derivatives
derivatives — 名詞
1. financial products, such as options or futures, whose worth rises or falls in li
衍生性商品
價值依附於股票、債券等資產的金融工具
financial products, such as options or futures, whose worth rises or falls in line with shares, bonds, or other assets they are tied to.
Yara warned her clients that derivatives can wipe out a portfolio in one bad week.
Yara 警告客戶，衍生性金融商品可能在短短一週的壞行情中讓整個投資組合化為烏有。
trade in derivatives — typical finance collocation
Many Hong Kong banks earn large fees by selling derivatives linked to gold prices.
許多香港銀行靠著賣與金價連動的衍生性金融商品，賺進大筆手續費。
derivatives linked to [underlying asset]
The new rules force traders to report every derivatives contract to the regulator.
新規定要求交易員把每一筆衍生性金融商品合約都向主管機關申報。
Mateo lost most of his savings after betting on oil derivatives during the price crash.
Mateo 在油價崩跌時押注石油衍生性金融商品，幾乎賠光積蓄。
After 2008, governments tried to bring complex derivatives under tighter control.
2008 年之後，各國政府試圖把複雜的衍生性金融商品納入更嚴格的監管。
文法句型
trade in derivatives
derivatives market
用法筆記
Almost always plural. Subject of verbs like trade, sell, regulate; often modified by the underlying asset (oil derivatives, currency derivatives).
常見錯誤
2. things that have been made or grown out of an earlier thing, keeping a clear lin
衍生物
由另一原料加工而來的成品
things that have been made or grown out of an earlier thing, keeping a clear link to where they came from — for example, soap made from coconut oil, or a film series based on the original.
Padma's lab studies new derivatives of green tea that may help fight infection.
Padma 的實驗室研究綠茶的新衍生物，可能有助於對抗感染。
derivatives of [source material]
Most cheap perfumes are derivatives of just three or four flower oils.
便宜的香水大多是三、四種花卉精油的衍生物。
The Star Wars derivatives, from spin-off films to novels, have earned billions of dollars.
星際大戰的衍生品，從外傳電影到小說，已經賺進了數十億美元。
Many modern paints are derivatives of petroleum and contain strong-smelling solvents.
許多現代油漆是石油的衍生物，含有氣味強烈的溶劑。
Greta argues that hip-hop derivatives in pop music are often more inventive than the original songs.
Greta 認為流行音樂裡的嘻哈衍生品，往往比原本的歌曲還要有創意。
- by-products
things produced as a side-result of making something else
- spin-offs
informal — newer things developed from an earlier work, especially in entertainment
- offshoots
broader — anything that has branched off from a main thing
- originals
things made first, not from anything earlier
文法句型
a derivative of X
derivatives of X
用法筆記
Frequently followed by of + the source noun. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense covers any product made from a base substance, while sense 1 is specifically a finance term.
3. in language study, new words built from an older base word by adding prefixes or
衍生詞
由字根加上字首或字尾構成的新詞
in language study, new words built from an older base word by adding prefixes or suffixes — for example, 'happiness' and 'unhappy' are built from 'happy'.
Eri's teacher asked the class to list five derivatives of the verb 'act', such as 'action' and 'actor'.
Eri 的老師要全班列出動詞 act 的五個衍生詞，例如 action 和 actor。
derivatives of [base word]
English has many Greek derivatives in science, including 'biology' and 'geography'.
英文在科學領域有許多源自希臘文的衍生詞，包括 biology 和 geography。
Children often pick up new derivatives once they learn a base word like 'happy' or 'kind'.
小孩學會 happy 或 kind 這種基本字之後，常常很快就能學會相關的衍生詞。
Christopher explained that 'darkness' and 'darken' are derivatives of the simple adjective 'dark'.
Christopher 解釋說，darkness 和 darken 都是簡單形容詞 dark 的衍生詞。
- word-forms
broader — any related form, including inflections; derivatives specifically involve new word formation
- root words
the base form from which derivatives are built
文法句型
derivatives of [base word]
用法筆記
A linguistics term. Distinguish from sense 2: here the 'thing made from another' is always a word, formed by adding prefixes or suffixes to a base.
4. in advanced maths, the numbers or formulas that show how fast one quantity is ch
導數；導函數
微積分中表示變量瞬時變化率的量
in advanced maths, the numbers or formulas that show how fast one quantity is changing compared with another — for example, how fast a car's speed rises as time goes on.
Amihan plotted the derivatives of the position curve to find the car's exact speed at each moment.
Amihan 畫出位置曲線的導數，藉此找出汽車在每一刻的精確速度。
compute / plot derivatives of [function]
First-year engineering students spend weeks learning how to compute derivatives by hand.
工程系一年級學生要花好幾週學習如何用手算導數。
The second derivatives in the equation tell us whether the curve is bending upward or downward.
方程式中的二階導數告訴我們曲線是往上彎還是往下彎。
Samir realised the problem was easier once he set the derivatives equal to zero.
Samir 發現，把導數設為零之後，題目就好解多了。
- differential
closely related — refers to an infinitely small change rather than the rate itself
- rate of change
plain-English paraphrase used in introductory teaching
- integral
the inverse operation in calculus — undoes a derivative
文法句型
the derivative of f(x)
first / second derivative
用法筆記
A calculus term. Often modified by first / second / partial. Phrase 'take the derivative' is the standard verb collocation.
derivatives — 形容詞
1. borrowing so heavily from earlier work that the result feels stale and shows lit
缺乏原創的
明顯沿襲前人作品，欠缺新意的
borrowing so heavily from earlier work that the result feels stale and shows little fresh thought of its own.
Critics called Nellie's first novel charming but deeply derivative of the Brontë sisters.
評論家認為 Nellie 的處女作雖然迷人，卻深受勃朗特姊妹影響、缺乏原創。
derivative of [earlier work / author]
Kofi felt the band's new album was too derivative to win any major awards.
Kofi 覺得這個樂團的新專輯太缺乏原創，不可能拿下任何大獎。
too derivative — typical complaint frame
The student film was technically polished but felt derivative from start to finish.
這部學生電影在技術上很細緻，但從頭到尾都缺乏原創。
Gabriel hated being told his paintings looked derivative, since he had worked on them for years.
Gabriel 很討厭別人說他的畫缺乏原創，因為他已經畫了好幾年。
- unoriginal
plainer everyday word; lacks the critical bite of derivative
- imitative
neutral — describes copying without the negative tone of derivative
- second-hand
informal — ideas that have come from elsewhere rather than being one's own
- original
fresh, not copied from earlier work
- groundbreaking
stronger positive — opens new ground that did not exist before
文法句型
highly derivative
feel derivative
用法筆記
Usually negative in tone, especially in art and music reviews. Frequently followed by of + the earlier work it copies. Compare with sense 2, which is a neutral linguistics term.
常見錯誤
2. in language study, made from a base word by adding a prefix or suffix — for exam
派生的
由字根加詞綴所構成的
in language study, made from a base word by adding a prefix or suffix — for example, the adjective 'kindly' is built from the simple word 'kind'.
Mathieu's textbook lists 'painter' as a derivative noun built from the verb 'paint'.
Mathieu 的教科書把 painter 列為由動詞 paint 構成的派生名詞。
derivative noun / adjective / verb
Élise asked her teacher why 'unhappiness' counts as a derivative form rather than a new word.
Élise 問老師為什麼 unhappiness 算是派生形式，而不是一個全新的字。
Modern English has thousands of derivative adjectives ending in '-able', such as 'readable' and 'lovable'.
現代英文有上千個以 -able 結尾的派生形容詞，例如 readable 和 lovable。
Anong's dictionary marks every derivative entry with the base word it grew out of.
Anong 的字典會在每個派生詞條旁，標出它所源出的基本字。
- derived
near-equivalent in linguistics texts; sometimes preferred for clarity
文法句型
derivative form
derivative noun / adjective
用法筆記
A neutral linguistics label, not a critical judgement. Distinguish from sense 1: this sense applies to word-form structure, not artistic quality.