for oneself與by oneself

■for oneself 有兩個用法：

1. 自己，親自

You can judge for yourself. 你可以自己做出判斷。

He demanded the right to decide for himself. 他要求得到自己做決定的權力。

2. 為自己，替自己

He made no complaint for himself. 他沒為自己訴苦。

She’s wangled an extra week’s holiday for herself. 她多弄到一星期的假。

He acted without thought for himself. 他那樣做的時候并沒考慮到自己。

■by oneself 有三個用法：

1. 單獨地，獨自地（= alone）。如：

I like to travel by myself. 我喜歡獨自旅行。

She was sitting by herself on a bench. 她獨自坐在一條長凳上。

I often like to spend time by myself. 我平常喜歡獨自消磨時間。

2. 靠自己，無他人幫助（without help）。如：

He did it by himself. 他是自己干的。

I studied by myself for all hour. 我自己學習了一個鐘頭。

She can mend the fridge by herself. 她能自己修理冰箱。

I managed to do it by myself. 我是自己做成這件事的。

3. 自動地（主要用于 by itself，意思相當于automatically）。如：

This is a machine that works by itself. 這是一臺自動工作的機器。

The door opens by itself as you approach it. 當你靠近時候門就會自動打開。

The machine will start by itself in a few seconds. 機器在幾秒鐘后會自動開啟。