ash

ash — 名詞

1. fine grey dust, sometimes very dark, that you find sitting in a fireplace, ashtr

1.名詞B2
釋義

灰；灰燼

東西燒完後留下的灰色粉末

fine grey dust, sometimes very dark, that you find sitting in a fireplace, ashtray, or stove once the wood, coal, or tobacco inside it has finished burning.

例句

Wren knelt by the fireplace and swept the cold ash into a metal bucket.

Wren 跪在壁爐旁，把冷掉的灰燼掃進金屬桶裡。

uncountable: cold/wet/fine ash

A thin layer of cigarette ash had fallen onto the wooden table.

薄薄一層菸灰落在木桌上。

collocation: cigarette ash

同義詞
  • cinders

    small partly burned pieces, slightly larger and chunkier than fine ash

  • soot

    the black powder that sticks to chimneys and surfaces, formed by smoke rather than left as residue

用法筆記

Almost always uncountable in this sense. Common modifiers describe colour, temperature, or origin: cigarette ash, volcanic ash, fine ash, hot ash. The plural ashes belongs to sense 2 (cremated remains) or to sense 3 of the verb-related fixed phrases.

常見錯誤

❌Three ashes fell from his cigarette.
✅Some ash fell from his cigarette.
💡the residue is uncountable; use 'some ash' or 'a bit of ash', not a number plus 'ashes'.

2. the powdery remains of someone whose body was burned in a cremation, or of a bui

2.名詞B2
釋義

骨灰；殘骸

人火化後或建築燒毀後剩下的灰

the powdery remains of someone whose body was burned in a cremation, or of a building, forest, or city wiped out by fire; usually kept in an urn or scattered at a meaningful place.

例句

The family scattered Grandpa's ashes from a small boat off the coast of Penghu.

家人從澎湖外海一艘小船上撒下爺爺的骨灰。

plural: someone's ashes; collocation: scatter the ashes

Jamal kept his mother's ashes in a small wooden urn on the bookshelf.

Jamal 把母親的骨灰放在書架上一個小木甕裡。

collocation: keep the ashes in an urn

同義詞
  • remains

    broader term covering bones, ashes, or any traces of a dead body

  • cinders

    occasionally used for what is left of a destroyed building, but not for human remains

文法句型

someone's ashes

scatter the ashes

用法筆記

Used in the plural (ashes) when referring to a person's cremated remains or to what is left after a building or city has burned down. Distinguish from sense 1 (uncountable powder from any small fire): you sweep up ash from a fireplace, but you scatter someone's ashes.

常見錯誤

❌They scattered her ash at sea.
✅They scattered her ashes at sea.
💡for cremated remains, the plural form 'ashes' is fixed.

3. a tall deciduous tree, common in European woods, that has smooth grey bark, clus

3.名詞C1
釋義

梣樹；白蠟樹

歐洲常見的落葉喬木

a tall deciduous tree, common in European woods, that has smooth grey bark, clusters of small green flowers, and seeds that hang in winged bunches.

例句

A row of tall ash trees lined the path from the village to the church.

從村子通往教堂的小路兩旁種著一排高大的梣樹。

often 'ash tree' to clarify the meaning

The old ash beside the pond was over two hundred years old.

池塘旁那棵老梣樹已經超過兩百歲了。

用法筆記

Often appears as 'ash tree' in writing to avoid confusion with sense 1 (the burnt powder). The plural is 'ash trees' or 'ashes' (rare and chiefly literary). Distinguish from sense 4, which refers to the wood cut from this tree.

4. the strong, springy, pale-coloured timber cut from the ash tree, prized for furn

4.名詞C1
釋義

梣木；白蠟木

梣樹砍下的淡色硬木

the strong, springy, pale-coloured timber cut from the ash tree, prized for furniture, tool handles, hockey sticks, and traditional baseball bats.

例句

The kitchen table was made of solid ash with a clear oil finish.

那張廚房桌子是用實心梣木做的，表面塗了一層透明油。

material noun: made of ash

Renata prefers ash for the handles of her garden tools because it bends without breaking.

Renata 偏愛用梣木做園藝工具的握把，因為它彎得下去又不會斷。

同義詞
  • hickory

    another tough, springy hardwood used for tool handles; American rather than European

  • oak

    harder and heavier; used where strength matters more than spring

用法筆記

Uncountable, like other timber names (oak, pine, maple). Distinguish from sense 3 (the living tree): a furniture-maker says 'a chair made of ash' (the wood) but plants 'an ash' (the tree). Often paired with verbs like carve, plane, turn, sand.

5. a soft, pale grey shade with no warmth or pink tint, often used to describe pain

5.名詞C2
釋義

灰白色

不帶紅或暖色的淡灰

a soft, pale grey shade with no warmth or pink tint, often used to describe paint, hair dye, or fabric.

例句

Anaya dyed her hair a cool ash and posted a photo on her blog.

Anaya 把頭髮染成冷色調的灰白色，並在部落格上貼了照片。

modifier of dye, paint, or finish colour

The bedroom walls were painted a pale ash that matched the linen curtains.

臥室牆面漆成淡淡的灰白色，跟亞麻窗簾很搭。

同義詞
  • grey

    broader colour term; ash specifies a cool, pale version with no red

  • pewter

    darker and more metallic; used mainly for finishes and decor

用法筆記

Most often appears as a compound modifier such as 'ash-blonde', 'ash-grey', or 'ash-brown' rather than as a stand-alone noun. The colour is defined by what it lacks (no red, no warmth) rather than what it contains.

6. the small trophy played for in the long-running Test cricket series between the

6.名詞C2
釋義

灰燼盃

英澳板球對抗賽冠軍獎盃

the small trophy played for in the long-running Test cricket series between the England and Australia men's teams, traditionally said to hold the burnt remains of a cricket bail.

例句

England won back the Ashes at Lord's in front of a packed crowd.

英格蘭在 Lord's 球場滿座觀眾面前奪回了灰燼盃。

always capitalised: 'the Ashes'

Captain Smith lifted the Ashes urn above his head while the Sydney crowd roared from the stands.

Smith 隊長把灰燼盃的小甕高舉過頭，雪梨球場看台上的觀眾爆出歡呼。

用法筆記

Always capitalised and preceded by 'the': the Ashes. Although the trophy itself is small, the word is used both for the urn and for the whole Test series. Common in British and Australian sports writing; unfamiliar to most American readers.

常見錯誤

❌England won the ash last summer.
✅England won the Ashes last summer.
💡the cricket trophy is always 'the Ashes', plural and capitalised.

7. a charity, written as the abbreviation of Action on Smoking & Health, that lobbi

7.名詞C2
釋義

反菸組織

推動禁菸的英美慈善機構

a charity, written as the abbreviation of Action on Smoking & Health, that lobbies governments and the public to cut down tobacco use and protect non-smokers.

例句

ASH welcomed the new ban on smoking in outdoor restaurant seating.

ASH 對餐廳戶外座位區的新禁菸令表示歡迎。

all caps when standing for the organisation

Dr. Hannah Lee, speaking for ASH outside Westminster, urged MPs to back the new tobacco display ban.

Hannah Lee 醫師代表 ASH 在西敏寺外發言，敦促國會議員支持新的菸品陳列禁令。

用法筆記

Written in all capitals (ASH) to mark it as an abbreviation, which separates it visually from the everyday noun 'ash'. Treated as a singular noun ('ASH says...', 'ASH has called for...').

ash — 動詞

ash — 慣用語