bbc你问我答--The word ' possession ' 单词详解（在线收听）

Q and A of the Week 你问我答 

The word  ' possession '   单词详解 

?  关于台词的备注:  

  请注意这不是广播节目的逐字稿件。本文稿可能没有体现录制、编辑过程中对节目做出的改变。 

?  請注意：中文文字内容只提供簡體版。 

Neil:  Hello and welcome to Question and Answer of the Week. I'm Neil and joining 

me in the studio today is Li . 

Yang Li:  Hi there. 今天我们要帮助 Peter 解答一个他感到困惑的英语单词 possession.   请我们

的同事孙晨代读。 

Inserts 

我是一个在国内的学生，我对  possession 这个词的单复数拿捏不准，以至于现在不敢用这个词。 

Possession 这个词语是单复数同型，还是它就仅是单数名词。比如我想说"好朋友是人生的一大财富"， 

我该如何表述？Good friends are(is) valueble possession of my life. 这里是用are 还是is ？ 

初次发邮件，激动万分。Peter  

Yang Li:        这是一个很好的问题，I will start with Chinese explanation and let Neil  finish off 

with the main points in Eng l ish.  根据我个人的经验加上查阅了几个权威字典， 

possession 个词即可以表示单数也可以表示复数。具体说有三个要点： 

第一，当这个词用来表达所有和拥有的时候。 When you have or own something, 

它是不可数名词，呈单数形式，谓语动词应该用单数。 

Neil:    The possession of a degree does not guarantee you a job  

Yang Li:  获得学位并不能包你找到一份工作。 

Neil:    Famished families have sold their every possession in order to eat.  

Yang Li:  饥荒的人家把每件东西都卖了，为了还口饭吃。如果表示所有的物品或财产，这个词所表

达的是复数概念，后面加 s, possessions . A  man with lots of  possessions 一个腰缠

万贯的富翁。句子中的动词要用复数。比如，在乘坐火车或飞机旅行时经常听到这样的提

示： 

Neil:   Please remember to take all your personal possessions wh en you leave the 

train.  

Yang Li:  第三，  最后两个常用短语： in possession of something  占有或拥有某物。  

Neil:    He was found in possession of explosives.  

Yang Li:  这名男子被发现拥有爆炸物。另一个短语是 to come into possession of something. 

获得:  

Neil:   My father told me how our family came into possession of the necklace.  

Yang Li:  我父亲告诉我我们家是如何获得这条项链的。 

OK. Now let’s recap the main points today in English with my colleague Neil.  

Neil:   The basic meaning of the word possession is the state of own ing something, 

something  that you have or  something you are carrying with you. Well, 

when it is used as in the abstract sense , it is a n uncountable noun and the 

verb should  correspond, 'is ' instead of  'are '. 

Inserts 

A: Phew, after three years of hard work I finally got my degree. 

B: That’s good, but  mind you, the possession of a degree does not guarantee you a job.  

Neil:    When it's used to refer to something specific, then it is plural  –  possessions  

–  and the verb should plural as well, for example:  

Inserts 

Please remember to t ake all your personal possessions when you leave the train. 

Neil:   Finally,  we’d like you to learn two useful phrases involving the word 

possession: 'in possession of something ', meaning you have or you are 

carrying. 

Inserts 

He was found in possession of explosives.   

Neil:  The second phrase is  'to come into possession of something', meaning to 

acquire something, something that belongs to you now but didn’t use to.  

Inserts 

My father told me how our family came into possession of the necklace.  

Yang Li:   Thanks Neil that’s a great  help. I hope that this programme answers your 

question,  Peter,  and you can use the word more confidently in the future. 

Good luck.