dial
dial — 動詞
1. to press the buttons or turn the rotary disc on a telephone in order to enter a
撥號
按電話上的按鍵或轉動轉盤以聯絡對方
to press the buttons or turn the rotary disc on a telephone in order to enter a specific series of numbers and connect with someone
Léa dialled the wrong number and ended up talking to a bakery in Kyoto.
Léa 撥錯了號碼，結果接通了京都一家麵包店。
dial + number (object is the number called)
Emre dialled 911 immediately after the car struck a tree near the park.
Emre 在車子撞上公園附近的樹之後，立刻撥了 911。
dial + emergency services number
The automated system asks callers to dial the country code before the local number.
自動系統要求來電者先撥國碼，再撥當地號碼。
Megan dialled her mother from the hospital waiting room to share the good news.
Megan 從醫院候診室撥電話給母親，告訴她這個好消息。
- hang up
to end a call rather than start one
文法句型
dial + number
dial + person (object is the called party)
用法筆記
Can be used transitively (dial a number, dial someone) or intransitively (Dial 9 first, then the number). In informal conversation, 'dial' may feel slightly dated — younger speakers often say 'call' or 'ring' — but 'dial' remains current for describing the action of keying in digits.
常見錯誤
dial — 名詞
1. the flat, round surface on a clock, watch, or measuring instrument that shows in
刻度盤
儀器上顯示數值的圓形表面
the flat, round surface on a clock, watch, or measuring instrument that shows information such as the time, speed, pressure, or temperature using numbers and a moving pointer
The speedometer dial showed the car was travelling at 110 kilometres per hour.
時速表的刻度盤顯示車子正以每小時 110 公里的速度行駛。
speedometer dial — vehicle instrument
Yan checked the watch dial to see if she had time for the last train.
Yan 看了一下手錶的錶盤，確認自己是否來得及搭末班車。
watch dial — timepiece
The pressure gauge dial had a hairline crack, so the reading was no longer trustworthy.
壓力計的刻度盤上有一道細微裂痕，因此讀數已經不可靠了。
The control room had a large wall dial that displayed the current water level.
控制室牆上有一個大型儀表板，顯示目前的水位。
用法筆記
Usually refers to an analogue display with a needle or pointer, rather than a digital readout. Common on watches, clocks, speedometers, pressure gauges, thermometers, and similar instruments.
常見錯誤
2. a round knob or switch on a radio, oven, heater, or other device that you turn t
旋鈕
用來調整音量、溫度等設定的圓形開關
a round knob or switch on a radio, oven, heater, or other device that you turn to adjust a setting, such as the volume, temperature, or channel
Emre turned the dial on the radio until he found a station playing bossa nova.
Emre 轉動收音機的旋鈕，直到找到一個播著巴薩諾瓦音樂的電臺。
turn + dial + on + device to change a setting
Noa adjusted the volume dial so the music would not wake the baby.
Noa 調整了音量旋鈕，以免音樂吵醒寶寶。
volume dial — specific function
The oven dial lets you set the baking temperature from 50 to 250 degrees Celsius.
烤箱的旋鈕可以讓你設定攝氏 50 到 250 度的烘烤溫度。
Manuela twisted the dial on the combination lock until she heard a soft click.
Manuela 轉動密碼鎖上的旋鈕，直到聽見輕輕的咔嗒聲。
用法筆記
Unlike sense 1 (MEASUREMENT DISPLAY), this sense refers to a control that the user physically rotates to change a setting, not a surface that purely displays information. Many devices combine both: a radio dial both shows frequencies (sense 1) and lets you select them (sense 2).
常見錯誤
3. the circular plastic or metal disc on older telephones with numbered holes for e
轉盤
舊式電話上用手指轉動的圓形撥號盤
the circular plastic or metal disc on older telephones with numbered holes for each finger, which you rotate to send electrical pulses that connect your call
Tariro's grandmother still used a telephone with a rotary dial instead of push buttons.
Tariro 的祖母仍然使用轉盤式電話，而不是按鍵式電話。
rotary dial — the old-style phone dial
Ishaan put his finger into hole number four on the dial and turned it clockwise.
Ishaan 把手指放進轉盤上第四個孔裡，順時針轉動它。
put finger in hole + turn dial — physical operation
The children stared at the antique phone and wondered how the dial worked without batteries.
孩子們盯著那支古董電話，不明白轉盤怎麼能在沒有電池的情況下運作。
Sana found an old Bakelite telephone whose dial was still smooth and easy to spin.
Sana 找到了一支舊電木電話，它的轉盤依然光滑順暢。
- rotary dial
the full term; makes the mechanism explicit
- finger wheel
technical term for the rotating disc
用法筆記
Rotary dials were standard on household telephones from the 1920s through the 1980s. Modern touch-tone phones and smartphones have replaced them, so this sense appears most often in historical contexts, museums, or vintage collections.
常見錯誤
dial — 縮寫
1. a written abbreviation for 'dialect', used in dictionaries and linguistic texts
方言
dialect 的縮寫，標示方言
a written abbreviation for 'dialect', used in dictionaries and linguistic texts to label region-specific forms of a language
'Bairn' was labelled 'dial.' in the dictionary to show it is a northern word.
字典中 'bairn' 這個詞條標註了 'dial.'，表示它是北部用語。
dial. as a dictionary label
In linguistic papers, 'dial.' is often placed after a word to indicate regional variation.
在語言學論文中，'dial.' 常用於詞語後方，標示其為地區變體。
Linguistics students learn to recognise 'dial.' in old dictionaries and dialect surveys.
語言學學生學會在舊字典和方言調查中辨認 'dial.' 這個標記。
The abbreviation 'dial.' appears next to words that are not part of the standard form.
縮寫 'dial.' 會出現在非標準用語的詞條旁邊。
用法筆記
Used almost exclusively in writing, especially in dictionaries and academic linguistics. In speech, say the full word 'dialect'.
2. a written abbreviation for 'dialectical', used in academic contexts, particularl
辯證的
辯證法的縮寫，用於哲學領域
a written abbreviation for 'dialectical', used in academic contexts, particularly in philosophy and Marxist theory
The footnote cited 'dial. materialism' as the theoretical framework for the argument.
註腳中引用了 'dial. materialism'（辯證唯物主義）作為該論述的理論框架。
dial. as abbreviation in philosophical writing
Course listings sometimes use 'dial. method' to refer to dialectical reasoning.
課程列表中有時會用 'dial. method' 來指稱辯證推理方法。
A philosophy textbook might shorten 'dialectical' to 'dial.' in its glossary entries.
哲學課本在詞彙表中有時會將 'dialectical' 縮寫為 'dial.'。
Students reading Marxist theory often see 'dial.' used before 'materialism' in texts.
閱讀馬克思主義理論的學生經常在文本中看到 'dial.' 出現在 'materialism' 之前。
用法筆記
Primarily appears in academic footnotes, bibliographies, and course catalogues. Most readers outside philosophy will not recognise this abbreviation.