carmen

carmen — noun

1. a female first name of Spanish and Italian origin, also commonly used in English

1.名詞B1
釋義

a female first name of Spanish and Italian origin, also commonly used in English-speaking countries and across Latin America

例句

Aiko shares her office with a colleague named Carmen who grew up in Buenos Aires.

collocation: a woman named + name

Carmen and her younger brother took Spanish lessons every Saturday morning.

文法句型

Carmen + singular verb

a woman named / called Carmen

用法筆記

Carmen is a proper noun and is always capitalized. It has no lexical (dictionary) meaning in English — it identifies a person rather than describing an object or action. Notable bearers include Carmen Amaya (Spanish flamenco dancer) and Carmen Miranda (Portuguese-Brazilian singer and actress).

常見錯誤

My friend carmen is from Chile.
My friend Carmen is from Chile.
💡proper names must be capitalized.

2. a famous French opera by composer Georges Bizet, first performed in 1875, set in

2.名詞B2
釋義

a famous French opera by composer Georges Bizet, first performed in 1875, set in Spain and telling the story of a passionate woman who works in a cigarette factory and her tragic relationship with a soldier

例句

Priya and her grandmother watched a live broadcast of Carmen from the Royal Opera House.

watch / see + opera name

Carmen's most famous song is the Habanera, which starts with 'Love is a rebellious bird'.

famous song within opera: the Habanera from Carmen

文法句型

the opera Carmen

see / watch / perform Carmen

用法筆記

When referring to the opera, Carmen is treated as a singular proper noun and takes a singular verb, e.g. 'Carmen is one of the most performed operas in the world.' Avoid lowercase or italic confusion with the given name — context makes the reference clear.

常見錯誤

We saw Carmen at the opera house and she was amazing.
We saw Carmen at the opera house and the performance was amazing.
💡using 'she' for the opera confuses the title with the character.