complain after such good treatment.Usage Note: Scarcely has the force of a negative and is therefore regarded as incorrectly used with another negative, as in I couldn't scarcely believe it. · A clause following scarcely is properly introduced by when or before; the use of than is usually changed by copyeditors: The meeting had scarcely begun when (or before but not than) it was interrupted. See Usage Notes at double negative, hardly.scarcely (ˈskɛəslɪ) adv1. hardly at all; only just2. often ironic probably not or definitely not: that is scarcely justification for your actions. Usage: Since scarcely, hardly, and barely already have negative force, it is redundant to use another negative in the same clause: there was scarcely any (not scarcely no) bread left; he had hardly had (not he hadn't hardly had) time to thinkscarce•ly (ˈskɛərs li)
adv. 1. barely; not quite: We can scarcely see. 2. definitely not: This is scarcely the time to raise such questions. 3. probably not: You could scarcely have chosen better. [1250–1300] syn: See hardly. usage: See hardly. scarce scarcelyBoth scarce and scarcely are fairly formal words. They have completely different meanings. 1. 'scarce'Scarce is an adjective. If something is scarce, very little of it is available. Good quality land is scarce.The desert is a place where water is scarce.2. 'rare'Don't use 'scarce' to say that something is not common, and is therefore interesting. Use rare. This flower is so rare that few botanists have ever seen it.Deepak's hobby is collecting rare books.3. 'scarcely'Scarcely is an adverb that means the same as 'hardly'. If something is scarcely true, it is almost not true. If something scarcely exists, it almost does not exist. The smell was so bad I could scarcely bear it.The woman was scarcely able to walk.Be Careful!
Don't use 'not' with scarcely. Don't say, for example, 'I do not scarcely have enough money to live'. Say 'I scarcely have enough money to live'. If you use an auxiliary verb or modal with scarcely, put the auxiliary verb or modal first. Say, for example, 'I could scarcely stand'. Don't say 'I scarcely could stand'. I can scarcely remember what we ate.He could scarcely be blamed for his reaction.Scarcely is sometimes used to emphasize that one thing happened immediately after another. We had scarcely arrived when it was time to leave again.Be Careful!
Use when, not 'than', in sentences like these. Don't say, for example, 'We had scarcely arrived than it was time to leave again'. In literary writing, scarcely is sometimes put at the beginning of a sentence, followed by had or the verb be and the subject. Scarcely had she put down the receiver when the phone rang again.Scarcely were the words spoken when he began to regret them.Thesaurus| Adv. | 1. |  scarcely - only a very short time before; "they could barely hear the speaker"; "we hardly knew them"; "just missed being hit"; "had scarcely rung the bell when the door flew open"; "would have scarce arrived before she would have found some excuse to leave"- W.B.Yeatsbarely, hardly, scarce, just | | 2. | scarcely - almost not; "he hardly ever goes fishing"; "he was hardly more than sixteen years old"; "they scarcely ever used the emergency generator"hardly |
scarcelyadverb1. hardly, barely, only just, scarce (archaic), almost not He could scarcely breathe.2. (Often used ironically) by no means, hardly, not at all, definitely not, under no circumstances, on no account It can scarcely be coincidence.3. rarely, seldom, not often, infrequently, occasionally, once in a blue moon (informal), hardly ever I scarcely ever re-read my published writings.scarcelyadverbBy a very little; almost not:barely, hardly, just, scarce.Translationsscarce (skeəs) adjective not many or enough in number. Paintings by this artist are very scarce; Food is scarce because of the drought. 罕見的，少之又少的 罕见的，缺乏的 ˈscarcely adverb1. only just; not quite. Speak louder please – I can scarcely hear you; scarcely enough money to live on. 幾乎不，幾乎沒有 几乎不2. used to suggest that something is unreasonable. You can scarcely expect me to work when I'm ill. 怎麼可以(用來指出無理的事) 实在不应该ˈscarcity noun (a) lack or shortage. a scarcity of work/jobs; times of scarcity. 缺乏 缺乏make oneself scarce to run away or stay away, especially in order to avoid trouble. As soon as the police arrived, he made himself scarce. (尤指為避開麻煩)溜走，置身事外 溜走scarcely
(one) can scarcely believe (one's) eyesOne is unable to believe or accept what is happening right in front of one. She could scarcely believe her eyes when all of her extended relatives surprised her by coming to our wedding. This place is so dirty, I can scarcely believe my eyes!See also: believe, can, eye, scarcelyscarcely everNearly never; very infrequently; only on a few or rare occasions. We used to go visit Grandma and Grandpa every year when I was a kid, but nowadays, I scarcely ever see them. I scarcely ever get the chance to go out to the movies alone since having kids.See also: ever, scarcelyhardly everNearly never; very infrequently; only on a few or rare occasions. We used to go visit Grandma and Grandpa every year when I was a kid, but nowadays I hardly ever see them. I hardly ever get the chance to go out to the movies alone since having kids.See also: ever, hardlyhardly have time to breatheTo be extremely busy. We're trying to finish up that big report, so I hardly have time to breathe these days.See also: breathe, hardly, have, timescarcely have time to breatheTo be extremely busy. We're trying to finish up that big report, so I scarcely have time to breathe these days.See also: breathe, have, scarcely, timeexchange no more thansome number of words with someone and not exchange more than some number of words with someone; hardly exchange more than some number of words with someone; scarcely exchange more than some number of words with someone to say hardly anything to someone. (Always negative.) I know Tom was there, but I am sure that I didn't exchange more than three words with him before he left. We hardly exchanged more than two words the whole evening. Sally and Liz didn't have enough time to exchange more than five words.See also: exchange, more, nohardly have time to breathe and scarcely have time to breatheFig. to be very busy. This was such a busy day. I hardly had time to breathe. They made him work so hard that he scarcely had time to breathe.See also: breathe, hardly, have, timehardly everAlso, rarely ever, scarcely ever. Very seldom, almost never, as in This kind of thief is hardly ever caught, or He rarely ever brings up his wartime experiences. The ever in these expressions, first recorded in 1694, serves as an intensifier. See also: ever, hardlyscarcely
Related to scarcely: scarilySynonyms for scarcelyadv hardlySynonyms- hardly
- barely
- only just
- scarce
- almost not
adv by no meansSynonyms- by no means
- hardly
- not at all
- definitely not
- under no circumstances
- on no account
adv rarelySynonyms- rarely
- seldom
- not often
- infrequently
- occasionally
- once in a blue moon
- hardly ever
Synonyms for scarcelyadv by a very little; almost notSynonymsSynonyms for scarcelyadv only a very short time beforeSynonymsadv almost notSynonyms |