vapor

/ˈveɪpə(r)/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈveɪpər/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈvā-pər/ (ame, mw)

vapor — noun

1. tiny drops of liquid or particles of a substance that hang in the air, such as t

1.名詞B2
釋義

tiny drops of liquid or particles of a substance that hang in the air, such as the cloud rising from boiling water or the haze above hot tarmac.

例句

Tomás watched white vapor curl up from his coffee cup on the cold morning.

vapor rising from a hot liquid in cold air

The chemistry teacher warned Talia not to breathe the bleach vapor in the lab.

noun + vapor: bleach vapor / chemical vapor

同義詞
  • steam

    specifically the hot vapor from boiling water; vapor is broader

  • mist

    low cloud of tiny water drops near the ground; cooler and denser than vapor

  • fume

    usually unpleasant or harmful vapor, often from chemicals or fire

反義詞

文法句型

vapor of [substance]

[substance] vapor

用法筆記

Often uncountable when referring to the substance in general (water vapor); countable when describing a specific cloud or release (a vapor, vapors of chemicals). Common collocation is 'water vapor' for the gas form of water in the atmosphere.

常見錯誤

❌The kettle made many vapors.
✅The kettle made a lot of vapor.
💡when describing the mass rising from one source, treat vapor as uncountable.
❌Steam is a kind of smoke vapor.
✅Steam is a kind of water vapor.
💡smoke and vapor are different; smoke comes from burning, vapor comes from heating a liquid.

2. an old-fashioned word for a sudden feeling of faintness, dizziness, or low mood,

2.名詞C2
釋義

an old-fashioned word for a sudden feeling of faintness, dizziness, or low mood, once believed to come from gases inside the body and most often attributed to women after a shock.

例句

In the old novel, Lady Ashford fainted onto the sofa and complained of the vapors.

plural with 'the': the vapors

Omar joked that the news of the bill would give his great-aunt the vapors.

humorous modern use: 'give someone the vapors'

同義詞
  • faint

    the actual loss of consciousness; the vapors is the older umbrella term for the whole episode

  • swoon

    also old-fashioned; usually describes the moment of fainting itself

文法句型

have the vapors

get the vapors

用法筆記

Almost never used literally today. Modern speakers use 'the vapors' for humorous or ironic effect to mock exaggerated shock — typically in the phrase 'give someone the vapors'. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense is plural with 'the' and refers to a person's reaction, not to airborne particles.

常見錯誤

❌She has a vapor from the bad news.
✅She has the vapors from the bad news.
💡this sense is always plural with 'the'.

vapor — verb