revenge、avenge都是復仇,為何《復仇者聯盟》選用Avengers?背後涵義比你想得還深

2019-04-11 09:30

? 人氣

為什麼《復仇者聯盟》的英文是 The Avengers 而不是 The Revengers? (圖imdb官網)

為什麼《復仇者聯盟》的英文是 The Avengers 而不是 The Revengers? (圖imdb官網)

說到《復仇者聯盟》,喜愛超級英雄的電影迷想必並不陌生。但你是否曾經疑惑過:明明 revenge 跟 avenge 都是「復仇」,為什麼《復仇者聯盟》的英文是 The Avengers 而不是 The Revengers? Revenge 跟 avenge 的涵義和用法有什麼不同嗎?跟著希平方一起探索一下吧!

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revenge、avenge 的涵義差別

雖然 revenge 跟 avenge 都有「復仇、報復」的意思,但實際上兩個字有著細微差別:

revenge

根據英英字典,revenge 的定義是:

● inflicting pain or harm to retaliate for real or fancied wrongs(使遭受痛苦或傷害,來報復真實或虛構的不公義對待)

● to harm someone as a punishment for harm that they have done to you(去傷害某人,作為他對你做的錯事的一種懲罰)

換句話說,revenge 是「復仇、報復」的意思,且偏向是因自身遭遇而去報復。例如:

He swore to revenge his humiliation.(他發誓要報復他所受的屈辱。)

avenge

至於 avenge 的定義則是:

● inflicting punishment as an act of retributive justice(使遭受懲罰,視為一種報復式正義)

● to do harm to or punish the person responsible for something bad done to you or your family or friends in order to achieve a fair situation(為了達到公正,而去傷害或懲罰對你或你親人好友做過錯事的人)

換句話說,avenge 隱含「為公平正義,為自己或他人討回公道」的意思。例如:

The victims were avenged when the murderer was sentenced to life in prison.(當殺人犯被判處無期徒刑,受害者的正義獲得了伸張。)

所以,我們回到電影《復仇者聯盟 》。因為當中成員主要不是為了私怨而去報復,而是為了公平正義而戰,因此用 avenge 延伸出的 avengers(復仇者)去形容他們會更加恰當,也更能傳達出「框扶正義」的這層涵義喔!

revenge、avenge 的用法差別

除了意思上的細微差異,兩個字在用法上也有不同。

revenge

可以作為「動詞」或「名詞」。「動詞」的用法並不常見,例如:

His madness was driven by the desire to revenge.(他的瘋狂行為是受到報復慾望所驅使。)

當做名詞時,revenge 有幾個常見的搭配詞,像是:

● want revenge 想要報復

He couldn't swallow his pride and wanted revenge on his coach.(他吞不下這口氣,想要報復他的教練。)

● seek revenge 尋求報復

He sought revenge on his ex-girlfriend for breaking his heart.(他因為前女友傷透他的心而尋求報復。)

● take revenge on 報復、復仇

The serial killer took revenge on anyone who had done him wrong.(這名連環殺手向所有虧待他的人復仇。)

● in revenge for 報復、復仇

The shooting attack was in revenge for alleged bullying at school.(這場槍擊疑似是為了要報復校園霸凌。)

avenge

Avenge 則是「動詞」,沒有「名詞」的用法。例如:

The two brothers swore to avenge the person who framed their father.(兩兄弟發誓要讓誣陷他們父親的人付出代價。)

The woman is determined to avenge her husband’s death.(這位女士決意要為她丈夫的死討回公道。)

雖然 revenge 跟 avenge 的差別很細微,但只要釐清,下次寫作時用字就能更加精準囉!

本文經授權轉載自希平方-看YouTube學英文(原標題:revenge、avenge 都是『復仇』,兩個字差在哪裡?)
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