Symbols of Easter

Bunnies or rabbits stand for fertility in some cultures.

在某些文化中，兔子代表豐產。

That is because rabbits reproduce easily and often.

這是因為兔子容易且頻繁地繁殖。

In the days and weeks before Easter, toy bunnies are found in stores.

在復活節前數天至數週，商店裡就會出現玩具兔。

So are plastic eggs that parents fill with candies to give their children on Easter morning.

父母也會準備塑膠彩蛋，裝滿糖果，以便在復活節早晨送給孩子。

The American president even hosts an Easter egg roll at the White House, on the Monday after Easter.

美國總統甚至會在復活節隔週一的星期一於白宮舉辦滾彩蛋活動。

The child who rolls their egg the farthest distance without breaking it is the winner.

將自己的蛋在不破裂的情況下滾得最遠的孩子就是獲勝者。

Lamb is often served at Easter meals.

羊肉常在復活節餐點中上桌。

For Christians, lamb represents Jesus Christ, who Christians call the Lamb of God.

對基督徒而言，羔羊象徵耶穌基督，基督徒稱祂為「神的羔羊」。

Another food that is common at Easter is ham.

另一種復活節常見的食物的火腿。

Pigs symbolized good luck in Europe in the time before Christianity.

在基督教興起之前的歐洲時代，豬象徵好運。

You might have noticed three ways we have talked about the connections people make between the foods and symbols of Easter.

你可能已經注意到，我們在描述食物與復活節象徵之間的連結時，用了三種方式。

They involve two transitive verbs and a phrasal verb.

這涉及兩個及物動詞和一個片語動詞。

First, we used symbolize, which means to be a representation or expression of something.

首先，我們使用了symbolize，意思是「成為某種事物的代表或表達」。

We said that eggs symbolize new life.

我們說彩蛋象徵新生。

Next is stands for a phrasal verb.

接下來是stands for，這是一個片語動詞。

We said that bunnies stand for fertility.

我們說兔子代表豐產。

In this case, stands for also means to be a representation of something.

在這種情況下，stands for 也有「成為某種事物的代表」之意。

Finally, we used represents to explain the importance and meaning of lamb.

最後，我們使用represents來解釋羊肉的重要性和意義。

Let's look a bit more at how to use these words.

讓我們再進一步看看如何使用這些單字。

Symbolize is the verb form of the noun symbol.

Symbolize是名詞symbol的動詞形式。

A symbol is an object, action, or event that expresses a quality or idea.

符號是用以表達某種特質或概念的物件、行為或事件。

Let's compare the verb and noun form.

讓我們比較動詞與名詞的形式。

We will start with an example using symbolize.

我們先從使用symbolize的例子開始。

The lion symbolizes courage.

獅子象徵勇氣。

The sentence has this structure: noun phrase plus symbolize plus noun.

這個句子的結構是：名詞片語加上symbolize再加上名詞。

Now let's look at how to use symbol.

現在來看看如何使用symbol。

The lion is a symbol of courage.

獅子是勇氣的象徵。

The sentence has this structure: noun phrase plus be plus a symbol of plus noun.

這個句子的結構是：名詞片語加上be動詞，再加a symbol of加上名詞。

Please note that even though our two example sentences have different structures, the meaning is the same.

請注意，雖然我們的兩個例句結構不同，但意思相同。

Of course, you can create much more complex sentences and examples when using symbolize or symbol, but for this lesson, we will keep things simple.

當然，在使用symbolize或symbol時，你可以構建更複雜的句子和例子，但在本課中，我們會保持簡單。

Now let's take a closer look at stand for.

現在讓我們更仔細地看看stand for。

This phrasal verb has a few different meanings, but in our description of Easter, we used stand for in the same way we use symbolize.

這個片語動詞有多種含義，但在我們對復活節的描述中，stand for的用法與symbolize相同。

That is right.

沒錯。

It means to be a representation or symbol of something.

這意味著成為某事物的代表或象徵。

Here is another example.

這裡有另一個例子。

The color yellow often stands for happiness and joy.

黃色通常象徵著幸福和喜悅。

Finally, we have represent.

最後，我們來看看represent這個詞。

This verb has many meanings.

這個動詞有多種含義。

In this lesson, represent means to serve as a symbol or sign of something.

在本課中，represent的意思是作為某事物的象徵或標誌。

Let's look at this word in another example sentence.

讓我們在另一個例句中看看這個詞。

Wedding rings represent a married couple's love.

婚戒象徵著已婚夫妻的愛。

Today we have learned three verbs you can use to describe holiday celebrations: symbolize, stand for, and represent.

今天我們學了三個可以用來描述節日慶祝活動的動詞：symbolize、stand for 和 represent。

Let's quickly compare our three verbs.

讓我們快速比較一下這三個動詞。

All of them are transitive verbs, meaning they take a direct object.

它們都是及物動詞，意思是後面需要接直接受詞。

And they can all be used in a simple structure: noun or noun phrase plus verb or a phrasal verb plus noun or noun phrase.

它們都可以用在一個簡單的結構中：名詞或名詞片語加上動詞，或是短語動詞加上名詞或名詞片語。

For example: Red symbolizes love.

例如：紅色象徵愛。

Red stands for love.

紅色代表愛。

Red represents love.

紅色表示愛。

Try to use all three verbs to tell us about a holiday that you celebrate.

試著用這三個動詞告訴我們你慶祝的一個節日。

What do the foods or activities of the day symbolize, stand for, or represent?

那天的食物或活動象徵、代表或意味著什麼？

You can email us at learningenglish@voanews. com.

您可以透過 learningenglish@voanews.com 給我們發電子郵件。

And that's Everyday Grammar.

這就是《日常文法》節目。

I'm Jill Robbins.

我是吉兒·羅賓斯。