“keep track of”是英语中常用的动词短语,核心含义是“跟踪、掌握…的动态;记录;了解…的情况”,强调通过持续关注或记录来保持对人、事、物的“知晓状态”。
“track” 原指“轨迹、路径”,因此“keep track of”字面可理解为“保持对…轨迹的掌握”,引申为:
1、 持续关注某人/某物的状态、位置或进展;
2、 记录(以便后续查阅);
3、 不忘记、不丢失与…的联系。
“keep track of”是及物短语,后面需接宾语(人、物或抽象概念),结构为:
Keep track of your expenses so you don’t overspend.(记录你的开支,避免超支。)
The app helps you keep track of your daily steps.(这个应用帮你记录每日步数。)
Can you keep track of the kids while I’m at the store?(我去商店时,你能照看好孩子们吗?——即“关注他们的动向”。)
I try to keep track of my elderly parents by calling every week.(我每周打电话,尽量了解父母的情况。)
It’s hard to keep track of all the new rules at work.(工作中要记住所有新规定很难。)
Journalists need to keep track of current events constantly.(记者需要持续关注时事动态。)
lose track of:失去对…的跟踪/联系;忘记
例:I lost track of my high school friend after she moved abroad.(她出国后,我和高中朋友失去了联系。)
例:Don’t lose track of time—we have a meeting at 3 PM.(别忘时间——我们下午3点有会。)
keep track of vs. keep up with:
“keep track of”侧重“记录/跟踪状态”(知道在哪里、发生了什么);
“keep up with”侧重“跟上进度”(不落后于变化)。
例:
I keep track of my team’s tasks using a spreadsheet.(我用表格记录团队任务的进展。)
I need to keep up with the latest trends in tech.(我得跟上科技的最新趋势。)
总结:“keep track of”是生活、工作中高频使用的短语,核心是“通过持续关注或记录,保持对…的知晓”,适用场景从日常记账、照看孩子,到工作跟进项目、关注时事都很常见~