nonentity

/nɒnˈentəti/ (bre, ipa) · /nɑːnˈentəti/ (ame, ipa) · /ˌnän-ˈen-tə-tē -ˈe-nə-/ (ame, mw)

nonentity — 名詞

  • nonentitysingular
  • nonentitiesplural

1. someone who carries so little weight that other people do not take them seriousl

1.名詞C2
釋義

小人物

沒有分量或影響力的人

someone who carries so little weight that other people do not take them seriously or listen to them.

例句

In the capital's party meetings, Mark was treated as a nonentity.

在首都的黨內會議裡，Mark 被當成一個小人物。

pattern: treat someone as a nonentity

After the merger, Lara felt like a nonentity beside the senior directors.

併購後，Lara 在資深董事身旁覺得自己只是個小人物。

同義詞
  • nobody

    more informal and often harsher; emphasises that the person is not important or famous

  • cipher

    more literary; suggests a person with no power or individuality

  • lightweight

    focuses on weak ability or poor judgment rather than invisibility

反義詞
  • leader

    someone whose views matter and influence others

  • heavyweight

    informal; a person with major power or importance in a field

文法句型

be a nonentity

treat someone as a nonentity

用法筆記

Strongly judgmental and usually used by outsiders talking about status in politics, business, or social life. Common after 'treat as', 'dismiss as', or 'see as', and it suggests that the person has no influence within the group being discussed.

常見錯誤

❌She became nonentity after the election.
✅She became a nonentity after the election.
💡This person sense is countable, so it needs an article.
❌He is a nonentity because he is quiet at parties.
✅He is a nonentity in the party because nobody listens to his ideas.
💡The word is about lacking influence or standing, not simply being shy.

2. the condition of being so unnoticed or unimportant that almost nobody pays atten

2.名詞C2
釋義

默默無聞

長期不受注意的狀態

the condition of being so unnoticed or unimportant that almost nobody pays attention to you or to what you do.

例句

The club slipped into nonentity after its only star retired.

那位明星退休後，這家俱樂部就陷入默默無聞。

pattern: slip into nonentity

The app rose from nonentity to global success in six months.

那個 app 在六個月內從默默無聞變成全球爆紅的產品。

pattern: rise from nonentity

同義詞
  • obscurity

    closest everyday choice; emphasises not being widely known

  • anonymity

    focuses on having no public identity rather than having no influence

  • insignificance

    stresses lack of importance more than lack of public notice

反義詞
  • prominence

    the state of being important and easy to notice

  • fame

    public recognition, often on a large scale

文法句型

slip into nonentity

rise from nonentity

rescue someone or something from nonentity

用法筆記

Usually follows 'into', 'from', or 'out of' and is most natural for careers, towns, clubs, publications, or public figures that receive little notice. It is more formal and more dramatic than everyday words like 'obscurity'.

3. the condition of having no real existence at all, or an imagined thing that turn

3.名詞C2
釋義

不存在

根本沒有真實存在

the condition of having no real existence at all, or an imagined thing that turns out not to be real.

例句

The witness later admitted the attacker was a nonentity created by panic.

那名證人後來承認，襲擊者其實是恐慌之下想像出來、並不存在的人物。

a nonentity created by panic

The contract treated the fake company as a legal nonentity from the start.

合約從一開始就把那家假公司視為法律上不存在的主體。

legal register: legal nonentity

同義詞
  • nonexistence

    the usual abstract noun for complete absence of existence

  • nullity

    legal or formal; something treated as void or without force

  • fiction

    emphasises that the thing exists only in imagination or invention

反義詞
  • existence

    the state of being real or present

  • reality

    what actually exists in the world

文法句型

be a nonentity

legal nonentity

absolute nonentity

用法筆記

Common in legal, philosophical, and highly formal writing. The countable use points to something imagined, false, or invalid, while the uncountable use talks about total absence of existence itself.

常見錯誤

❌After the bad debate, the senator became a nonentity.
✅After the bad debate, the senator became a nonentity in the party.
💡Sense 3 is about unreal or legally void things, not simply an unimportant person.
❌The company is nonentity in the contract.
✅The contract treats the company as a nonentity.
💡This sense is usually used after 'as' in formal statements.