facultative
facultative — 形容詞
- facultativepositive
- more facultativecomparative
- most facultativesuperlative
1. describes a power, right, or clause that allows someone to do something without
授權的
授予許可或權力的
describes a power, right, or clause that allows someone to do something without forcing them to; related to giving permission or official authority.
The contract contained a facultative clause that let the buyer cancel the order within thirty days.
合約中含有一項授權條款，允許買方在三十天內取消訂單。
collocation: facultative clause
Under facultative authority, the manager could approve urgent expenses without waiting for the board.
根據授權權限，經理無需等待董事會即可批准緊急支出。
collocation: facultative authority
The treaty gave each nation a facultative right to withdraw from the agreement after five years.
該條約賦予每個國家在五年後退出協議的授權權利。
Noor argued that facultative powers should be written into the new company rules.
Noor 主張應將授權權力寫入新的公司規章中。
A facultative provision in the law allows cities to set their own tax rates if they choose.
法律中的一項授權規定允許城市自行設定稅率。
- permissive
suggests tolerance rather than active granting of power
- enabling
stronger implication of making action possible
- authorizing
more direct and active act of granting permission
- restrictive
imposes limits rather than granting freedom
- prohibitive
actively forbids rather than permits
文法句型
facultative + noun (power, authority, right, clause, provision)
用法筆記
Frequently appears in legal and formal contexts paired with nouns such as clause, right, authority, power, and provision.
常見錯誤
2. not required; something a person can choose to do, take part in, or use, without
可選的
非強制性的，可自行選擇
not required; something a person can choose to do, take part in, or use, without any penalty for skipping it.
Attendance at the Friday seminar was facultative, so only a few students came.
週五的研討會是可選的，所以只有少數學生參加。
pattern: facultative + noun (attendance)
The school offered several facultative courses in photography and music.
學校開設了幾門可選課程，包括攝影和音樂。
Participation in the research study was facultative, and everyone who joined signed a form.
這項研究的參與是可選的，每位加入者都簽署了一份同意書。
Jenna chose two facultative modules alongside her four required subjects.
Jenna 選了兩門可選課程，外加四門必修科目。
Wearing a uniform was facultative at the summer camp, so most children wore their own clothes.
夏令營的制服是可選的，所以大多數孩子穿著自己的衣服。
- compulsory
required by rule or law
- mandatory
required by official order
- obligatory
required by duty or custom
文法句型
facultative + noun (course, subject, attendance, module)
用法筆記
More formal than optional. Common in academic and institutional contexts. After facultative, the noun must be countable (course, module, activity), not a gerund.
常見錯誤
3. relating to a natural ability of the mind, such as memory, reasoning, imaginatio
官能的
與心智能力有關的
relating to a natural ability of the mind, such as memory, reasoning, imagination, or will — used in older philosophy that treats the mind as a set of separate powers, each with its own job.
In his work On the Soul, Aristotle described memory as a distinct facultative power separate from other mental abilities.
亞里斯多德在其著作《論靈魂》中將記憶描述為一種有別於其他心智能力的獨立官能。
collocation: facultative power
Thomas Aquinas divided the mind into several facultative domains, including intellect, will, and memory.
Thomas Aquinas 將心智劃分為幾個官能領域，包括智力、意志和記憶。
Tendai wrote about facultative abilities such as planning and judgment in her thesis.
Tendai 在她的論文中探討了規劃和判斷等官能能力。
Bonaventure wrote that memory, understanding, and will are three facultative powers reflecting the soul's structure.
Bonaventure 寫道，記憶、理解與意志是反映靈魂結構的三種官能。
Duns Scotus called the human will the most important facultative power because it can choose freely.
Duns Scotus 稱人類的意志為最重要的官能，因為它能自由選擇。
- cognitive
modern, preferred term in psychology; facultative is historical or philosophical
- mental
broader and more common in everyday speech
- intellectual
focuses on reasoning rather than all mental abilities
文法句型
facultative + noun (power, ability, domain, function)
用法筆記
Almost exclusively found in historical or philosophical discussions of the mind. In modern psychology, cognitive is the preferred term.
4. describes a biological trait or behavior that happens only when particular envir
條件性的
只在特定環境條件下發生
describes a biological trait or behavior that happens only when particular environmental conditions are met, rather than always occurring — for example, a species that hibernates only during harsh winters.
The frog is a facultative hibernator, sleeping through winter only when temperatures drop very low.
這種青蛙是條件性冬眠動物，只在氣溫極低時才會冬眠。
collocation: facultative hibernator
Some plants are facultative perennials, living for one year in cold areas but for many in warm ones.
有些植物是條件性多年生植物，在寒冷地區只活一年，但在溫暖地區可活多年。
Pim studied a fish species that uses facultative air-breathing, gulping oxygen only in stagnant water.
Pim 研究了一種條件性呼吸空氣的魚類，只在缺氧水中才浮出水面吞氣。
Bird migration in this region is facultative, taking place only when food becomes hard to find.
這個地區的鳥類遷徙是條件性的，只有在食物短缺時才會發生。
The tree disease is facultative, harming the plant only when the soil stays wet for too long.
這種樹木疾病是條件性的，只有在土壤長期潮濕時才會危害植株。
- conditional
broader term, not specific to biology
- contingent
emphasizes dependence on prior conditions
- circumstantial
suggests influence of surrounding circumstances
- obligate
biology term meaning always occurring or always required
- unconditional
not limited by any conditions
文法句型
facultative + noun (hibernator, perennial, migration)
用法筆記
Contrasts with obligate, which means always happening or always required. Facultative organisms or traits switch on or off depending on conditions.
常見錯誤
5. describes a living thing that can switch between fundamentally different ways of
兼性的
生物可隨環境改變生活方式
describes a living thing that can switch between fundamentally different ways of feeding, breathing, or living, depending on its environment — for example, an organism that can survive with or without oxygen, or with or without a host.
Unlike true parasites, this worm is a facultative parasite that can survive without a host.
不同於真正的寄生蟲，這種蠕蟲是兼性寄生蟲，沒有宿主也能存活。
collocation: facultative parasite
The bacteria are facultative anaerobes, able to live both in oxygen and without it.
這種細菌是兼性厭氧菌，在有氧和無氧環境中都能生存。
collocation: facultative anaerobe
Lucía identified the insect as a facultative social species, forming groups only at high population density.
Lucía 發現這種昆蟲是兼性社交物種，只在族群密度高時才會成群生活。
This orchid is a facultative epiphyte, growing on trees in wet forests but rooting in soil where needed.
這種蘭花是兼性附生植物，在潮濕森林中生長在樹上，必要時也能扎根於土壤。
The algae are facultative heterotrophs, making their own food in sunlight but absorbing nutrients in the dark.
這種藻類是兼性異營生物，有陽光時自行製造養分，黑暗中則吸收養分。
- adaptable
general term; facultative is specific to biology
- flexible
everyday word for ability to change
- non-obligate
direct contrast to obligate in biology
- obligate
must live a certain way — e.g., obligate parasite cannot survive without a host
文法句型
facultative + noun (parasite, anaerobe, social species, epiphyte)
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 4: sense 4 describes a single trait or behavior that depends on conditions (e.g., hibernation, migration), while sense 5 describes the organism's overall lifestyle strategy — what kind of feeder or dweller it is.