副詞almost與nearly用法比較與辨析

1. almost [nearly] 都可用來修飾不定代詞、形容詞、副詞、動詞、介詞短語等，此時兩者常可換用。如：

My car almost [nearly] stood still because of a traffic block. 我的車子因為交通阻塞而幾乎動彈不得。

I lost my concentration and almost [nearly] drove into a bridge. 我走神了，駕車時幾乎撞上了一座橋。

It is almost [nearly] late for you to catch the last bus. 天晚了，你快趕不上末班公共汽車了。

With so much loud music, conversation was almost [nearly] impossible. 音樂聲那么大，幾乎沒法交談。

We almost [nearly] came to blows over what colour our new carpet should be. 我們為了用什么顏色的新地毯險些打了起來。

要注意它們與被修飾詞的位置關系。比較并體會以下正誤句子：

據說這個報社平均每天要收到百來篇來稿。

正：It’s said that the paper receive an average of nearly 100 articles a day.

誤：It’s said that the paper nearly receive an average of 100 articles a day.

另外，再比較：

Everything was almost double the normal price. 樣樣東西幾乎都是平時價格的兩倍。

Almost everything was double the normal price. 幾乎樣樣東西都是平時價格的兩倍。

2. almost 可用于 any 以及 no, none, nobody, nothing, never 等否定詞之前，但 nearly 一般不這樣用。如：

He almost never remarks on how she looks. 他幾乎從來不說她長相如何。

He is very practical—he can make or mend almost anything. 他很能干，幾乎會制造或修理任何東西。

The plots in her books are very strong but there’s almost no characterization. 她寫的書情節性很強，可是幾乎沒有對人物的塑造。

How am I expected to conjure up a meal for six of his friends with almost nothing in the fridge?  冰箱里幾乎甚么都沒有，我怎么可能給他的六個朋友變出一頓飯來？

Tolerant of human frailty in whatever form, she almost never judged people. 她對人性的各種弱點都能夠包容，幾乎從不評價他人。

His father found him a cushy job in the office, with almost nothing to do and a whacking great salary. 他父親給他在事務所找到了一份輕松舒適的工作，幾乎什么都不用做，工資還極高。

但是，兩者都可用在否定動詞之前。如：

He almost [nearly] didn’t catch the bus. 他差點沒趕上公共汽車。

3. nearly 前可用 very, pretty, not 等詞修飾，但 almost 之前不能用這些詞。如：

There are not nearly enough members present to hold a meeting. 出席的會員遠沒有達到可以開會的人數。

The shock of Pat’s death pretty nearly killed Roy. 帕特的死幾乎毀了羅伊。

They very nearly succeeded in blowing up the parliament building. 他們只差一點兒炸毀議會大廈。

4. 有時 almost 可表示十分相似(但又不完全相同)，此時不用 nearly。如：

I almost wish I’d stayed at home. 我真有點后悔沒在家里呆著。

Our cat understand everything—he’s almost human. 我們這只貓什么都懂—— 快通人性了。