Today's lesson, we're gonna talk about "stuff" and "things".

今天的課程要來學習「stuff」跟「things」。

So, a few weeks ago I talked a lot about "stuff" and "things" in my general extenders video, but today, I wanna talk about "stuff" and "things" as nouns by themselves, not at the end of sentences.

幾個禮拜前我有在慣用語的影片講到很多「stuff」跟「things」，但今天我要教的是這兩者作為名詞使用，而不是放在句子的結尾。

So "stuff" and "things" are nouns that are used when we want to talk about an undetermined amount of something, either we don't know how many there are, or there's just too many to count.

「Stuff」跟「things」都是當我們想談論不確定數量的東西時使用的名詞，要麽我們不知道有多少，要麽太多了。

You'll see this most commonly in, "I have a lot of things to do," or "I have so much stuff to do." So "things" or "stuff" could really be anything. They could be objects, or actions, or even people depending on your sentence.

你通常在「我有很多事情要做」的句子中看到它們，所以「things」或是「stuff」可以是任何東西，根據你的句子，它們可以是物品、動作，甚至是人。

Let's dive into the differences between "stuff" and "things."

讓我們深入探討「stuff」和「things」之間的區別。

The most obvious difference is that "things" are countable. "One thing, two things, many things." "So many things."

最明顯的差異是，「things」是可數的，像是「一個 thing，兩個 things，很多 things。」「太多 things。」

But "stuff" is uncountable. "Some stuff, a lot of stuff, too much stuff."

但「stuff」是不可數的，像是「一些 stuff，很多 stuff，太多 stuff。」

So "things" are countable, "stuff" is uncountable, but we still use them much the same. You just have to be careful with those quantifiers, much, many, a lot of, not enough, things like that.

所以「things」是可數的，「stuff」是不可數的，但兩者用法大致相同，只需要小心量詞的使用，像是 much (很多)、many (很多)、a lot of (很多)、not enough (不夠)，之類的。

So what is the difference in meaning or usage?

那它們的意思跟使用方法有什麼差異呢？

Well, the main thing is that "stuff" usually refers to a wide variety of different kinds of things.

最主要的事情是，「stuff」通常指的是各種各樣不同種類的事物。

So for example, I'm moving pretty soon, and right now I have "too much stuff."

舉例來說，我快要搬家了，現在我家有「太多 stuff。」

There's just "stuff" everywhere.

到處都是「東西」。

Because I'm talking so generally, using "things" would be a bit strange. It's kind of unnatural in that way.

因為我說的太籠統了，如果用「things」會有點奇怪，會有點不自然。

So in this case, "things" usually refers to a narrower or maybe more specific group.

所以這個情況下，「things」通常指的是更侷限或更具體的群體。

The benefit of "thing" is that we can use it in singular, and we use it so often when we don't know or can't remember what the object or action is.

使用「thing」的好處是，它可以作為單數數用，當我們不知道或不記得物體或動作是什麼時，我們就會經常使用它。

Hey, um... can you pass me the thing? The.... the thing, you know, the thing, the, the... no, no, the thing with the buttons.

嘿，你可以幫我拿那個東西嗎？那個⋯⋯東西，你知道的，就是那個東西，那個，不是，是有按鍵的東西。

That, no, the other, the black thing, the other black thing with the buttons.

那個，不是，另一個，黑色的東西，另一個有按鍵的黑色東西。

The... you use.... for the... the... yeah! No wait, Yes, yes! The... this thing! What's it called?

那個，你用來，對！等等，對，沒錯！就是這個東西！這叫什麼？

The remote?

遙控器？

Yes, the remote!

沒錯，遙控器！

So to quickly review all the stuff we talked about: "stuff" is an uncountable noun; "things" are, of course, a countable noun.

我們快速複習一下今天教的所有東西：「stuff」是不可數名詞；「things」當然就是可數名詞。

"Stuff" is usually used when there's a wide variety of objects or actions, and "things" are usually a bit more narrow.

「Stuff」通常用在各種各樣的物體或動作，「things」則比較侷限。

But "thing," of course, can also be used in the singular. Usually if we don't know what it's called, or in my case, can't remember.

但「thing」當然也可以當作單數使用，通常用在我們不知道它叫什麼，或者就我而言是不記得的情況下。

How about in your language? Do you have a word or expression that serves the same kind of function as "stuff" or "things"?

那你的語言呢？你的語言是否有一個詞或表達跟「stuff」或「things」有相同作用呢？

What is it? Do you use it in a similar way?

那個詞叫什麼呢？使用方法也是類似的嗎？

Let me know! Tell me in the comments, make sure to subscribe, and I'll see you next time!

在下方留言告訴我！記得要訂閱，下次見！