sensibility, sensitivity 与 sensitiveness 都指“敏感性”“灵敏度”。它们之间有无区别?
sensibility 常常用于指感情上的敏感性或灵敏性。例如:
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the sensibility of an artist or poet 艺术家或诗人的敏感性
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... a writer of high sensibility and intelligence…… 具有高度敏感性和才智的作家
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She has an unusual sensibility for colors. (Thorndike……) 她对于颜色异常敏感。有时亦可用于事物的敏感性:
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It is now possible to measure the sensibility of plants to light and heat. (FWF) 现在能够测量出植物对光和热的敏感度。
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Her remarks showed a lack of sensibility. (EED) 她说的话表明她缺乏敏感性。
当涉及事物或仪表的“敏感性”或“灵敏度”时,使用 sensitivity 是恰当的:
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The dentist gave me an injection which reduced the sensitivity of the nerve. 牙医给我注射了一针以降低神经的敏感性。
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Other experiments showed that her knees and shoulders had a similar sensitivity. (New Concept English, Book 4, L. 4) 其它实验表明,她的膝盖和肩膀也具有类似的敏感性。
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He had a rare sensitiveness to beauty in every form. 他对每种形态的美都有一种罕见的敏感性。
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develop a sensitiveness to artistic beauty 培养对艺术美的敏感性