与 too close to comfort 差一个字,too close for comfort 的意思与其完成不一样。它们中的 comfort 有共同的意思,但是词性不同,前一个 comfort 是动词,后面一个是名词。
Comfort [ˈkʌmfət] 既可以作名词,也可以作动词,例如:1. 作动词,意为“安慰,抚慰,宽慰”,就像 too close to comfort 中的 comfort 一样,例如:Ned put his arm around her, trying to comfort her.
I tried to comfort him, but it was no use.
我试图安慰他,但无济于事。
2. 作名词,当意为“舒服,舒适,安慰,慰藉,宽慰”等时,是一个不可数名词,就像 too close for comfort 中的 comfort 一样,相当于 consolation [ˌkɒnsəˈleɪʃn],例如:
comfort:
The car offers value for money, comfort and dependability.
这辆车物超所值,舒适可靠。
The letters that people wrote after his death gave me a lot of comfort.
他死后人们写的信给了我很多安慰。
consolation:
The children were a great consolation to him when his wife died.
他妻子去世后,几个孩子就是他极大的安慰。
The main consolation for me was that I wouldn’t have to leave Boston.
Too close for comfort 虽表示太接近舒适了,但有的时候这不是一件什么好事,用来比喻太靠近某些危险或不受欢迎的事物等,使人感到焦虑,紧张或害怕,可以意为“太近了,有点不舒服/害怕”等,例如:While we were swimming, the shark came a little too close for comfort.我们游泳的时候,鲨鱼离我们有点太近了,让我感到害怕。他母亲住在我们隔壁的一条街上,有点太近了,不舒服。The way these planes fly so low over the house is just too close for comfort.这些飞机在房子上空飞得那么低,实在是太近了,让人不舒服。My neighbors and I all feel that the new shopping center they're planning near our neighborhood is a little too close for comfort.我和我的邻居都觉得他们计划在我们附近建的新购物中心离我们太近了。
因此 too close for comfort 中的 comfort 不会让人感到舒适。其实 too 作副词时,用来修饰形容词或其他副词来表示超过了某个度,常与不定式 to 搭配,例如:
He's far too young to go on his own.It's too hard for me to explain.He wasn't too happy when I told him about the mistake.
那么 too close to comfort 的意思是“太接近了以致于不能安慰”,这个意思在现实中没有意义,只是为了说明它与 too close for comfort 之间的本质区别。注意:comfort 在意为”令人感到安慰的人(或事物),或舒适的设备”时,是一个可数名词,例如:It's a comfort to know that she is safe.The hotel has all modern comforts.
dependability [dɪˌpɛndəˈbɪlɪti] 意为“可靠性,可信任性”