Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher we answer a question from a reader in China.
大家好! 本周《名师答疑》,我们回答来自中国的一位读者的问题。
There is a question I've been thinking about for a long time.
有一个问题我想了很久。
What is the difference between "even though" and "even if?"
even though和even if之间有什么区别?
Could you tell me the answer?
你能告诉我答案吗?
Thank you. Roy, China.
非常感谢。罗伊,中国。
Dear Roy, thanks for writing to us.
亲爱的罗伊,谢谢你的来信。
You asked a question that many learners of English have.
你问了一个很多英语学习者都会问的问题。
Let us begin with "even though."
我们先讲even though。
"Even though" comes before a statement of fact.
even though出现在陈述事实的句子之前。
It has a similar use to the word "but."
它和but用法相似。
Here are examples about travel to your country, Roy:
这里有一个关于去中国旅行的例子,罗伊:
I want to travel to China, but I cannot because of COVID travel restrictions.
我想去中国旅行,但由于新冠病毒带来的旅行限制,我去不了。
Now, see how you can say the same thing with the expression "even though:"
现在,看看如何用even though来表达同样的意思:
Even though I want to visit China, I cannot because of the pandemic.
即使我想去看中国,但由于疫情,我去不了。
Compare these statements with even though and the expression "despite the fact that."
比较一下这几个用even though和despite the fact that的句子。
Despite the fact that snow fell on Monday, our schools opened.
尽管周一下了雪,我们的学校还是开学了。
Our schools opened Monday even though there was snow.
尽管下雪了,我们的学校在周一还是开学了。
In both statements, it is true that snow fell Monday and although our schools often close due to snow, they did not on this day.
在两个陈述句中,周一确实下了雪,尽管学校也确实经常因为下雪而停课,但这一天没有。
Grammar expert Betty Azar says that statements with "even if" are similar to ones with "whether or not."
语法专家贝蒂·阿扎尔说,带even if的陈述句与带whether or not的陈述句相似。
"Even if" tells us that there is a certain condition that does not matter.
even if表示,有一种特定的情况并不重要。
Compare these examples.
比较一下这些例句。
I will take the dog for a walk even if it is raining.
即使下雨,我也要带着狗去散步。
Whether or not it is raining, I will take the dog for a walk.
不管下不下雨,我都要带着狗去散步。
For both statements, the rain is possible, but may not happen.
在这两个句子中,存在下雨的可能性,但可能不会下雨。
You will sometimes find that "even if" describes an unreal situation.
你有时会发现even if描述的是一种不真实的情况。
Even if I could travel to Mars, I would not go there.
即使我能去火星旅行,我也不会去那里。
I cannot attend the party, even if you could change the time.
即使你能改变时间,我也不能去参加派对。
In these examples, it is impossible to travel to Mars and the time of the party cannot be changed.
这些例句中,去火星旅行是不可能的,聚会的时间也不能改变。
However, the speakers say that in any case, they are not interested in traveling to Mars and are not able to attend the party.
然而,发言人表示,无论如何,他们对前往火星旅行不感兴趣,也无法参加派对。
I hope this helps you understand the difference between "even if" and "even though," Roy.
希望这能帮助你理解even if和even though之间的区别,罗伊。
And that's Ask a Teacher. I'm Jill Robbins.
以上就是本期《名师答疑》。我是吉尔·罗宾斯。