prefer sth.

表示更喜欢, 更愿意选择

• Would you prefer milk or coffee?

表示提出，多指提出声明、请求、控诉等，常与介词against连用

• She preferred charges against her father for abusing.

choose、pick、prefer、select都含挑选; 选择的意思。

choose

作连词

rather than用作连词，连接两个平行结构。

既可以表示主观愿望上的决择，与其...宁可...。

也可以表示客观程度上的差异，与其说是...不如说是...。

连接代词

• I, rather than you, should do the work. 该做这工作的是我，而不是你。

连接名词

• John ought to go rather than Jean. 约翰比琴更应该去。
• I think I'll have a cold drink rather than coffee. 我想我该要一杯冷饮，而不要咖啡。
• I think you, rather than Mary, is to be punished. 我认为该受惩罚的是你，而不是玛丽。

试比较: We sometimes eat rice instead of potatoes. 有时候我们不吃土豆，而吃米饭。

连接形容词

• These shoes are comfortable rather than good-looking. 这鞋不好看可是舒服。
• The color seems green rather than blue. 这颜色看上去是绿的，而不是蓝的。

连接介词短语

• You are doing this for yourself rather than for your friend. 你不是为你朋友，而是为你自己做这种事。
• I'd prefer to go in August rather than in July. 我愿 8 月去不愿 7 月去。

连接动名词

• I always prefer starting early, rather than leaving everything to the last minute. 我总是愿意早开始而不愿意把所有事情都留到最后才做。
• He was engaged in writing a letter rather than reading the newspaper. 他那时是在写信而不是看报纸。

连接过去分词

• She insisted on having the room papered rather than painted. 她坚持要用纸裱糊房间，而不是把房间粉刷一下。

连接不定式

一般省略to。

• I decided to write rather than telephone. 我决定写信而不是打电话。
• They prefer to die fighting rather than live in enslavement. 他们宁可战死，也不肯活着受奴役。
• I prefer to work rather than remain idle. 我宁愿工作而不愿闲着。

连接谓语动词

rather than后接动词原形表示主观抉择，接一个动词的过去式则表示客观差异。

• He told a lie rather than get his friend into trouble. 他宁愿说谎也不愿连累朋友。
• Shall we go for a walk rather than watch television? 咱们不看电视，出去散步，好不好？
• He ran rather than walked. 他跑步而不是步行。

连接从句

• It was what he meant rather than what he said. 那是指他话中的意思，而不是他所说的话。
• It was what he had eaten rather than what he had drunk that made him ill. 使他得病的不是他喝的东西，而是他吃的东西。

作介词

和as well as及instead of一样，rather than后面跟一个和主句中的动词形式并不匹配的ing分词分句时，它是介词，而不是准并列连词。

• Their actions precipitated the war rather than averting it. 他们的行为促使战争爆发而不是避免战争。
• Rather than a new car, he bought a color television. 他买了一台彩电，而不是一辆新车。
• Let's finish the job today, rather than leaving it till tomorrow. 让咱们今天干完工作，而不是留到明天。

与 would 搭配

rather than可以和would联用，如would rather...than...或would...rather than...。

这时要注意前后对称，即必须用相同的语法成份。如：

• I'd rather have the red one than(have) the green one. 我宁愿要红的，不愿要绿的。
• I'd take the slowest train rather than go there by air. 我宁可乘坐最慢的火车也不愿坐飞机去那儿。
• He would rather walk than drive. 他宁愿步行不愿开车。

注意

I'd rather+ 动词原形，通常意为我宁愿...，相当于I'd prefer to...，具有选择意义，即宁愿做...不愿做。

但是，当后接动词like, enjoy, appreciate时，rather是一个程度副词，象quite和fairly一样无选择意义。

所以I'd rather like不是我宁愿喜欢，而是我相当(很)喜欢。试比较下列句子：

• I'd rather like a cup of coffee. 我很想来杯咖啡。
• We would rather appreciate your help. 我们非常感谢你的帮助。
• Which would you rather have, tea or coffee? 你更愿意喝什么，茶还是咖啡？

alive、live、living意思都含活的。

living

country表示农村时，只能是单数，且其前面要加定冠词the。

• They live a happy life in the country. 他们在乡村里过着幸福的生活。

country表示国家时，是可数名词。country的复数形式是countries。

• China is an Asian country. 中国是亚洲国家。
• China, Japan, and India are Asian countries. 中国、日本、印度是亚洲国家。

alive、live、living意思都含活的。

living