homes

home, dwelling, family, house, residence

这五个词都有“家,家庭,家宅”的意思。它们的区别在于:home指某人出生以及成长的环境或与某人一起居住的地方; dwelling为文学用语,用以同商店、办公室及其他建筑物相区别的住宅; family指的是家庭成员,与居住地无关; house强调人们居住的建筑物本身; residence常指周围大片土地的宅邸,也可指普通的房屋,尤其是自己的住宅。例如:

There's nothing like home.哪儿也没有家里好。

Their clothes were in rags and their dwellings were small and poorly furnished.他们衣衫褴褛,住房狭小,家具简陋。

Because our family is happy and healthy we reckon ourselves fortunate.因为我们一家人幸福健康,我们认为我们是幸运的。

She offered to help Rose in house keeping when I was not here.我不在时,她主动帮助露丝料理家务。

Buy a house, build a home.买一所房子,安一个家。

The President's residence is the White House in Washington,D.C.总统的官邸是华盛顿特区的白宫。

come home to, go home to

两者意义比较接近,但意境色彩不尽一样:come home to作“触及”解,而go home to则是“感受到”的意思。试比较:

No truth comes home to the feeling of a writer without living experience.

没有生活体验,真情实感是不能触动 作家的灵感的。

Such an earnestness will go home to any heart.

这样的诚恳真是感人肺腑。

下面两个短语的意思不同:

her letters home 她写给家里的信

her home letters 她的家人写给她的信