問:英文作文,要帶出結尾一段,應用以下哪一個說法?──At the end、in the end、in the last。
答:這三個說法都不合用。要帶出文末的最後一點,可用finally、lastly、in conclusion等詞語,例如:Finally/ Lastly/ In conclusion, I would like to point out that, in spite of what the communists say, there is no independence movement in Hong Kong to speak of(最後,我要指出,不管共產黨怎麼說,香港沒有什麼獨立運動)。
At the end一般用來說事物的末端或最後部分,其後常用of帶出那事物,例如:(1)I was totally exhausted at the end of a 10-hour working day(十小時工作之後,我筋疲力竭)。(2)At the end of the queue stood a little boy(一個小男孩站在輪候隊伍的末端)。
In the end則一般用來說事情的結果或結局,其後不可用「of+名詞」,例如:(1)In the end, the prince and princess were of course happily married(最後,王子和公主當然是幸幸福福結為夫婦)。(2)The murderer committed suicide in the end(那謀殺犯終於自殺)。
至於in the last,英文沒有這樣的說法。當然,你可以說in the last analysis,但那是「歸根結底」、「說到底」的意思,例如:In the last analysis, you are to blame(歸根結底,犯錯的是你)。