epidemic
epidemic — 名詞
- epidemicsingular
- epidemicsplural
1. a situation in which a contagious illness spreads rapidly across a community and
流行病；疫情
短時間內大規模擴散的疾病
a situation in which a contagious illness spreads rapidly across a community and infects many thousands of people in a short time
Hassan noticed a flu epidemic spreading through his school in Taipei.
Hassan 注意到流感疫情正在他臺北的學校裡蔓延。
collocation: flu epidemic / measles epidemic
The city declared an emergency after a cholera epidemic broke out in the market.
在霍亂疫情於市場爆發後，市政府宣布進入緊急狀態。
collocation: epidemic + break out
During the measles epidemic, hospitals ran out of beds within two weeks.
在麻疹流行期間，醫院在兩週內就用光了病床。
Officials urged people to wash their hands regularly to slow the epidemic.
官員呼籲民眾勤洗手，以減緩疫情擴散。
collocation: slow / contain / control the epidemic
The government sent doctors and medicine to towns hit by the epidemic.
政府派遣醫生並運送藥品到受疫情影響的城鎮。
passive participle: towns hit by the epidemic
- flu / cholera / measles epidemic
- epidemic breaks out / spreads / hits
- declare / contain / control / slow an epidemic
文法句型
epidemic + of + disease name
an/the epidemic + verb (breaks out, spreads, hits)
用法筆記
Frequently paired with a prepositional phrase beginning with 'of' that names the specific disease (e.g., an epidemic of cholera).
常見錯誤
2. a serious social problem or negative trend that spreads rapidly and affects a ve
氾濫；猖獗
社會中迅速蔓延的負面問題
a serious social problem or negative trend that spreads rapidly and affects a very large number of people in a society
The city is facing an epidemic of loneliness among elderly residents.
該市正面臨年長居民中孤獨感氾濫的問題。
collocation: an epidemic of [problem]
Trang's town has seen an epidemic of phone thefts on public buses.
Trang 居住的城鎮出現了公車上手機偷竊猖獗的現象。
Fake news on social media became an epidemic that made truth hard to find.
社群媒體上的假新聞氾濫成災，讓人難以分辨真假。
collocation: an epidemic of fake news / drug abuse / violence
The country is struggling with an epidemic of drug abuse among young adults.
該國正努力對抗年輕人中藥物濫用猖獗的問題。
Jenna wrote a report about the epidemic of stress affecting office workers.
Jenna 撰寫了一份關於上班族壓力氾濫的報告。
metaphorical use: epidemic of stress
- an epidemic of violence / crime / obesity / loneliness / fake news
- epidemic sweeping across [place]
- face / struggle with an epidemic
文法句型
an epidemic of + (negative phenomenon)
epidemic + of + noun phrase
用法筆記
This sense extends the disease metaphor to social issues. The noun that follows 'epidemic of' must be negative or undesirable (crime, dishonesty, obesity, violence).
常見錯誤
epidemic — 形容詞
- epidemicpositive
- more epidemiccomparative
- most epidemicsuperlative
1. happening on a very large scale in a population so that it spreads fast and beco
肆虐的
在大量人群中廣泛發生的
happening on a very large scale in a population so that it spreads fast and becomes difficult to manage or stop
Violent crime has reached epidemic levels in parts of the capital.
暴力犯罪在首都部分地區已達到氾濫的程度。
collocation: epidemic levels / proportions
The mayor described the rate of school dropouts as epidemic in the rural areas.
市長形容偏鄉地區的輟學率已達到肆虐的地步。
predicative: [something] is epidemic
Élise's concern about rising housing costs was epidemic among her neighbours.
Élise 對房價上漲的擔憂在她的鄰居中十分普遍。
The report showed that smartphone addiction was becoming epidemic among teenagers.
報告指出，青少年中的手機成癮現象正迅速蔓延。
becoming + epidemic (growing pattern)
In some cities, homelessness has grown to epidemic proportions.
在某些城市，無家可歸問題已惡化到猖獗的程度。
collocation: epidemic proportions
- epidemic levels / proportions / scale
- become / grow epidemic
- reach epidemic proportions
- rampant
suggests something bad that is spreading unchecked, often with a moral judgement
- widespread
broader and more neutral; lacks the sense of rapid, dangerous spread
- prevalent
formal and neutral; describes what is common without the alarm tone of epidemic
文法句型
epidemic + noun (levels, proportions)
become / grow epidemic
用法筆記
Used both literally (disease-related) and metaphorically (social problems). The adjective form is most commonly found in the fixed phrases 'epidemic levels' and 'epidemic proportions'.
常見錯誤
同根字
- epidemiology名詞C1
- epidemiologist名詞C1
- epidemiological形容詞C1