meter
meter — 名詞
1. An instrument fitted in a home or workplace that shows how much of a supply — fo
儀表；計量器
測量並記錄使用量的裝置
An instrument fitted in a home or workplace that shows how much of a supply — for instance gas, electricity, or water — has been consumed.
The gas company sent someone to read the meter outside our house.
瓦斯公司派人來讀取我們屋外的儀表。
collocation: read the meter
Obi checked the electricity meter to see how much power the factory had used overnight.
Obi 檢查了電表，看看工廠整晚用了多少電。
A smart meter sends usage data directly to the utility company every hour.
智慧電表每小時會直接把用量數據傳送給電力公司。
The old water meter broke last winter, so the bill was based on an estimate.
那段舊水表去年冬天壞了，所以帳單是用估算的。
Min installed a solar meter on the roof to track her panels' energy output.
Min 在屋頂安裝了太陽能電表，用來追蹤太陽能板的發電量。
- gauge
A gauge shows a measurement at a point in time (like a pressure gauge); a meter typically tracks and records usage over time.
- counter
A counter records a running total (e.g., a hit counter); a meter can show both instantaneous rate and total usage.
- reader
Less common as a noun for the device itself; usually refers to the person or the handheld device used to collect the reading.
用法筆記
Most commonly paired with a specific resource name: gas meter, electricity meter, water meter. A smart meter sends readings automatically; an older meter must be read by a person.
常見錯誤
2. The equipment fitted inside a taxi that calculates how far the passenger has tra
計費表
計程車上顯示車資的裝置
The equipment fitted inside a taxi that calculates how far the passenger has travelled and how long the journey took, then shows the fare owed.
The taxi driver started the meter as soon as we got into the car.
我們一上車，計程車司機就啟動了計費表。
collocation: start the meter
By the time Nikos reached the airport, the meter showed a fare of 850 dollars.
等 Nikos 到達機場時，計費表顯示車資為 850 元。
Heloísa asked the driver to turn off the meter while they waited.
Heloísa 請司機在等候時把計費表關掉。
The fare on the meter was far higher than what the driver had quoted.
計費表上的金額比司機報的價錢高出許多。
- taximeter
The formal technical name for the device; rarely used in everyday conversation.
- fare meter
Less common; emphasizes the cost display rather than the distance measurement.
用法筆記
Used almost exclusively in the context of taxis and rideshare vehicles. The phrase 'the meter is running' is also used figuratively to mean that costs are accumulating.
3. In US English, the way to spell the metric standard for measuring length — it eq
公尺
公制長度單位，等於100公分
In US English, the way to spell the metric standard for measuring length — it equals one hundred centimetres, or roughly thirty-nine inches.
The swimming pool at the sports centre is 25 meters long.
運動中心的游泳池長 25 公尺。
Christopher needed a three-meter-long cable for his new computer desk.
Christopher 需要一條三公尺長的電線來接他的新電腦桌。
The tallest building in the city stands over 300 meters high.
市內最高的建築物超過 300 公尺。
A student at the school sports day ran the 100-meter dash in under twelve seconds.
一名學生在學校運動會上以不到 12 秒的成績跑完 100 公尺短跑。
The apartment has a floor area of about 75 square meters.
這間公寓的室內面積大約 75 平方公尺。
- m (abbreviation)
The standard written abbreviation for meter, used in measurements (e.g., 100 m).
用法筆記
In British English the same word is spelled 'metre'. Both spellings share the same pronunciation. The compound adjective form uses a hyphen and singular: a ten-meter rope (not 'ten-meters rope').
常見錯誤
4. The ordering of stressed and unstressed syllables within a poetic line, or the g
韻律；格律
詩歌或音樂中的節奏規律
The ordering of stressed and unstressed syllables within a poetic line, or the grouping of accented and unaccented beats in a piece of music.
Indra studied the meter of Shakespeare's sonnets for her English literature exam.
Indra 為了英國文學考試，研讀了莎士比亞十四行詩的格律。
The poem's gentle iambic meter gave it a flowing rhythm when Kabir read it aloud.
Kabir 朗讀這首詩時，詩中平穩的抑揚格讓它讀起來很有流暢的韻律感。
pattern: iambic meter (common poetic type)
In music class the students practised clapping to a steady 4/4 meter.
音樂課上，學生練習跟著穩定的 4/4 拍子拍手。
The jazz piece shifted between 3/4 and 5/4 meter, making it tricky to follow.
那首爵士樂曲在 3/4 和 5/4 拍之間切換，因此很難跟得上。
- rhythm
A broader term covering any pattern of movement or sound; meter is specifically the structured, regular pattern of beats or stresses.
- time signature
In music notation, the time signature (e.g., 4/4) specifies the meter.
- foot
A poetic foot is a single unit of stressed and unstressed syllables; meter is built from repeated feet.
用法筆記
In poetry, common types include iambic meter (unstressed + stressed), trochaic meter (stressed + unstressed), and anapestic meter (two unstressed + one stressed). In music, meter is expressed as a time signature such as 4/4 or 3/4.
常見錯誤
meter — 動詞
1. To use a meter to check how much of a utility supply — for instance natural gas,
計量
用儀表測量用量
To use a meter to check how much of a utility supply — for instance natural gas, electrical power, or tap water — a home or business has consumed.
The building now meters each apartment's water usage separately to encourage conservation.
這棟大樓現在分別計量每戶的用水量，以鼓勵節約。
pattern: meter + noun phrase (what is measured)
Élise's family installed a device that meters their electricity consumption hour by hour.
Élise 一家人安裝了一台設備，可以逐小時計量他們的用電量。
The city council started metering all public buildings to track energy efficiency improvements.
市政府開始在所有公共建築安裝計量表，以追蹤能源效率改善情況。
Otis's landlord decided to meter the heating costs after tenants complained about unfair bills.
Otis 的房東在房客投訴帳單不公平後，決定分戶計量暖氣費用。
- measure
General term; metering is specifically about using a meter device to track usage over time.
- gauge
To gauge is to estimate or judge an amount, often without a precise instrument; metering implies precise measurement by a device.
- quantify
More formal; to quantify is to express an amount as a number, not necessarily using a physical meter.
文法句型
meter + noun phrase
用法筆記
Often used in the passive (is metered, are metered) when describing how a resource is measured. The object is typically a utility resource (water, gas, electricity, heat) rather than the meter itself.
常見錯誤
meter — 名詞
1. A word element added to the end of a noun to indicate an instrument that measure
測量儀器
用於詞尾，表示測量儀器
A word element added to the end of a noun to indicate an instrument that measures the thing named by the first part of the word — for example, a thermometer measures heat, a speedometer measures speed, and a barometer measures air pressure.
The nurse placed a thermometer under Noa's tongue to check for a fever.
護理師把體溫計這種測量儀器放在 Noa 舌下檢查是否有發燒。
The speedometer on Jenna's dashboard showed that she was driving at 110 kilometers per hour.
Jenna 儀表板上的時速表顯示她正以每小時 110 公里的速度行駛。
A barometer helps meteorologists meter changes in air pressure before a storm arrives.
氣壓計能幫助氣象學家在暴風雨來臨前測量氣壓的變化。
An odometer records the total distance a vehicle has travelled since it was built.
里程表記錄了車輛出廠後行駛的總距離。
The rain gauge in the garden, called a pluviometer, collected 15 millimeters of water overnight.
花園裡的雨量計收集了 15 毫米的雨水。
文法句型
[-meter] at end of compound nouns
用法筆記
This combining form is not a standalone word — it always appears as the second part of a compound noun (thermometer, speedometer, barometer, odometer, voltmeter). The first part typically names what is being measured (thermo- = heat, speed, baro- = pressure, od- = road/journey). Some of these words use the variant spelling '-meter' (US) or '-metre' (UK) but the meaning is the same.