高樓低廈,人潮起伏,
名爭利逐,千萬家悲歡離合。

閑雲偶過,新月初現,
燈耀海城,天地間留我孤獨。

舊史再提,故書重讀,
冷眼閑眺,關山未變寂寞!

念人老江湖,心碎家國,
百年瞬息,得失滄海一粟!

徐訏《新年偶感》

2012年2月8日星期三

古德明: 十二月為止、國籍




問:The government announced today its financial results for the nine months ended 31 December 2011(政府今天宣布二零一一年十二月三十一日為止那九個月內的財政盈虧)這一句,ended 31 December是不是應改為that ended on 31 December?又ended可以用ending取代嗎?
答:The nine months ended 31 December是絕對正確說法;改為the nine months that ended on 31 December也可以,但較為少見。
根據慣例,說未來的時間,只可用ending,不可用ended;說過去的時間,則多用ended,但用ending也可以,例如:(1The financial year ending March next year is full of uncertainties(明年三月為止的財政年度,一切難測)。(2I was out of work in the financial year ended / ending last March(三月為止的上個財政年度,我失業)。


問:填寫表格:nationality(國籍)一欄,中國人應寫China還是Chinese

答:正確寫法是Chinese,因為「××國籍」英文是「形容詞+nationality」,例如:(1"What nationality are you?" "American."(「你是什麼國籍?」「美國。」)(2His passport shows that he is of British nationality(根據他的護照,他是英國籍人)。「申請英國國籍」,英文是to apply for British nationality;「放棄中國國籍」,則是to give up / renounce Chinese nationality。「在今天的中國,有美國籍就有特權」英文可以說:In China today, you are a privileged man if you have American nationality