secondary

/ˈsekəndri/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈsekənderi/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈse-kən-ˌder-ē/ (ame, mw)

secondary — 形容詞

  • secondarypositive
  • more secondarycomparative
  • most secondarysuperlative

1. not as important or serious as something else that you are comparing it with

1.形容詞B2
釋義

次要的

重要性低於其他相關事物

not as important or serious as something else that you are comparing it with

例句

Ritu thought the colour of the car was secondary to its fuel efficiency.

Ritu 認為車子的顏色不如燃油效率重要。

pattern: secondary to [noun] — less important than

For the volunteers, public recognition was secondary to actually helping people.

對這些志工來說，公眾的表揚不如真正幫助別人來得重要。

同義詞
  • minor

    suggests something is small or unimportant; 'secondary' focuses on a comparison with a main thing

  • subsidiary

    more formal; suggests being under the control of or less important than a larger entity

  • subordinate

    suggests a lower rank in a hierarchy; more formal than 'secondary'

反義詞
  • primary

    most important; the direct opposite of secondary

  • main

    less formal than 'primary'; the central thing in a situation

文法句型

secondary to [noun phrase]

用法筆記

Often used in the pattern 'secondary to [something]' to show what the main thing is. Can appear both before a noun (a secondary issue) and after a linking verb (the issue was secondary).

常見錯誤

❌I finished secondary in the race.
✅I finished second in the race.
💡'secondary' means less important, not the position after first.
❌She gave me a secondary chance.
✅She gave me a second chance.
💡'secondary' does not mean 'second in order'; use 'second' for sequence.

2. coming from or happening after something that existed or occurred first, and dep

2.形容詞B2
釋義

次級；繼發

由先前事物衍生而來的

coming from or happening after something that existed or occurred first, and depending on it

例句

The patient developed a secondary infection after the surgery.

那位病人在手術後出現了繼發性感染。

medical: secondary infection — follows another illness or treatment

Historians often use secondary sources such as journal articles and textbooks.

歷史學家經常使用期刊論文和教科書等二手資料。

academic: secondary sources — written by people who did not witness the event

同義詞
  • derived

    more technical; often used in academic contexts to describe something traced back to an original

  • resulting

    focuses on cause and effect; less formal than 'secondary'

  • subsequent

    simply means 'coming after' without implying dependence

反義詞
  • primary

    original, first-hand; the direct opposite in both medical and academic contexts

  • original

    existing from the beginning, not derived from something else

文法句型

secondary + noun (medical term)

secondary + noun (academic term)

用法筆記

Common in medicine (secondary infection, secondary symptom) and in academic research (secondary source, secondary data). In both fields, it describes something that follows from and depends on something earlier.

常見錯誤

❌I used a secondary source to describe my own experiment.
✅I used a secondary source to analyse historical events.
💡a secondary source interprets or comments on primary sources; it is not a direct record.

3. connected with schools or classes for young people who are roughly eleven to eig

3.形容詞B1
釋義

中學的

11至18歲青少年教育

connected with schools or classes for young people who are roughly eleven to eighteen years old

例句

Hamza started secondary school when he was eleven years old.

Hamza 十一歲時開始上中學。

collocation: secondary school

The government has increased funding for secondary education across the country.

政府已增加全國中學教育的經費。

collocation: secondary education

同義詞
  • high school (US)

    the main American term for secondary school; covers grades 9–12, roughly ages 14–18

反義詞
  • primary

    relating to the first stage of school, typically for children aged 5–11

文法句型

secondary + school / education / student / teacher

用法筆記

Only used before a noun. In British English, secondary school covers ages 11–16 or 11–18. In American English, the equivalent stage is usually called high school (ages 14–18), with middle school or junior high (ages 11–14) sometimes included in the broader concept of secondary education.

常見錯誤

❌My son is in secondary school at age five.
✅My son is in primary school at age five.
💡secondary education starts around age eleven.

secondary — 名詞