TED演讲：重新定义字典(6)

 　　Lexicography is really more about material science. 字典编纂学是研究物质的科学。

　　We are studying the tolerances¹ of the materials that you use to build the structure of your expression: your speeches and your writing. 我们在研究不同物料的偏差，当你去架构你的表达的时候：你的演说和写作。

　　And then, often people say to me, "Well, OK, how do I know that this word is real?" 于是人们常常对我说，“那好，我怎么知道这词是真实存在的？”

　　They think, "OK, if we think words are the tools that we use to build the expressions of our thoughts, 他们认为，“好，如果词语是我们用于表达思想的工具，

　　how can you say that screwdrivers² are better than hammers? 那你怎么可以说起子比锤子要好？

　　How can you say that a sledgehammer is better than a ball-peen hammer?" 你怎么可以说这种锤子比那种锤子好？”

　　They're just the right tools for the job. 它们只是合适的工具而已。

　　And so people say to me, "How do I know if a word is real?" 由此，人们对我说，“我怎么知道一个词是真正的词？”

　　You know, anybody who's read a children's book knows that love makes things real. 任何读过儿童读物的人都知道，爱让事物变真实。

　　If you love a word, use it. That makes it real. 如果你爱一个词，用它。这样子，它就成真了。

　　Being in the dictionary is an artificial distinction. 词放在字典里只是人工的区分，

　　It doesn't make a word any more real than any other way. 这并没有让一个词变得比其它词更真实。

　　If you love a word, it becomes real. So if we're not worrying about directing traffic, 如果你爱一个词，它才会变真实。如果我们不需要花心思在指挥交通上，

　　if we've transcended³ paper, if we are worrying less about control and more about description, 如果我们超越了纸张，如果我们少担心控制而更关注表述，

　　then we can think of the English language as being this beautiful mobile. 那英语就成为一个美丽的活物了。

　　And any time one of those little parts of the mobile changes, is touched, any time you touch a word, 当其中的一个小组件变化了，被触动了--任何时候你接触到一个单词，

　　you use it in a new context, you give it a new connotation, you verb it, you make the mobile move. 你把它用到新的内容中，你赋予它新的涵义，你就让它活起来了--让它移动了。

1 tolerances   

n.宽容( tolerance的名词复数 )；容忍；忍耐力；偏差

参考例句：

• Not only must the centers decrease, but the tolerances to produce quality bonds must also decrease. 不仅中心间距减少，而且产生优质连接的容限也必须减少。 来自辞典例句
• Then analysis the reasons and influencing factors of such tolerances. 最后分析出现误差的原因以及影响因素。 来自互联网

2 screwdrivers   

n.螺丝刀( screwdriver的名词复数 )；螺丝起子；改锥；伏特加橙汁鸡尾酒

参考例句：

• No, I have everything: hammer, screwdrivers, all that stuff. 不用了，我什么都有了：锤子、螺丝刀，全套家伙。 来自休闲英语会话
• Aussies are injured each year by using sharp knives instead of screwdrivers. 每年有58个澳洲佬因使用锋利的刀子来代替螺丝刀而受伤。 来自互联网

3 transcended   

超出或超越（经验、信念、描写能力等）的范围( transcend的过去式和过去分词 )； 优于或胜过…

参考例句：

• He wanted assurance that he had transcended what was inherently ambiguous. 他要证明，他已经超越了本来就是混淆不清的事情。
• It transcended site to speak to universal human concerns. 它超越了场所的局限，表达了人类共同的心声。