喜樂美語

核心畫面

You set out to achieve something, and afterwards you ask: did it actually do the job? This noun names the answer to that question — how far the thing worked. The two formal senses listed under this entry point instead at whether a rule is in force and how much real power it has; those ideas are normally carried in English by the adjective 'effective' or the phrase 'come into effect', so treat them as belonging to that neighbouring form rather than as everyday meanings of this noun.

可以想成：你做了一件事，事後回頭問一句「它到底有沒有發揮作用？」——這個名詞指的就是這個問題的答案，也就是「有效的程…更多收起可以想成：你做了一件事，事後回頭問一句「它到底有沒有發揮作用？」——這個名詞指的就是這個問題的答案，也就是「有效的程度」。至於另外兩個偏正式的意思（規定是否生效、實際有多少效力），在英文裡通常是由形容詞 effective 或片語 come into effect 來承擔的，看到時可以把它們當成鄰近那個形式的用法，而不是這個名詞的日常意思。

From the picture

正式的效力（偏向 effective 的用法）

這兩個意思講的不是「有沒有用」而是「算不算數、有多少實權」。要注意英文平常把這層意思放在別的形式上：說規定開始生效是 The rule is effective from 1 May 或 comes into effect，不太會用 effectiveness 這個名詞。

having come into effect · noun · C1

the fact that a rule, agreement, or system has officially started and now counts.

生效

Also in this word

how well it works · noun · B2

the fact that something works well and gives the result that people wanted.

成效；有效性

原始詞典資料3 筆記錄

以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。

effectivenessnoun/ɪˈfɛk.tɪv.nɪs/

  • 1

    The property of being effective, of achieving results.

    • The effectiveness of the drug was well established.
  • 2

    The capacity or potential for achieving results.

    • The problem with these precedents is that the Security Council did not authorize intervention in Syria, and an intervention there will thus harm, not help, the Council’s credibility and effectiveness.
  • 3

    The degree to which something achieves results.

    • He questioned the effectiveness of the treatment.
    • United were having more possession but a sign of the effectiveness of Liverpool's defence was that it took the visitors 76 minutes to force Mignolet into serious action, when he dived to punch away a shot from substitute Nani.

資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。