absorb
absorb — 動詞
1. When a material absorbs water, air, sound, heat, or light, it draws that substan
吸收
把液體、氣體或能量吸入內部
When a material absorbs water, air, sound, heat, or light, it draws that substance into itself and holds it inside, often happening slowly over time.
Dry sponges absorb water faster than wet ones.
乾的海綿吸水比濕的海綿快。
transitive: absorb + liquid noun
Plant roots absorb minerals from the wet soil around them.
植物的根會從周圍潮濕的土壤裡吸收礦物質。
subject: a natural body part or surface
Black clothes absorb sunlight, so Mei felt hot during the picnic.
黑色衣服會吸收陽光，所以美在野餐時覺得很熱。
Thick curtains help absorb noise from the busy street outside.
厚窗簾有助於吸收外面繁忙街道的噪音。
The cotton bandage quickly absorbed the blood from Daniel's cut finger.
棉紗布很快就吸掉了 Daniel 手指傷口流出的血。
文法句型
absorb + noun (liquid/gas/energy)
用法筆記
Subject is usually a porous material, surface, or living tissue; object is a substance or form of energy. Distinguish from sense 3 (UNDERSTAND), where the object is information rather than a physical substance.
常見錯誤
2. If a material or structure absorbs a force, blow, or sudden change, it takes the
緩衝；減震
減弱外來的力量或衝擊
If a material or structure absorbs a force, blow, or sudden change, it takes the hit and softens its strength so that less of it is passed on to whatever is behind.
Modern running shoes absorb most of the shock when your foot hits the ground.
現代慢跑鞋能吸收大部分腳落地時的衝擊力。
absorb + shock/impact
The thick rubber mat absorbed Liam's fall from the climbing frame.
厚厚的橡膠墊緩衝了 Liam 從攀爬架上摔下來的力道。
Car bumpers are designed to absorb the force of small crashes.
汽車保險桿的設計就是要吸收小型碰撞的力量。
Tree roots help absorb heavy rain and stop the hillside from sliding.
樹根能吸收大雨的水量，避免山坡滑落。
The boxer raised his arms to absorb the punch on his elbows.
拳擊手抬起雙臂，用手肘擋住那一拳。
- transmit
to pass the force through to something else
文法句型
absorb + noun (force/shock/blow)
用法筆記
Object is usually a physical force word (shock, impact, blow, force, vibrations) rather than a substance. Distinguish from sense 1 — sense 1 takes things in and keeps them; sense 2 weakens an incoming force.
3. To take new information or ideas into your mind, fully understand them, and keep
理解；領會
完全聽懂並牢記在心
To take new information or ideas into your mind, fully understand them, and keep them in your memory long after you first met them.
Young children absorb new languages much more easily than adults do.
小孩子學新語言比大人容易吸收得多。
absorb + abstract noun (knowledge)
Sofia paused the video so she could absorb the teacher's explanation.
Sofia 把影片暫停，好仔細吸收老師的講解。
It took Mr. Chen a few days to absorb the news that his factory would close.
陳先生花了好幾天才接受工廠要關閉的消息。
Good students absorb the main ideas of a lesson before worrying about details.
好的學生會先掌握一堂課的重點，再去煩惱細節。
The young pianist absorbed every comment her teacher made during the lesson.
那位年輕的鋼琴家把老師上課時的每一句話都聽進去了。
- forget
to lose information from memory
文法句型
absorb + noun (information/lesson)
用法筆記
Object must be something mental — information, knowledge, ideas, lessons, news. The verb suggests not just hearing or reading something but making it part of what you know.
常見錯誤
4. If an activity or piece of work absorbs you, it interests you so deeply that you
吸引；入迷
讓人專心到忽略其他事情
If an activity or piece of work absorbs you, it interests you so deeply that you give all your attention to it and stop noticing what else is happening.
The mystery novel absorbed Hannah for the whole train journey to Kyoto.
那本推理小說讓 Hannah 整趟前往京都的火車旅程都看得入迷。
active: thing + absorb + person
Nikolai was so absorbed in his video game that he didn't hear the doorbell.
Nikolai 太專注於電玩，連門鈴響都沒聽到。
passive: be absorbed in + activity
Painting absorbs Grandma Rosa for hours every Sunday afternoon.
畫畫讓 Rosa 奶奶每個星期天下午都全神貫注好幾個小時。
The chess match absorbed every player in the room.
那場棋賽讓現場每位選手都全神貫注。
Lila became completely absorbed in writing her first short story.
Lila 完全沉浸在創作她的第一篇短篇小說中。
- bore
to make someone lose interest
文法句型
be absorbed in + noun
absorb + someone
用法筆記
Most often used as the passive 'be/become absorbed in [activity]' to describe the person. The active form ('the book absorbs me') is also common but slightly more literary.
常見錯誤
5. When a company or government absorbs a cost, loss, or new tax, it pays that amou
自行承擔
公司或政府自己付掉成本
When a company or government absorbs a cost, loss, or new tax, it pays that amount itself instead of passing it on to customers or other people, often because it can afford to.
The supermarket chain decided to absorb the higher fuel costs rather than raise prices.
那家連鎖超市決定自行吸收上漲的油料成本，而不是調高價格。
absorb + cost/expense
Smaller airlines often cannot absorb sudden losses in ticket sales.
規模較小的航空公司通常無法承擔票務的突然虧損。
subject: a company/institution
The publisher will absorb the printing fees for this charity book.
出版社會替這本公益書承擔印刷費用。
The city government agreed to absorb the cost of repairing the flooded park.
市政府同意自行負擔修復淹水公園的費用。
Big banks can absorb a small rise in taxes without changing customer fees.
大型銀行可以承擔小幅的稅金上漲，不必調整客戶費用。
- pass on
to make customers pay the cost instead
文法句型
absorb + noun (cost/loss/tax)
用法筆記
Subject is almost always a business, institution, or government. Object is a financial burden (cost, loss, tax, fee, expense). The implication is that the payer chooses to carry the cost instead of moving it on.
6. When a larger group, organization, or country absorbs a smaller one, it brings t
併入；合併
把較小的單位納入較大的整體
When a larger group, organization, or country absorbs a smaller one, it brings the smaller one inside itself so that the two stop being separate and act as one.
In 1990, East Germany was absorbed into the larger West German state.
1990 年，東德被併入較大的西德國家。
passive: be absorbed into + larger entity
The big tech firm absorbed three smaller startups in a single year.
那家大型科技公司一年內就併購了三家小型新創公司。
active: large absorbs small
Over time, the small fishing village was absorbed into the growing city of Tainan.
隨著時間推移，那座小漁村被擴張中的台南市納入。
The new department will absorb the old marketing and sales teams.
新成立的部門將會併入原本的行銷與業務團隊。
Roman generals absorbed defeated tribes into their own army.
羅馬將領把戰敗的部族納入自己的軍隊裡。
- incorporate
more formal; common for companies and laws
- swallow up
informal; sometimes negative
- merge with
implies more equal partners
- split off
to break away from the larger group
文法句型
absorb + noun (smaller body)
be absorbed into + larger body
用法筆記
Often passive: 'be absorbed into [larger body]'. Subject and object are usually groups, organizations, regions, or populations rather than individuals.
7. If a project or activity absorbs a large amount of time, money, or other resourc
耗用；佔用
用掉大量時間、金錢或資源
If a project or activity absorbs a large amount of time, money, or other resources, it takes up most of what is available, leaving little for anything else.
The new bridge project absorbed nearly half of the city's yearly budget.
那座新橋的工程耗用了該市將近一半的年度預算。
absorb + amount of money
Caring for her sick father absorbed most of Yuki's free time last summer.
照顧生病的父親佔用了 Yuki 去年夏天大部分的空閒時間。
absorb + time
Training the new staff absorbed weeks of the manager's energy.
訓練新員工耗掉了那位主管好幾週的精力。
The lawsuit absorbed huge amounts of money from the small company.
那場官司從這家小公司身上吸走了大量的資金。
Writing the report absorbed every spare hour Daniel had that month.
寫那份報告佔用了 Daniel 那個月所有的空閒時間。
- save
to keep resources for later use
文法句型
absorb + noun (time/money/resources)
用法筆記
Object is usually a quantity word (time, money, resources, energy, budget). Slightly formal; in everyday speech 'eat up' or 'take up' is more common. Distinguish from sense 5 — sense 5 is about paying a cost, sense 7 is about consuming a resource over time.