self
self — 名詞
1. The combination of a person's character, thoughts, and emotions that makes them
自我；本質
構成個人特質的性格與意識
The combination of a person's character, thoughts, and emotions that makes them a unique individual, separate from others.
After the long trip, Jin felt he had got back to his true self again.
長途旅行結束後，Jin 覺得自己終於恢復了真實的自我。
true self — one's real personality
Meera's confident self emerged only after she rebuilt her strength through months of therapy.
Meera 歷經幾個月的治療後重建了體力，她充滿自信的自我才逐漸顯現出來。
confident self / true self — a particular version of one's personality
Leo's calm self completely disappeared when he saw the damage to his car.
Leo 看到車子受損時，他一向冷靜的自我完全不見了。
Rachid's public self was the life of every party, but his private self enjoyed quiet evenings alone.
Rachid 在聚會中展現的自我活潑外向，但他私下的自我卻喜歡安靜獨處。
Dylan's older self would probably give very different advice about that problem.
Dylan 年長後的自我，大概會對那個問題給出完全不一樣的建議。
- ego
More psychological or Freudian; often implies the conscious sense of self, especially in academic contexts
- identity
Broader; covers social, cultural, and personal dimensions of who someone is
- character
Focuses on moral qualities and typical behaviour rather than the whole inner being
- persona
The image or role a person presents to others, possibly different from their true self
文法句型
someone's + self
the + adjective + self
one's + adjective + self
用法筆記
Often used with an adjective before 'self' to describe a particular aspect or version of a person (e.g. 'my old self', 'her usual self', 'his better self'). The uncountable form refers to the whole of a person's being; the countable form focuses on a specific version or aspect.
常見錯誤
2. A focus on your own benefit, gain, or pleasure, with little or no concern for ot
私利；己利
只關心自己好處的心態
A focus on your own benefit, gain, or pleasure, with little or no concern for other people.
Maja made the choice out of pure self, thinking only about what she would gain.
Maja 出於純粹的私利做了那個選擇，眼裡只有自己能得到什麼。
out of self — acting from personal advantage
The company's focus on self rather than service led to many customer complaints.
那間公司只顧自身利益而不顧服務品質，引發了大量客戶投訴。
Lien knew her brother's choice was driven by self, not concern for the family.
Lien 看得出來，哥哥的決定是出於私利，而非對家人的關心。
Sana refused the promotion because accepting it would mean acting only out of self.
Sana 拒絕了升遷，因為接受那份工作代表她只能為自己的利益行事。
- self-interest
More neutral and specific; can describe rational pursuit of one's own goals without the negative moral tone
- selfishness
Stronger negative connotation; implies a personality flaw rather than a momentary motivation
- egoism
Philosophical or technical term for the ethical stance that one's own interest is the proper goal
- altruism
Selfless concern for the well-being of others
文法句型
out of self
motivated by self
用法筆記
Almost always used in fixed phrases such as 'out of self', 'motivated by self', or 'driven by self'. Rarely used with an article. This sense often carries a negative moral judgement — it implies selfishness rather than healthy self-interest.
常見錯誤
self — 字首
1. Added to nouns, adjectives, or past participles to show that something is done b
自我；自身
表示「自身的」或「由自身的」
Added to nouns, adjectives, or past participles to show that something is done by, to, or for the person or thing in question.
Nkechi took a self-defence workshop after several break-ins in her neighbourhood.
Nkechi 居住的社區發生了幾起闖入事件後，她報名參加了防身術課程。
self-defence — protecting oneself
Rafael's self-confidence grew each time he finished a difficult coding project.
Rafael 每完成一項困難的程式專案，自信心就增長一分。
The workshop taught Chidi simple self-care routines for managing daily stress.
那場工作坊教會了 Chidi 一些簡單的自我照顧方法，用來管理日常壓力。
Tendai designed a self-cleaning filter for the village's main water tank.
Tendai 為村裡的主要水塔設計了一款自潔濾水器。
Andrés bought a self-help book to improve his study habits and time management.
Andrés 買了一本自助書，改善自己的讀書習慣和時間管理能力。
文法句型
self- + noun
self- + adjective
self- + past participle
用法筆記
Produces very common compound words in English. The second element can be a noun (self-confidence), an adjective (self-aware), or a past participle (self-taught). These compounds are typically written with a hyphen, though some common ones have lost the hyphen over time (selfish, selfless are now separate words).
常見錯誤
self — 代名詞
1. A formal reflexive pronoun meaning 'myself', 'yourself', 'himself', etc., used i
自身；本人
正式反身代名詞
A formal reflexive pronoun meaning 'myself', 'yourself', 'himself', etc., used instead of the standard person-specific forms.
In the Gothic novel, the study door swung open of its own self as the clock struck midnight.
在那本哥德小說中，書房的門在午夜鐘響時自動打開了。
of its own self — literary/archaic reflexive construction
The poet wrote nightly letters to his own self, filling each page with memories of the war.
那位詩人每晚寫信給自己，用文字填滿每一頁戰爭回憶。
In the soliloquy, the prince speaks to his own self about the burden of leadership.
在那段獨白中，王子對自己訴說著領導的重擔。
The curator hung the paintings by her own self, refusing any help from the staff.
那位策展人獨自一人掛好了畫作，拒絕了工作人員的任何協助。
用法筆記
This pronoun usage is rare in modern everyday English. It appears in formal, literary, or legal contexts. In standard English, person-specific reflexive pronouns (myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) are used instead.
self — 形容詞
1. Being the original or natural form, without any treatment, dye, or alteration.
原色；天然
未經染色或改變的原始狀態
Being the original or natural form, without any treatment, dye, or alteration.
The cloth was woven from self wool, keeping the natural cream colour of the sheep's fleece.
那塊布是用原色羊毛織成的，保留了綿羊羊毛天然的奶油色澤。
self wool — natural, undyed fabric
The florist ordered self tulips because their single, solid colour suited the wedding design.
花店老闆訂購了原色鬱金香，因為它們純粹單一的色調很適合婚禮布置。
self tulips — flowers of a single natural colour
The botanical garden listed self irises as a rare category, each bloom showing a single pure shade.
植物園將原色鳶尾花列為稀有品種，每一朵花都呈現單一的純淨色調。
A self finish on the walnut sideboard kept the wood grain visible without darkening the surface.
胡桃木餐邊櫃上了原色處理，木材的紋理清晰可見，沒有被染色加深。
用法筆記
Mostly found in technical or specialist contexts. In textiles, 'self fabric' means fabric in its natural colour without dye. In botany, 'self' describes flowers of a single natural colour. Learners rarely need this sense.
self — 動詞
1. To fertilise itself using its own pollen, without needing pollen from another pl
自花授粉
植物用自身花粉受精
To fertilise itself using its own pollen, without needing pollen from another plant.
Certain pea varieties can self in cool weather, setting pods without bees for pollination.
某些豌豆品種在涼爽天氣中可以自花授粉，無需蜜蜂就能結莢。
self — (of a plant) fertilise itself using its own pollen
The seed bank let the oldest rice plants self to preserve the rare heirloom variety.
種子銀行讓最老的水稻植株自花授粉，以保存這個稀有的傳家品種。
Soybean plants in the sealed greenhouse self early in the morning before the pollen dries out.
封閉溫室裡的黃豆植株在清晨花粉乾燥之前進行自花授粉。
The botanists noted that the wild strawberry plants could self when pollinators were scarce that season.
植物學家注意到，在那個授粉媒介稀缺的季節，野生草莓植株可以自花授粉。
- self-pollinate
The full, more common form; 'self' as a verb is an abbreviation
- self-fertilise
Equally technical; used interchangeably in biology
- cross-pollinate
Fertilisation using pollen from a different plant
用法筆記
Almost exclusively used in botany and agriculture. The noun form 'selfing' is more common than the verb. Most English speakers use phrases like 'self-pollinate' or 'self-fertilise' instead of the bare verb 'self'.
self — 構詞成分
1. A highly productive element that forms established compounds (nouns, adjectives,
自我；自行
構成形容詞與名詞，表示動作由自身發出
A highly productive element that forms established compounds (nouns, adjectives, participles) expressing a relationship directed back to the subject — for example, self-awareness, self-taught, and self-esteem are standard vocabulary items that have become fixed in the language.
Romi became more self-aware after keeping a daily journal for three months.
Romi 連續寫了三個月的日記後，變得更有自覺了。
self-aware — conscious of one's own character
The school's self-government programme gave students real power over classroom rules.
學校的自治制度讓學生在課堂規則上擁有實質的決定權。
Esteban is a self-taught guitarist who learned everything from online videos.
Esteban 是一位自學吉他手，所有的技巧都是從網路影片學來的。
Aoi's low self-esteem made it hard for her to speak up in meetings.
Aoi 的自尊心很低，這讓她在會議上很難開口發言。
After the workshop on self-advocacy, Emil felt ready to request the workplace changes he needed.
參加完自我倡導工作坊後，Emil 覺得自己準備好了，可以提出工作上需要的改變。
文法句型
self- + adjective
self- + noun
self- + past participle
用法筆記
This combining form overlaps with the prefix entry but is broader in scope. It attaches to a wider range of roots and produces both adjectives (self-aware, self-taught) and nouns (self-awareness, self-esteem, self-advocacy). Unlike the bare prefix 'self-', the combining form can create words where the second element is not separately meaningful ('selfish', 'selfless' are now independent words).