mercury
mercury — 名詞
1. A poisonous metallic element with a shiny silver look that stays liquid at norma
水銀
常溫下為液態的重金屬元素
A poisonous metallic element with a shiny silver look that stays liquid at normal room temperature. It was once common in thermometers, though safer materials are now preferred.
The old thermometer contained a small amount of mercury, which could be dangerous if it leaked.
那支舊溫度計裡裝有少量的水銀，如果漏出來可能會很危險。
uncountable noun for a chemical substance
Scientists now use safer liquids instead of mercury in most school thermometers.
現在大多數學校的溫度計改用更安全的液體，不再使用水銀。
Caio learned in chemistry class that mercury is one of the few metals that stay liquid at room temperature.
Caio 在化學課上學到，水銀是在室溫下仍保持液態的少數金屬之一。
Workers wore special gloves to clean up the mercury spill safely.
工人戴上特殊手套，安全地清理了水銀洩漏。
- quicksilver
an old poetic or literary name for mercury; rarely used in modern science or everyday English
用法筆記
Frequently used as an uncountable noun. Its chemical symbol is Hg, short for the Latin name hydrargyrum.
常見錯誤
2. The planet in our solar system that is closest to the sun. It has a surface cove
水星
離太陽最近的行星
The planet in our solar system that is closest to the sun. It has a surface covered with craters and is the smallest of the eight planets.
Mercury is so close to the sun that its surface can get hot enough to melt lead.
水星距離太陽非常近，表面溫度高到足以熔化鉛。
Mercury as a proper noun and planet name
Jisoo pointed her telescope at the evening sky and spotted the tiny dot of Mercury near the horizon.
Jisoo 把望遠鏡對向傍晚的天空，在地平線附近看到了水星的小小亮點。
Because Mercury moves around the sun very quickly, a year on that planet lasts only eighty-eight Earth days.
由於水星繞太陽運行的速度非常快，在那顆行星上一年只有八十八個地球日。
A spacecraft visited Mercury and sent back images of its grey, rocky surface.
一艘太空船探訪了水星，傳回了它灰色岩石表面的照片。
用法筆記
Always capitalised as a proper noun. The Romans named the planet after their messenger god (sense 3) because it moves quickly across the sky.
常見錯誤
3. In ancient Roman stories, the god who acted as a messenger for the other gods an
墨丘利
羅馬神話中掌管貿易與旅行的神
In ancient Roman stories, the god who acted as a messenger for the other gods and who protected trade, travel, and merchants. He is usually shown wearing a winged hat and sandals.
In Roman mythology, Mercury wore winged sandals so that he could fly quickly between the gods.
在羅馬神話中，墨丘利穿著有翅膀的涼鞋，以便能在眾神之間快速飛行。
proper noun for a mythological figure
The stone statue in the town square showed Mercury holding a staff with two snakes wrapped around it.
廣場上的石像刻畫的是墨丘利，他手中拿著一條纏繞著兩條蛇的權杖。
Vikram read that traders in ancient Rome prayed to Mercury for success in their business.
Vikram 讀到，古羅馬的商人會向墨丘利禱告，祈求生意順利。
Shirin read a story about Mercury carrying a message from Jupiter to a hero on Earth.
Shirin 讀到一個故事，講述墨丘利將朱比特的信息傳達給人間的一位英雄。
- Hermes
the Greek equivalent of Mercury; Hermes has the same role but belongs to Greek mythology
用法筆記
Always capitalised as a proper noun. The Greek equivalent of Mercury is Hermes. The planet Mercury (sense 2) was named after this god.
常見錯誤
4. The silver-coloured line or column inside a thermometer that rises or falls to i
水銀柱
溫度計或氣壓計中的水銀液柱
The silver-coloured line or column inside a thermometer that rises or falls to indicate the temperature. The word refers to the liquid mercury that was traditionally used in thermometers.
Mira checked the mercury in the outdoor thermometer and saw that it had dropped below zero.
Mira 檢查了戶外溫度計的水銀柱，發現它已經降到零度以下。
the mercury + dropped / rose for temperature change
The doctor tapped the thermometer gently to bring the mercury back down before taking a new reading.
醫生輕輕敲了敲溫度計，讓水銀柱降回原點，以便重新測量。
During the summer heatwave, the mercury stayed above thirty degrees for an entire week.
夏季熱浪期間，水銀柱連續一整週都停留在三十度以上。
The nurse checked the mercury in the thermometer before telling the patient his temperature.
護理師檢查了溫度計裡的水銀柱，然後才告訴病人他的體溫。
用法筆記
Used with verbs of movement such as 'rise', 'drop', 'fall', and 'climb' to describe changes in temperature. This is a metonym — the substance (mercury) stands for the measurement it shows.