internal

internal — 形容詞

1. located or happening inside a living body; relating to the organs and other stru

1.形容詞B1
釋義

體內的

位於或發生在身體內部的

located or happening inside a living body; relating to the organs and other structures that are within the body rather than on its surface.

例句

The doctors checked Wei's internal organs after his bicycle accident.

Wei 發生腳踏車事故後，醫生檢查了他的體內器官。

collocation: internal organs

Internal bleeding is often hard to detect without a scan.

體內出血如果沒有掃描檢查，通常很難發現。

collocation: internal bleeding

同義詞
  • inner

    less technical; used for both body and non-body contexts

  • bodily

    emphasises the physical body rather than location

反義詞
  • external

    the direct opposite for body-related usage

  • outer

    refers to the surface or outside layer

文法句型

internal + noun (body part or medical condition)

用法筆記

Frequently used in medical contexts. This sense is almost always attributive (before a noun). The corresponding antonym is 'external'.

常見錯誤

❌He has a pain in his internal.
✅He has a pain in his internal organs.
💡'Internal' is an adjective, not a noun; it must modify a noun like 'organs'.

2. existing or happening in a person's mind, thoughts, or feelings, often not shown

2.形容詞B2
釋義

內心的

存在於個人思想或情感中的

existing or happening in a person's mind, thoughts, or feelings, often not shown to other people.

例句

Ramón was struggling with an internal conflict about moving abroad.

Ramón 一直為是否移居國外而陷入內心交戰。

collocation: internal conflict

Theo kept his internal doubts hidden during the team presentation.

Theo 在團隊報告時隱藏了內心的疑慮。

collocation: internal doubts

同義詞
  • inner

    more common in everyday speech; less formal

  • mental

    broader, includes cognitive processes beyond emotions

  • psychological

    more technical or clinical in tone

反義詞
  • outward

    refers to behaviour or expression that other people can see

  • external

    contrasts inner feelings with outside influences

文法句型

internal + noun (mental or emotional state)

用法筆記

Often paired with nouns describing conflict or emotion (conflict, struggle, doubt, fear). The noun 'internal' alone is not used for this sense — always modify a noun.

常見錯誤

❌She had an internal about the decision.
✅She had an internal struggle about the decision.
💡'Internal' must be followed by a noun that names the mental experience.

3. located or happening on the inside of a building, machine, container, or other o

3.形容詞B1
釋義

內部的

位於物體、建築物或機器內部的

located or happening on the inside of a building, machine, container, or other object; relating to the interior surfaces or parts of something.

例句

The internal walls of the old factory were covered in dust and cobwebs.

舊工廠的內部牆壁上布滿灰塵和蜘蛛網。

collocation: internal walls

Owen opened the laptop and replaced the internal hard drive himself.

Owen 自己打開筆記型電腦，更換了內建硬碟。

collocation: internal hard drive

同義詞
  • interior

    more formal; common in architecture and design

  • inner

    everyday alternative, less technical

反義詞
  • external

    referring to the outside surface or exterior

  • outer

    suggests the outermost layer

  • exterior

    common in building and design contexts

文法句型

internal + noun (part of a building, machine, or container)

用法筆記

When referring to buildings, 'internal' contrasts with 'external' (outside walls, doors). For machines, it contrasts with parts that are on the surface or removable.

常見錯誤

❌The internal of the box is empty.
✅The inside of the box is empty.
💡'Internal' is an adjective; use 'inside' (noun) when referring to the interior space itself.

4. restricted to members or staff of one company, institution, or group; not open t

4.形容詞B2
釋義

機構內

僅涉及組織內部人員的

restricted to members or staff of one company, institution, or group; not open to or concerning people from outside.

例句

The company sent an internal memo about changes to the vacation policy.

公司發了一封關於休假政策變更的內部備忘錄。

collocation: internal memo

Lakan requested an internal investigation after the accounting error was discovered.

Lakan 在發現會計錯誤後，要求進行內部調查。

collocation: internal investigation

同義詞
  • in-house

    more informal; emphasises that a service or team belongs to the organisation

  • inside

    common in phrases like 'inside job' but less standard as an adjective

  • in-company

    less common but used in business writing

反義詞
  • external

    involving people or groups outside the organisation

  • outside

    more informal alternative to 'external'

文法句型

internal + noun (organisational process or communication)

用法筆記

Common in business and administrative contexts. Often paired with nouns for official communications (memo, report, notice) or processes (audit, review, investigation). Distinguish from sense 5 (WITHIN COUNTRY) — this sense applies to organisations, not nations.

5. relating to matters that take place within a single country, rather than involvi

5.形容詞B2
釋義

國內的

發生在單一國家內部的

relating to matters that take place within a single country, rather than involving other countries or international relations.

例句

The prime minister focused on internal affairs rather than foreign policy.

總理將重心放在內政事務而非外交政策上。

collocation: internal affairs

Internal trade between the northern and southern regions has grown steadily.

南北地區之間的國內貿易穩定成長。

collocation: internal trade

同義詞
  • domestic

    the most direct synonym in political and economic contexts

  • national

    broader than 'domestic'; can include nationwide scope

  • home

    used in 'home market' or 'home affairs'; slightly informal

反義詞
  • foreign

    the standard opposite in political contexts

  • international

    involving multiple countries

  • external

    used in diplomatic language for matters outside the country

文法句型

internal + noun (affairs, trade, market, security)

用法筆記

Used primarily in political, economic, and legal discourse. Distinguish from sense 4 (WITHIN ORGANIZATION) — this sense applies to nations, not companies. The most common antonym in this context is 'foreign' or 'international'.

常見錯誤

❌The company has internal affairs problems.
✅The company has internal problems.
💡'Internal affairs' is a fixed phrase for government/country contexts; for companies, use 'internal issues' or 'internal problems' instead.

6. belonging to the essential nature of a thing; coming from within something itsel

6.形容詞C1
釋義

內在的

源自事物本質而非外在影響的

belonging to the essential nature of a thing; coming from within something itself rather than being added by outside influences.

例句

The internal logic of the novel makes the ending feel inevitable.

這部小說的內在邏輯讓結局顯得無可避免。

collocation: internal logic

Élise believes that every child has an internal sense of right and wrong.

Élise 相信每個孩子天生都有內在的是非觀念。

collocation: internal sense

同義詞
  • inherent

    very close in meaning; 'inherent' emphasises permanence, 'internal' emphasises origin

  • innate

    used especially for qualities a living thing is born with

  • intrinsic

    nearly identical; 'intrinsic value' is a very common fixed phrase

  • essential

    broader; can refer to the most important part of anything

反義詞
  • extrinsic

    the formal opposite, meaning coming from outside

  • external

    more common in everyday language for outside sources

文法句型

internal + noun (abstract quality)

internal to + noun phrase

用法筆記

This is the most formal sense of 'internal', common in academic, philosophical, and analytical writing. It can be used predicatively with 'to' (e.g., 'internal to the system'). The noun it modifies is nearly always abstract.

常見錯誤

❌The problem is internal of the system.
✅The problem is internal to the system.
💡When used predicatively, 'internal' takes the preposition 'to', not 'of'.