“saddle”主要有名词和动词两种词性。作为名词时,主要指“马鞍;鞍状物”;作为动词时,意思是“给(马)装鞍;使负担(重任、债务等);承受(压力等)”。以下将详细说明其用法。
基本含义:“saddle”作为名词,最基本的意思是“马鞍”,即放在马背上供人骑乘时坐的器具。例如:
He adjusted the saddle on the horse.(他调整了马背上的马鞍。)
引申含义:还可表示“鞍状物”,即形状类似马鞍的东西。例如:
The rock formation looked like a saddle.(那块岩石的形状看起来像个马鞍。)
给(马)装鞍:这是“saddle”作为动词比较直接的字面意思,即把马鞍安装在马背上。例如:
The cowboy saddled his horse and rode off into the sunset.(牛仔给他的马装上鞍,然后骑着马消失在夕阳中。)
使负担(重任、债务等):这是一个比较常用的引申义,指让某人承担某种责任、债务等。常用结构为“saddle sb. with sth.”。例如:
He was saddled with a huge debt after the business failed.(生意失败后,他背负了巨额债务。)
The manager saddled the new employee with a lot of difficult tasks.(经理给新员工安排了很多困难的任务。)
承受(压力等):表示某人自己承受某种压力、困境等。例如:
She had to saddle with the responsibility of taking care of her sick mother.(她不得不承受照顾生病母亲的责任。)