agrarian
agrarian — 形容詞
1. describing anything that has to do with farms, crops, or how farmland is owned,
農地的
與農田、耕地或土地分配制度有關的
describing anything that has to do with farms, crops, or how farmland is owned, divided, or worked.
The new minister promised sweeping agrarian reforms to give small farmers a fair share of the land.
新部長承諾推動全面的土地改革，讓小農也能分得一塊像樣的耕地。
common collocation: agrarian reform / agrarian reforms
Professor Lin teaches a course on agrarian history, focusing on rice paddies in southern Taiwan.
林教授開了一門農業歷史課，重點放在台灣南部的稻田。
attributive: agrarian + abstract noun (history, policy, system)
The novel describes life on a quiet agrarian estate where every family kept goats and chickens.
這部小說描寫一座安靜的農莊，每戶人家都養著山羊和雞。
Heavy rain in June ruined the harvest and triggered an agrarian crisis across three provinces.
六月的大雨毀了收成，三個省份接連爆發農業危機。
Mei Lin grew up in an agrarian village where her grandparents still ploughed the fields by hand.
美琳在一個農村長大，外公外婆到現在還用手扶犁耕田。
- agricultural
more common everyday word; 'agrarian' sounds more academic and often points to land ownership or rural politics
- farming
plain word used as a modifier (farming community); less formal than 'agrarian'
- rural
describes the countryside in general, not specifically tied to crops or farms
- industrial
describes economies or societies built on factories and manufacturing rather than farms
- urban
describes city life, the opposite of rural farming life
文法句型
agrarian + noun
用法筆記
Almost always used before a noun (agrarian reform, agrarian policy, agrarian society). Rarely used after the verb 'be'. Typical nouns it modifies are abstract: reform, system, history, crisis, policy.
常見錯誤
2. describing a place, country, or community whose income and daily life depend mai
農業的
經濟和生活主要靠耕種畜牧的
describing a place, country, or community whose income and daily life depend mainly on growing crops and raising animals, not on factories or services.
Before the railroads arrived, Iowa was a deeply agrarian state where almost everyone grew corn or wheat.
鐵路通車之前，愛荷華是一個典型的農業州，幾乎每戶人家都在種玉米或小麥。
agrarian + state / region / country to describe an economy
Vietnam shifted from an agrarian economy to a manufacturing one within two generations.
越南在兩代人之間，就從以農立國的經濟轉型為製造業經濟。
common collocation: agrarian economy
The textbook compares agrarian societies in Japan and France during the eighteenth century.
這本教科書比較了十八世紀日本和法國的農業社會。
Most villagers still live an agrarian life, waking before dawn to feed the cows and water the rice.
村裡多數人還是過著農村生活，天還沒亮就起來餵牛、給稻田引水。
- agricultural
broader and more neutral; an agricultural economy and an agrarian economy mean nearly the same thing, but 'agrarian' suggests a more traditional, pre-industrial way of life
- rural
describes a quiet countryside setting, but not always built on farming as the main income
- pre-industrial
stresses the time period before factories rather than the farming activity itself
- industrialised
an economy that has shifted from farms to factories and machines
- urbanised
a society where most people live in cities rather than farming villages
文法句型
agrarian + place noun (society, economy, country, region)
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this sense describes the whole economic character of a place or community ('agrarian society', 'agrarian economy'), while sense 1 modifies abstract topics tied to farming and land ('agrarian reform', 'agrarian policy'). Subject is usually a country, region, or community.
常見錯誤
agrarian — 名詞
1. a person who belongs to a political group or movement that fights for the rights
農民派人士
支持農民權益與土改運動的人
a person who belongs to a political group or movement that fights for the rights of farmers and for fairer rules about owning farmland.
In the 1890s, American agrarians joined together to demand cheaper loans and lower train fares for farmers.
1890 年代，美國的農民派人士聯合起來，要求政府提供更便宜的貸款和更低的火車運費。
plural use: agrarians + verb
Hugo Chen called himself an agrarian and fought to keep village land out of corporate hands.
陳雨果自稱農民派，極力守住村裡的土地，不讓它落入大企業手中。
singular use: an agrarian
The new party drew support from agrarians in the rice-growing south.
這個新政黨在以稻米為主的南部，從農民派人士那裡得到不少支持。
Many agrarians felt betrayed when the government cancelled the promised land redistribution programme.
當政府取消承諾的土地重新分配計畫時，許多農民派人士覺得被背叛了。
- agrarianist
very rare variant; same political meaning
- populist
broader political label that often included agrarians in the United States, but covers other groups too
- industrialist
someone whose interests lie with factories and manufacturing, often opposed to farming politics
文法句型
a/an + agrarian
agrarians + plural verb
用法筆記
Rare in everyday English; mostly appears in history books, political writing, or academic articles. Often used in the plural ('the agrarians') to name a group sharing the same political views.