內容簡介
學業進步、升職加薪、老友重逢……人生中的許多重要時刻往往可能會對我們產生深遠的影響。你知道如何用英語描述這種 “影響” 嗎？本期節目回答一位熱心聽眾關於如何區分動詞 “impact”、“influence” 和 “affect” 的提問。
文字稿
（關於臺詞的備註: 請註意這不是廣播節目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能沒有體現錄制、編輯過程中對節目做出的改變。）
Beth
Hello and welcome to Question and Answer of the Week. I’m Beth.
Buli
And I’m Buli. 本期節目我們要回答下面的問題。
Question
Hi, this is the first time I’m writing to you, so I’m a bit anxious but also excited. I wonder if you could explain the differences between these three words: ‘impact’, ‘influence’, ‘affect’. They all have the same meaning of ‘影響’ in Chinese, but I can’t distinguish them clearly.
Buli
這位聽眾想知道，英語中三個都可以表示 “影響” 的動詞 “impact”、“influence” 和 “affect” 有什麼不同。
Beth
Good question. ‘Impact’, ‘influence’ and ‘affect’ can all be verbs – now that is ‘affect’ that begins with the letter ‘a’. Now, ‘impact’ and ‘influence’ are also nouns, but the noun for ‘affect’ is ‘effect’ that begins with an ‘e’. But in this programme, we’re going to look at the verbs.
Buli
首先需要註意的是，“impact” 和 “influence” 不但可以用作動詞，還可以作名詞使用；而 “affect” 對應的名詞是 “effect”，在拼讀上是不同的。在本期節目中，我們將講解這三個詞作動詞，意思為 “某物對某人造成瞭影響” 時的區別。首先來聽一組例句。
Examples
Getting a pay rise really impacted me.
Getting a pay rise really influenced me.
Getting a pay rise really affected me.
（這次加薪對我影響很大。）
Buli
上面這些例句的意思都是 “加薪這件事對我造成瞭某種影響”。
Beth
They can all be used in this way to mean the pay rise had an impact on you. Now, we’ve added another sentence to each. So, listen again to hear the small differences in meaning.
Buli
接下來，為瞭體現這三個動詞含義上的區別，我們來對這些例句進行一些改寫，然後結合新的例句來講解。請註意聽下面三個例句的不同之處。
Examples
Getting a pay rise really impacted me and my lifestyle. I bought a new house and started eating out more.
（加薪確實影響瞭我和我的生活方式。我買瞭一套新房子，而且出門吃飯的次數也更頻繁瞭。）
Getting a pay rise really influenced me to change how I view my value within the company. It gave me a lot more confidence.
（加薪確實影響瞭我的心態，改變瞭我如何看待自己對公司的價值。也讓我更加自信瞭。）
Getting a pay rise really affected me. I was overcome with emotion.
（加薪對我影響很大。我激動壞瞭。）
Beth
So, let’s start with ‘impact’. The word ‘impact’ can also mean force or an action, a little bit like the word ‘hit’. Now, metaphorically, it means there is a powerful effect on a person or thing, so it’s often followed by a noun, and this is the main meaning.
Buli
“Impact” 作動詞時有兩種讀法：“impact” 和 “impact”。“Impact” 不但有 “影響” 的意思，還有 “沖擊，撞擊” 的意思。所以它可以用來比喻 “造成具有強大沖擊力的影響”。比如，在第一個例句中，就有 “impacted my lifestyle”，含義是 “對我的生活方式造成瞭某種深刻的影響”。這是 “impact” 的基本含義。“Impact” 有時還有另一層引申義：“對某事造成瞭實際的改變”。比如，例句中的 “eating out more（出門吃飯更頻繁瞭）”。
Beth
This is the secondary meaning, and you don’t have to say what the result of the impact was. Let’s hear some more examples.
Examples
Financial experts predict that the legislation will severely impact the economy.
（金融專傢預測說這項法律會對經濟造成嚴重影響。）
The students are hoping the zero-waste campaign will impact the university and its policies.
（學生們希望這次杜絕浪費的活動能夠影響他們所在的大學和大學的相關政策。）
Buli
通過上面的例子我們可以看出，“impact” 雖然具有 “造成瞭實際改變” 的引申義，但這種改變的具體內容並不需要直接描述出來。接下來，我們要講解的單詞是 “influence”。讓我們來回顧一下它的例句。
Example
Getting a pay rise really influenced me to change how I view my value within the company. It gave me a lot more confidence.
（加薪確實影響瞭我的心態，改變瞭我如何看待自己對公司的價值。也讓我更加自信瞭。）
Beth
Here, the person was influenced to do something – a result. They changed how they value themselves within the company. The main meaning of ‘influence’ is what happened after an ‘impact’ – the results.
Buli
當我們用 “influence” 來表示 “影響” 時，通常是指 “某事對某人具有影響，從而造成瞭某種結果”。來聽一組例句。
Example
My grandmother had a great influence on my childhood. She taught me right from wrong.
（我的祖母對我的兒時成長影響很深。是她教會瞭我明辨是非。）
The jury’s verdict was that his brother had influenced him to commit the crime.
（陪審團裁定他的兄弟影響瞭他，促使他實施瞭犯罪行為。）
Buli
通過上面的例句可以看出，與 “impact” 相比，“influence” 更加強調瞭 “這個影響造成瞭某種結果”，並且這種影響通常是對人的行為和思想上的。
Beth
However, we should say that the difference between ‘influence’ and ‘impact’ is very small, and they are often used interchangeably.
Buli
沒錯。在表達 “影響” 時，“influence” 和 “impact” 的區別並不大，經常可以替換使用。最後，讓我們來看看 “affect” 和上面兩個詞的區別。先來回顧一下例句。
Example
Getting a pay rise really affected me. I was overcome with emotion.
（加薪對我影響很大。我激動壞瞭。）
Beth
‘Affect’ is very often used to talk about feelings and health, both mental and physical.
Buli
“Affect” 經常用來描述 “對人的情緒、生理或心理健康造成瞭影響”。上面的例子中，說話者的情緒就被加薪這件事影響到瞭，進而 “overcome with emotion（情緒激動到無法控制）”。
Beth
Here, this is positive, but you can also be affected negatively. Listen to these examples.
Examples
The accident really affected his sleep. He struggled with nightmares for weeks.
（這場事故嚴重影響瞭他的睡眠。他連續好多周一直受噩夢困擾。）
There was dampness in the new flat, and it started to affect his breathing.
（新公寓有潮氣，並且開始影響到瞭他的正常呼吸。）
Buli
從上面的例子可以看出，“affect” 所造成的影響既可以是正面的，也可以是負面的。但這種影響通常作用於人本身的情緒或健康，不常用於行為或想法的改變，這是它和 “influence” 與 “impact” 的主要區別。
Beth
Remember, if you have a question about the English language you’d like to ask us, please send us an email. Our email address is: questions.
免費試聽
填表領取25分鐘真人外師課＋英文程度分析
