区别辨析common、ordinary、commonplace、general、usual、popular与universal

common、ordinary、commonplace、general、usual、popular与universal这些形容词均含有“普通的、普遍的”之意。

common : 多用于指物,侧重很常见,不稀奇。

  • It's quite common to see couples who dress alike.
    夫妻穿着相似是司空见惯的事儿。
  • "Smith" is a very common name in Britain.
    “史密斯”是英国很常见的姓氏。

ordinary : 用于物,指每天发生,十分平淡无奇;用于人,指无特别之处,很一般。

  • an ordinary neighbourhood
    普通的街区
  • Readers of the magazine said they wanted more stories about ordinary people and fewer stories about the rich and famous.
    这本杂志的读者说他们希望多登一些普通人的故事,少登一些关于富人和名人的事情。

commonplace : 强调缺少新意。

  • 现在一面倒的胜利不足为奇,被大家视为理所当然。
    Now lopsided victories are commonplace and taken for granted.

(拓展学习:单词双拼 | commonplace 并非什么寻常地方

general : 语气强于common,侧重大多如此,很少有例外情况。

  • The general feeling is that justice was not served.
    普遍的看法是这样做没有达成公平合理。
  • There is general concern about rising crime rates.
    人们普遍对犯罪率上升感到担忧。
  • My general impression of the place was good.
    我对这个地方总的印象很好。

usual : 指常见常闻和常做的事或举动,强调惯常性。

  • I went to bed at my usual time.
    我和平常一样准时上床睡觉。
  • You'll find the cutlery in its usual place.
    你可以在平常放餐具的地方找到刀叉餐具。
  • Terry was, as usual, slow to respond.
    泰瑞一向反应迟钝。
  • The library is open for business as usual despite the snowstorm.
    尽管有雪暴,图书馆还是照常开门。

popular : 指适应大众爱好、需要,为大家所公认或接受。

  • popular music/entertainment/culture
    流行音乐/大众化娱乐/通俗文化
  • The issue was virtually ignored by the popular press.
    这件事实际上被通俗报刊忽视了。
  • The popular myth is that air travel is more dangerous than travel by car or bus.
    一个普遍的错误之说是乘飞机比开车和乘公共汽车都要危险。

universal与general同义,但语气较强,侧重对每个人或事物都适用,根本没有例外。

  • a universal truth
    普遍真理
  • Food, like sex, is a subject of almost universal interest.
    像性一样,食物几乎也是人们普遍感兴趣的话题。
  • The new reforms have not met with universal approval within the party.
    新的改革措施在政府内部还没有得到一致赞同。