fro
fro — 副詞
1. moving first in one direction and then back again, often repeatedly between two
來回
來回移動；往返
moving first in one direction and then back again, often repeatedly between two places; used only in the fixed phrase 'to and fro'.
Tomás watched the pendulum swing to and fro above the wooden clock.
Tomás 看著鐘擺在木鐘上方來回擺動。
fixed phrase: 'to and fro'
Jisoo watched the shuttle bus travel to and fro between the hotel and the airport.
Jisoo 看著接駁巴士一整天在飯店和機場之間來回行駛。
collocation: travel to and fro
A man in a grey coat paced to and fro outside the hospital entrance.
一名穿著灰色外套的男子在醫院入口外面來回踱步。
The mother gently rocked the wooden cradle to and fro until the baby fell asleep.
母親輕輕地來回搖動木製搖籃，直到嬰兒入睡。
Mert's eyes moved to and fro as he checked the numbers on the spreadsheet.
Mert 在檢查試算表上的數字時，目光來回移動。
- back and forth
more common in everyday speech; 'to and fro' is slightly more formal or literary
文法句型
to and fro + verb of motion
用法筆記
In modern English, 'fro' never appears alone. It survives only inside the fixed phrase 'to and fro,' which describes a repeated back-and-forth movement. The phrase can modify verbs such as move, walk, swing, rock, and travel.
常見錯誤
fro — 介系詞
1. an old form of the preposition 'from,' used in medieval and early modern English
從
古語，意為「從」
an old form of the preposition 'from,' used in medieval and early modern English but no longer used in modern speech or writing.
A 1603 diary entry notes that a man rode fro one village to another.
一份 1603 年的日記載明一名男子騎馬從一個村莊前往另一個村莊。
archaic register: 'fro' = 'from'
A Tudor document says the queen sent a letter fro her London palace.
一份都鐸時期的文件寫道女王從倫敦的皇宮寄出了一封信。
A wool merchant in 1370 rode fro York to London with twelve bales.
1370 年，一名羊毛商人騎馬從約克前往倫敦，載著十二捆貨物。
A medieval love poem begins 'I come fro the far hills to see your face.'
一首中世紀情詩以「我從遠山前來見你的容顏」開頭。
- from
the modern replacement for this archaic form
文法句型
fro + noun phrase
用法筆記
This prepositional sense is now completely archaic. In modern English, 'from' is always used instead. The only place 'fro' survives today is inside the adverb phrase 'to and fro.'