“make up of”本身并非独立的常用短语,其核心正确结构是被动形式“be made up of”,表示“由……组成/构成”(强调整体由若干部分组合而成)。
“be made up of”用于描述整体与部分的关系:
主语是“整体”,of后面接“组成整体的各个部分”。
时态变化体现在“be动词”上(am/is/are/was/were/will be等)。
一般现在时:The class is made up of 20 boys and 15 girls.
(这个班级由20名男生和15名女生组成。)
一般过去时:The old bridge was made up of wood and stone.
(那座旧桥由木头和石头建成。)
将来时:The new plan will be made up of three main sections.
(新计划将由三个主要部分构成。)
主动结构“A makes up B”表示“A(部分)组成了B(整体)”,与被动结构“B is made up of A”互为转换:
主动:Five rooms make up the small apartment.
(五个房间组成了这套小公寓。)
被动:The small apartment is made up of five rooms.
(这套小公寓由五个房间组成。)
consist of:无被动语态,更正式(如:The committee consists of 10 members.);
be composed of:正式程度更高(如:The air is composed of oxygen, nitrogen and other gases.);
be made up of:更口语化,日常使用更频繁。
不要混淆“make up”的其他含义(如“编造、弥补、化妆”),需结合语境判断:
编造:Don’t make up excuses!(别编造借口!)
弥补:I’ll make up for my mistake.(我会弥补我的错误。)
化妆:She spent an hour making up.(她花了一小时化妆。)
总结:“be made up of”是核心用法,重点记忆“整体由部分组成”的逻辑,搭配正确的被动结构即可。