plastic
plastic — 名詞
1. a light, man-made material made by chemical processes from oil, used to make a h
塑膠；塑料
由石油製成的人造輕質材料
a light, man-made material made by chemical processes from oil, used to make a huge range of everyday objects such as bottles, bags, toys, and chairs.
Maya bought a water bottle made of clear, hard plastic for her morning runs.
Maya 買了一個用透明硬塑膠做的水壺，準備早上跑步時用。
uncountable use for the material itself
The toy boat was made of cheap, brittle plastic that snapped in Carlos's hand.
那艘玩具船是用便宜又脆的塑膠做的，在 Carlos 手裡就斷掉了。
common collocation: made of plastic
Every summer, fishermen in Kenting pull tons of plastic from their nets along with the fish.
每年夏天，墾丁的漁民都會從漁網裡跟魚一起拉出好幾噸的塑膠。
Aunt Mei keeps her rice in a tall container made from a hard, clear plastic that never cracks.
Mei 阿姨把米裝在一個高高的容器裡，那容器是用堅硬透明的塑膠做的，從來不會裂。
Lina's school is trying to use less plastic at lunch by giving every child a metal cup.
Lina 的學校正在減少午餐使用的塑膠，發給每個小朋友一個金屬杯。
用法筆記
Often uncountable when talking about the bulk material (a lot of plastic), but countable when referring to a particular type or piece (a hard plastic / two different plastics).
常見錯誤
2. the business or area of industry that makes plastic, especially as a field of st
塑膠業
生產塑膠的產業或相關工作領域
the business or area of industry that makes plastic, especially as a field of study or work.
After graduating, Marcus took a job in plastics at a large factory in Hsinchu.
畢業後，Marcus 進入新竹一家大工廠的塑膠業上班。
often plural form 'plastics' for the industry
Lina's uncle has worked in plastic for over thirty years and knows every machine on the factory floor.
Lina 的叔叔在塑膠業工作三十多年，工廠裡每一台機器他都熟。
work in plastic / plastics
The town of Yunlin depends heavily on plastics, with three big factories sitting beside the river.
雲林這個小鎮的經濟非常依賴塑膠業，河邊就有三家大型工廠。
Sarah is studying plastics engineering because she wants to design safer food packaging.
Sarah 在念塑膠工程，因為她想設計更安全的食品包裝。
- plastics industry
the full, more explicit phrase, often preferred in formal writing
用法筆記
Frequently appears as the plural form 'plastics' when referring to the industry or as a field of study (plastics engineering, plastics manufacturing); the singular 'plastic' for the industry is rarer and more informal.
常見錯誤
3. a casual word for credit cards and debit cards, used when talking about paying w
信用卡
口語中泛指信用卡或簽帳卡
a casual word for credit cards and debit cards, used when talking about paying without cash or a cheque.
Marcus paid for the whole dinner with plastic because no one at the table had cash.
Marcus 整桌晚餐都用信用卡結帳，因為桌上沒人帶現金。
pay with plastic
The little market near Lina's house only takes cash, no plastic.
Lina 家附近的小市場只收現金，不能刷卡。
negative context: no plastic accepted
At the night market, Lina's friends now tap plastic on their phones instead of digging out paper bills.
在夜市裡，Lina 的朋友現在都用手機刷卡付帳，不再翻找紙鈔。
Sarah's father warned her not to live on plastic during her first year at university.
Sarah 的父親提醒她，大一那年不要太常靠刷卡過日子。
- credit card
the precise, neutral term for one specific card
- card
shorter and equally informal, but refers to one card or to the method
- cash
physical money in coins and notes, the usual contrast
用法筆記
Informal and almost always uncountable; most natural in casual speech and writing about everyday spending. In formal contexts, prefer 'credit cards' or 'card payments'.
常見錯誤
plastic — 形容詞
1. having plastic as its main material; made out of plastic rather than wood, metal
塑膠製的
字面：以塑膠為主要材質製成
having plastic as its main material; made out of plastic rather than wood, metal, glass, or another substance.
Lina drank her juice through a plastic straw, then put it in the recycling bin.
Lina 用塑膠吸管喝完果汁，然後把它丟進回收桶。
common noun pairing: plastic straw / bag / bottle
The children built a tall tower from colourful plastic bricks on the kitchen floor.
孩子們在廚房地板上用彩色的塑膠積木堆出一座高塔。
plastic + countable noun
Marcus packed his sandwich in a plastic box so it would not get crushed in his bag.
Marcus 把三明治裝進塑膠盒，這樣放進包包就不會被壓壞。
The cheap plastic chair cracked under Uncle Wei the moment he sat down.
Wei 叔叔一坐下，那張便宜的塑膠椅就裂開了。
The café near Sarah's office now serves iced coffee in paper cups instead of plastic ones.
Sarah 公司旁邊那家咖啡店現在改用紙杯裝冰咖啡，不再用塑膠杯。
用法筆記
Almost always used directly before a noun (a plastic spoon), not after a linking verb. To say what something is made of after 'be', use 'made of plastic' rather than 'is plastic'.
常見錯誤
2. looking or feeling fake, shallow, or mass-produced — for example a smile that se
做作的；虛假
看起來不真誠或量產感很重
looking or feeling fake, shallow, or mass-produced — for example a smile that seems forced, or a person who hides their real feelings behind a polished image.
The TV host wore a wide, plastic smile that never quite reached her eyes.
那位電視主持人臉上掛著一個僵硬做作的笑容，眼神卻一點也沒在笑。
classic collocation: plastic smile
Sarah found the new café too plastic, with fake flowers on every table.
Sarah 覺得那家新咖啡店太做作，每張桌上都擺著假花。
predicative use after a linking verb
Driving home from the concert, Marcus complained that the band's new album sounds plastic and over-produced.
從演唱會開車回家的路上，Marcus 抱怨那個樂團的新專輯聽起來很假、製作得太過頭了。
The actors in Lina's favourite soap opera all spoke in plastic voices no real person would ever use.
Lina 最愛看的那部肥皂劇，演員講話都用一種很假的腔調，現實中根本沒人會這樣講。
- fake
more general; 'plastic' specifically suggests a polished, mass-produced kind of fakeness
- artificial
more neutral and formal; 'plastic' is sharper and judgemental
- phony
informal American synonym, often used of people who hide their real feelings
用法筆記
Always carries a negative judgement: the speaker thinks something is hollow, fake, or lacking warmth. Often paired with words like smile, voice, charm, or personality.
常見錯誤
3. (of a substance such as clay, wax, or warm metal) able to be pressed or shaped i
可塑的
材料夠軟，可被壓塑成新形狀
(of a substance such as clay, wax, or warm metal) able to be pressed or shaped into a new form and then keep that form.
Wet clay is highly plastic, so Lina could press it into any shape with her fingers.
濕黏土的可塑性很高，所以 Lina 用手指就能把它壓成任何形狀。
predicative use; typical subjects are clay, wax, dough
Once Mr Chen heated the candle wax in a pan, it turned soft and plastic in his hands.
Mr Chen 把蠟燭蠟放進鍋裡加熱後，蠟在他手裡就變軟、變得可塑。
becomes plastic; pairs with 'mould' or 'shape'
The artist chose a plastic clay that holds fine details after the kiln dries it.
那位藝術家挑了一種可塑性高的黏土，窯燒乾了之後仍能保留細節。
Dr Tanaka explained that hot metal becomes plastic long before it actually melts.
Dr Tanaka 解釋說，金屬其實在還沒真正熔化之前，就已經變得可塑了。
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 1 (made of plastic) and sense 2 (fake): this technical sense describes how a material behaves under pressure or heat. Most common in art, craft, geology, and materials science.
常見錯誤
plastic — 形容詞構詞成分
1. used at the end of scientific words to mean 'developing' or 'forming new tissue'
形成組織的
字尾，表「形成、發育新組織」
used at the end of scientific words to mean 'developing' or 'forming new tissue', as in 'neoplastic' (forming new growth) or 'hyperplastic' (growing in number too fast).
Dr Tanaka explained that the word 'neoplastic' describes cells that keep forming new tissue.
Dr Tanaka 解釋說，「neoplastic」這個字是指持續生成新組織的細胞。
ending -plastic = forming / developing
In her biology notebook, Sarah wrote that 'hyperplastic' means a tissue is growing too quickly.
Sarah 在生物筆記裡寫下，「hyperplastic」是指某個組織增生得太快。
appears at end of medical adjectives
Professor Lin warned her medical students that any word ending in '-plastic' in pathology refers to tissue growth.
Lin 教授提醒她的醫學系學生，病理學裡任何以「-plastic」結尾的字，都和組織生長有關。
Marcus learnt that 'aplastic anemia' is a disease where the body stops forming enough new blood cells.
Marcus 學到「aplastic anemia」是指身體無法製造足夠新血球的疾病。
用法筆記
This is a word-ending, never a stand-alone adjective. It only appears stuck onto a Greek-based stem (neo-, hyper-, a-, dys-) and is almost entirely confined to medical and biological writing.
2. used at the end of scientific words to make an adjective that matches a related
形容詞字尾
字尾，將-plasm等名詞變成形容詞
used at the end of scientific words to make an adjective that matches a related noun finishing in any of these forms: -plast, -plasm, -plasy, or -plasty — for example 'protoplasmic' (from 'protoplasm') or 'rhinoplastic' (from 'rhinoplasty').
The biology teacher noted that 'protoplasmic' is the adjective form of 'protoplasm', the living matter inside a cell.
生物老師指出，「protoplasmic」是「protoplasm」（細胞內的活物質）的形容詞形式。
links the adjective to a noun in -plasm
Dr Tanaka used the term 'rhinoplastic surgery' when explaining nose-shape operations to her patient.
Dr Tanaka 在向病人解釋鼻型手術時，使用了「rhinoplastic surgery」這個詞。
links to a noun in -plasty (rhinoplasty)
Sarah noticed that 'chloroplastic' on her exam paper simply means 'related to a chloroplast'.
Sarah 注意到考卷上的「chloroplastic」其實只是指「與葉綠體有關的」。
Dr Tanaka recommended an autoplastic graft, using skin from the patient's own thigh to repair the burn.
Dr Tanaka 建議採用 autoplastic 移植，從病患自己的大腿取皮來修復燒傷處。
用法筆記
Distinguish from the related ending in sense 1: this one simply turns a -plasm / -plast / -plasty noun into an adjective, while sense 1 carries the active meaning 'developing' or 'forming'.