英语学习：你会正确使用try和attempt吗？

时文摘要

本文介绍了try和attempt这两个单词的含义和用法上的区别。

Question:

I would like to know what is the difference between “attempt” and “try”. Thank you very much.

Answer:

The words “try” and “attempt” have very similar meanings. But there is a small yet important difference between “try” and “attempt”. “Try” is more informal. You use it while speaking with friends and family. “Attempt” is more formal. You often use it while speaking and writing about reaching a goal.

Try

“Try” means to make an effort to do something. When you try something, you may not care about the result. The effort is on doing the activity more than reaching a goal. We also use “try” for doing something that we may have not done before. Native English speakers often use the word “try” when speaking about something they want to do in daily activities.

Attempt

“Attempt” also means to try to do something. The meaning is similar to “try” but the result is more important than just doing the activity. You use it to show an activity or a situation that is more difficult or more official. Yes, you still can use “try” in place of “attempt”. But you want to use “attempt” for something special and important in someone’s life.

1. What does the underlined word “informal” mean in Chinese?

A 友好的.

B 频率高的.

C 非常规的.

D 非正式的.

2. We often use “try” _______.

A when we care about the result

B When we want to reach a goal

C When we want to do something new

D When we want to do something interesting

3. When we can use both “try” and “attempt”, we still use “attempt” to show _______.

A the situation is special and important