assay
/əˈseɪ/ (bre, ipa) · /əˈseɪ/ (ame, ipa) · /a-ˈsā ˈa-ˌsā/ (ame, mw) · /ˈæ.seɪ/ (ame, ipa)
assay — 動詞
1. to carry out a careful chemical or physical test on a metal, ore, drug, or other
化驗；檢驗
化學分析以測純度與成分
to carry out a careful chemical or physical test on a metal, ore, drug, or other material in order to measure its purity or work out exactly which components it contains.
Dr. Leila assayed the gold nugget to confirm its weight in pure metal.
田中博士化驗了那塊金塊，確認其中純金的重量。
transitive: assay + concrete substance
The lab assays each batch of milk powder for traces of lead and arsenic.
實驗室會化驗每一批奶粉，檢查是否含有微量的鉛和砷。
pattern: assay + noun + for + noun
Miners brought small rock samples to the office to be assayed for silver.
礦工把小塊岩石樣本帶到辦公室，請人化驗其中的銀含量。
Before the coins entered the mint, royal officers assayed them for purity.
錢幣進入鑄幣廠之前，皇室官員會檢驗它們的純度。
Researchers at the hospital assay new drug samples for active ingredients each week.
醫院的研究人員每週都會化驗新藥樣本中的有效成分。
文法句型
assay + noun (substance)
assay + noun + for + noun
用法筆記
Object is almost always a physical substance (metal, ore, drug, biological sample). Frequently appears in technical writing about mining, metallurgy, pharmacology, and lab work; rare in everyday speech.
常見錯誤
assay — 名詞
1. a careful laboratory procedure that measures what a metal, drug, or other substa
化驗；檢測
測量物質成分與純度的實驗檢測
a careful laboratory procedure that measures what a metal, drug, or other substance is made of, and in what amounts — often used to check purity or to detect a specific chemical, virus, or antibody.
The blood assay showed very low levels of vitamin D in young children.
血液化驗顯示，許多幼童體內的維生素D含量非常低。
common collocation: blood assay
Scientists developed a quick assay for the new virus in under three weeks.
科學家在不到三週的時間內，研發出針對這種新病毒的快速檢測方法。
pattern: an assay for + target
An assay of the river water revealed harmful chemicals from the nearby paint factory.
對河水所做的化驗顯示，水中含有附近油漆工廠排出的有害化學物質。
The jeweller paid for a gold assay before he set the stones into the ring.
珠寶商在把寶石鑲到戒指上之前，先付費做了一次黃金純度檢驗。
Each vaccine batch must pass a strict assay before nurses give it to patients.
每一批疫苗都必須通過嚴格的檢測，護理師才能施打給病人。
- analysis
broader scientific term; an assay is one specific quantitative analysis of a sample
- test
everyday word; 'assay' implies the precise lab measurement of components or purity
- examination
wider scope; includes visual or non-chemical checks an assay does not
文法句型
an assay of + noun
an assay for + noun
用法筆記
Countable; refers to the test or analysis itself, not its written report. Common in technical contexts: 'blood assay', 'gold assay', 'immunoassay'. The thing being tested is introduced with 'of' (assay of the soil) and the target component with 'for' (assay for mercury).