cable
cable — 名詞
1. a long line made up of one or more wires inside a plastic or rubber cover, used
電纜；電線
包覆塑膠或橡膠的傳電傳訊號電線
a long line made up of one or more wires inside a plastic or rubber cover, used to carry electricity or to send phone, TV, or internet signals from one place to another.
Marcus tripped over the laptop cable and pulled the charger out of the wall.
Marcus 被筆電的電線絆到，把充電器從牆上扯了出來。
everyday object: laptop / charger cable
The engineers ran a thick black cable from the generator to the kitchen.
工程師從發電機拉了一條粗黑的電纜到廚房。
pattern: run a cable from X to Y
A loose cable behind the TV was making the picture flicker every few minutes.
電視後面有一條電線鬆了，畫面每隔幾分鐘就閃一次。
Workers in orange vests buried the new internet cables along the side of our street.
穿橘色背心的工人沿著我們這條街埋下新的網路電纜。
Lina labelled each cable with white tape so she could find the right one later.
Lina 用白色膠帶在每一條電線上做標記，方便之後找出對的那條。
文法句型
a cable for/to + noun
run a cable from X to Y
用法筆記
Often appears with a modifier that names what the cable carries: power cable, phone cable, network cable, USB cable. The plural cables is common when more than one wire runs together.
常見錯誤
2. a heavy rope made by twisting many strands of steel wire or strong fibre togethe
鋼索；纜繩
由多股鋼絲或粗纖維絞成的承重粗繩
a heavy rope made by twisting many strands of steel wire or strong fibre together, used to hold up bridges, lift heavy loads, or anchor large ships.
Each tower of the Golden Gate Bridge holds up two huge steel cables.
金門大橋的每一座橋塔都吊著兩條巨大的鋼索。
collocation: steel cable
The ship's anchor hung from a thick cable that ran down into the dark water.
船的錨掛在一條粗纜繩上，纜繩一路延伸到漆黑的水裡。
One of the cables on the old crane snapped, and the load crashed onto the ground.
舊吊車上的一條鋼索斷了，貨物整個摔到地上。
Workers tightened the cables holding the temporary stage in place before the concert.
工人在演唱會開始前，把固定臨時舞台的鋼索都拉緊。
The lift was suspended by four strong cables, each tested every six months.
電梯由四條堅固的鋼索吊著，每六個月就會檢測一次。
文法句型
a cable of + material
be held up by cables
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1: this cable is a load-bearing rope, not an electrical conductor. The subject context is engineering, ships, or heavy lifting; the typical material word is 'steel' rather than 'copper'.
常見錯誤
3. a way of paying for many TV channels that arrive at your home through a wire und
有線電視
透過地下纜線收看的付費電視服務
a way of paying for many TV channels that arrive at your home through a wire under the street, instead of through an antenna on the roof or through the internet.
Grandma still pays for cable so she can watch her cooking shows every afternoon.
奶奶到現在還在付有線電視的費用，這樣每天下午才能看她愛看的烹飪節目。
pattern: pay for cable
The football match is only available on cable, not on regular TV.
這場足球賽只能在有線電視看得到，一般電視台沒有播。
pattern: on cable (preposition)
After the family moved to the countryside, they could not get cable in their new house.
這家人搬到鄉下之後，新家裝不了有線電視。
Many young people in Taipei have cancelled cable and watch everything through streaming apps instead.
台北很多年輕人都已經停掉有線電視，改用串流 App 看所有節目。
Our cable went out during the storm, so the children played board games by candlelight.
暴風雨期間我們家的有線電視斷訊，孩子們就點著蠟燭玩桌遊。
- broadcast TV
free channels sent through the air rather than through a wire
- streaming
newer alternative that uses the internet instead of a cable connection
文法句型
on cable
have cable
get cable
用法筆記
Uncountable — never use 'a cable' or 'cables' in this sense. Distinguish from sense 1: in sense 1 a cable is the physical wire; here, cable is the paid TV service that uses such wires. Often shortened from 'cable TV' or 'cable television'.
常見錯誤
4. a short written message that, before email and mobile phones, was sent very quic
海外電報
早期經海底纜線傳送並印出的訊息
a short written message that, before email and mobile phones, was sent very quickly across the sea using electrical signals, then printed out and delivered to the person who received it.
In 1942 my grandfather sent a cable to his mother in Lisbon to say he was safe.
1942 年我祖父發了一封電報給在里斯本的母親，告訴她自己平安。
pattern: send a cable to + person
The journalist filed her story by cable from a small post office in Hong Kong.
那位記者從香港的一間小郵局用電報發出她的稿件。
collocation: file a story by cable
A short cable arrived from London with the news that the deal had been signed.
倫敦來了一封簡短的電報，通知這筆交易已經簽妥。
The embassy received an urgent cable warning of a coming storm.
大使館收到一封緊急電報，警告即將有風暴來襲。
Old cables in the museum showed how diplomats kept in touch before the telephone became common.
博物館裡的舊電報，呈現了電話普及之前外交人員怎麼互通訊息。
文法句型
send a cable to + person
receive a cable from + person
用法筆記
Old-fashioned in everyday English; you will mostly meet this sense in history books, novels set before about 1980, and diplomatic writing. In modern contexts, prefer 'email', 'message', or 'telegram'.
常見錯誤
cable — 動詞
1. to fit a building, street, or whole town with the wires that are needed for TV,
鋪設纜線
為地區裝設電視、網路或電話纜線
to fit a building, street, or whole town with the wires that are needed for TV, telephone, or internet service to reach it.
The town council voted to cable every village in the valley by the end of next year.
鎮議會通過決議，要在明年底前為山谷裡的每個村莊鋪設纜線。
pattern: cable + place
Our neighbourhood was finally cabled for high-speed internet last spring.
去年春天，我們這個社區終於完成了高速網路的纜線鋪設。
passive pattern: be cabled for + service
Workers in yellow helmets are cabling the new housing estate this week.
戴黃色安全帽的工人這個禮拜正在為新的住宅區鋪設纜線。
Older parts of the city have not been cabled yet, so people there still use mobile data.
市區比較舊的地方還沒有鋪設纜線，那邊的人到現在還是用行動數據上網。
文法句型
cable + place
be cabled for + service
用法筆記
Frequently passive: 'X was cabled for Y'. The subject of the active form is usually a company or local authority, not an individual. Distinguish from verb sense 2: this sense is about putting cables into the ground; sense 2 is about sending a written message.
常見錯誤
2. to contact someone in another country quickly by sending a short electrical mess
發電報
以海外電報方式快速傳訊給某人
to contact someone in another country quickly by sending a short electrical message that is then printed out for them — the way people did before the internet.
Sarah cabled her parents from Buenos Aires to say her ship had arrived safely.
Sarah 從布宜諾斯艾利斯發電報回家，告訴爸媽她搭的船已經平安抵達。
pattern: cable + somebody + (message)
The reporter cabled the news of the king's death back to the London office within an hour.
這位記者在一小時之內就把國王過世的消息發電報傳回倫敦辦公室。
Our great-grandfather cabled that he would arrive in New York on the next steamship.
我們的曾祖父發電報說，他會搭下一班蒸汽船抵達紐約。
During the war, soldiers could only cable home twice a month because of strict rules.
戰爭期間，因為規定嚴格，士兵每個月只能發兩次電報回家。
文法句型
cable + somebody + (message)
cable that + clause
cable from + place
用法筆記
Old-fashioned; modern English uses 'email', 'text', or 'message' instead. You will mostly meet this verb in novels, biographies, and history writing about the late 19th and early 20th century.