adjustment

adjustment — noun

1. a minor tweak or correction that you make to a thing — its position, level, sett

1.名詞B2
釋義

a minor tweak or correction that you make to a thing — its position, level, settings, or numbers — so that it works better, fits properly, or matches what is needed.

例句

Kofi made a tiny adjustment to the saddle height before riding off.

make an adjustment to [object]

The piano tuner made several careful adjustments to the wires inside.

plural: make adjustments to [object]

同義詞
  • modification

    more formal; suggests a planned change to a design or system

  • tweak

    informal; emphasises that the change is very small

  • correction

    implies fixing something that was wrong

文法句型

adjustment to [something]

make an adjustment

用法筆記

Often takes the preposition 'to' before the thing being changed (an adjustment to the price, to the schedule). Frequently appears in the plural when several small fixes are made together.

常見錯誤

❌I did an adjustment on my watch.
✅I made an adjustment to my watch.
💡the standard verb is 'make', and the preposition is 'to', not 'on'.
❌The mechanic gave a big adjustment to the engine.
✅The mechanic made a major adjustment to the engine.
💡use 'make', and 'major' fits better than 'big' in this collocation.

2. the slow process of changing the way you think, feel, or behave so that you can

2.名詞B2
釋義

the slow process of changing the way you think, feel, or behave so that you can cope with a new place, job, or situation in your life.

例句

Moving from Taipei to Berlin took a long period of adjustment for the whole family.

period of adjustment

Hadiya found the adjustment to office life harder than he had expected.

adjustment to [new situation]

同義詞
  • adaptation

    more formal; often used about long-term or biological changes

  • acclimatization

    formal; especially about getting used to a new climate or environment

文法句型

adjustment to [new situation]

period of adjustment

用法筆記

Usually uncountable in this sense. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense describes a personal, internal process inside someone's mind or feelings, not a physical change to an object.

常見錯誤

❌She had many adjustments to her new school.
✅She had a difficult adjustment to her new school.
💡in this sense the noun is uncountable, so avoid 'many adjustments'.