
境況富裕;更舒適
Families will be better off under the new law.
新法律會使家庭經濟寬裕一些。
He will be better off, said they, with us than with you.
“他跟我們在一起會比跟你在一起好很多。”他們說。
Would they be better off in the office?
放在辦公室裡會不會更好呢?
In the long run, you will be better off.
從長遠來看,你必将受益匪淺。
We’d be better off without them as neighbors.
要是沒有這些鄰居,我們就生活得更安逸。
"be better off"是英語中常見的經濟類短語,主要包含以下三層含義:
經濟狀況改善 指個人或群體在財務、生活品質等方面處于更優越的狀态。例如:"After receiving the promotion, she was clearly better off financially"(升職後她的經濟狀況明顯改善)。這種用法常見于社會經濟學領域的讨論,強調物質條件的提升。
比較選擇的優化 用于對比兩種決策的優劣,後接動名詞或條件從句。典型結構為"be better off doing sth",如:"You'd be better off taking the subway during rush hours"(高峰時段乘地鐵是更明智的選擇)。牛津大學出版的《英語動詞模式詞典》将其歸類為建議性表達。
虛拟語境中的假設 在虛拟語氣中表達與現實相反的假設,常與if從句配合使用。例如:"If they had invested earlier, they would be better off now"(如果早投資現在境況會更好)。這種用法在《經濟學人》商業案例分析中出現頻率較高,多用于反事實推理。
該短語的語義演變可追溯至16世紀英國莊園經濟,最初描述佃農通過改進耕作方式獲得更高收成的狀态,現代用法保留了"通過優化決策獲得改善"的核心概念。柯林斯英語大辭典特别指出,其比較級形式"better off"比原級"well off"更常見于日常交流。
"be better off" 是一個常用英語短語,主要表達"處于更有利/更優渥的境況"或"做某事更明智"的含義,具體解釋如下:
例:After getting promoted, they were better off financially.(升職後他們的經濟狀況好轉了)
例:You'd be better off taking the train to avoid traffic.(你乘火車避開擁堵會更明智)
接動詞-ing形式
be better off + doing sth
例:We're better off leaving early.(我們早點出發更好)
接介詞短語
be better off without sth/sb
例:The team is better off without his negative attitude.(團隊沒有他的消極态度會更好)
時态變化
better off vs. well off
例:They're quite well off.(他們很富裕)
反義表達
worse off(境況更差)
例:Many families are worse off after the tax increase.(加稅後許多家庭境況更糟)
通過上下文可判斷具體指向經濟狀況還是廣義的利弊選擇。該短語在口語和書面語中均常見,使用時需注意比較對象的隱含或明示。
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