由于中文是没有冠词的,所以到了英文里乱加冠词的情况非常多。据说初中英语有个关于冠词的口诀,各种都说了就是没提无冠词的情况,可能也起到了推波助澜的作用。
比如下面这段文字:
Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in America. When reports came into London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five miles south of London, they were not taken seriously. However, as the evidence began to accumulate, experts from the Zoo felt obliged to investigate, for the descriptions given by people.
The hunt for the puma began in a small village where a woman picking blackberries saw 'a large cat' only five yards away from her. It immediately ran away when she saw it, and experts confirmed that a puma will not attack a human being unless it is cornered. The search proved difficult, for the puma was often observed at one place in the morning and at another place twenty miles away in the evening. Wherever it went, it left behind it a trail of dead deer and small animals like rabbits. Paw prints were seen in a number of places and puma fur was found clinging to bushes. Several people complained of 'cat-like noises' at night and a businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree. The experts were now fully convinced that the animal was a puma, but where had it come from? As no pumas had been reported missing from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private collector and somehow managed to escape. The hunt went on for several weeks, but the puma was not caught. It is disturbing to think that a dangerous wild animal is still at large in the quiet countryside.
这个大家都知道。但很多中国人写出来是这样的:
The Pumas are large, cat-like animals which are found in the America. When reports came into the London Zoo that a wild puma had been spotted forty-five miles south of London, they were not taken seriously. However, as the evidence began to accumulate, the experts from the Zoo felt obliged to investigate, for the descriptions given by the people.
The hunt for the puma began in a small village where a woman picking the blackberries saw 'a large cat' only five yards away from her. It immediately ran away when she saw it, and the experts confirmed that a puma will not attack a human being unless it is cornered. The search proved difficult, for the puma was often observed at one place in the morning and at another place twenty miles away in the evening. Wherever it went, it left behind it a trail of the dead deer and small animals like the rabbits. The paw prints were seen in a number of places and the puma fur was found clinging to the bushes. Several people complained of the 'cat-like noises' at night and a businessman on a fishing trip saw the puma up a tree. The experts were now fully convinced that the animal was a puma, but where had it come from? As no pumas had been reported missing from any zoo in the country, this one must have been in the possession of a private collector and somehow managed to escape. The hunt went on for several weeks, but the puma was not caught. It is disturbing to think that a dangerous wild animal is still at large in the quiet countryside.
还比如 Ignorance of law is no excuse让很多人写一定写成 The ignorance of the law is no excuse,大概就是这么个意思。