crux
/krʌks/ (bre, ipa) · /krʌks/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈkrəks ˈkru̇ks/ (ame, mw)
crux — 名詞
1. The single key point at the centre of a problem, argument, or difficult situatio
癥結;關鍵
問題或論點中最核心的難點
The single key point at the centre of a problem, argument, or difficult situation — the part that everything else depends on and that must be resolved or understood first before any progress can be made.
The crux of Wei's argument is that climate policy must help poor communities first.
Wei 的論點癥結在於,氣候政策必須優先幫助貧困社區。
crux + of + [someone]'s argument / issue
Finding affordable housing remains the crux of the city's planning debate.
尋找可負擔的住房,仍是該市規劃辯論的關鍵所在。
The inspector told the team that the crux of the problem was a faulty valve.
檢查員告訴團隊,問題的癥結在於一個閥門故障。
Nadia said the crux of the matter was trust between the partners, not money.
Nadia 說,問題的核心是合作夥伴之間的信任,而不是錢。
Pedro's team debated for hours, but the crux was a single sentence in the contract.
Pedro 的團隊討論了好幾個小時,但癥結在於合約中的一句話。
- core
more general; the central part of anything, not necessarily difficult
- heart
emphasises the emotional or fundamental centre; less analytical than crux
- essence
focuses on the basic nature or quality of something, not necessarily a point of difficulty
- nub
informal synonym for the central point; less common in formal writing than crux
文法句型
the crux + of + [noun phrase]
用法筆記
Often followed by of + a noun phrase (the crux of the matter / argument / problem). Almost always used with the definite article: the crux. Do not use crux for everyday or trivial matters — it implies a central difficulty that must be overcome before progress is possible.