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2008.04.03
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RARE vs. UNUSUAL 珍しい vs. 普通ではない
- Something is rare if its numbers are small or if it doesn't often happen. For example, if there are only 200 of a particular kind of animal in the world, we can say that it's a rare animal.
Something is unusual if it is different from the ordinary, even if it is not rare. For example, although platypuses (カモノハシ) are relatively common (= not rare) in Australia, they are definitely unusual animals! - rare とは、数が少ない、またはめったに起こらない、つまり、珍しい、という意味です。例えば、ある種の動物が世界に200しかいない場合、a rare animal(珍しい動物)と言うことができます。
unusual とは、珍しくはないが、普通とは違う、という意味です。例えば、カモノハシはオーストラリアでは比較的よく見かける動物ですが、間違いなく、変わった動物です!
- I found a rare 1st-edition copy of Jane Austen's “Pride and Prejudice” in a used bookstore the other day.
- a: A serious collector told me that this stamp is very rare.
b: Then it must be worth a lot of money, right? - A transit of Venus is a rare event that occurs only twice every couple hundred years.
- The disease has some very unusual symptoms. It causes hiccups that last for days, and the patient's hair turns bright green.
- a: Isn't this sculpture unusual?
b: It sure is. I've never seen anything like it before. - Something very unusual just happened. I was looking at a bright star in the sky, when suddenly it just disappeared - for no reason!
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