VOA名师答疑2023 crazy和insane的用法

Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher, we will answer a question from Leah from Vietnam.

大家好! 本周《名师答疑》，我们回答来自越南的利亚的问题。

Hi! I'm Leah from Vietnam.

嗨! 我是来自越南的利亚。

I would like to know the difference between "insane" and "crazy".

我想知道insane和crazy的区别。

Thank you so much! Leah.

非常感谢! 利亚

Dear Leah, I really appreciate the question.

亲爱的利亚，感谢你的提问。

These two words may appear as synonyms¹ in some situations.

在某些情况下，这两个词是同义词。

But in recent years, their usage and meanings have changed with increased knowledge of mental health issues.

但近年来，随着人们对心理健康了解得更多，这两个词的用法和含义都发生了变化。

Let us start with “crazy.”

首先看crazy。

“Crazy” is mostly used as an adjective and can have several different meanings that are informal.

crazy主要用作形容词，有几种不同含义，是非正式语体。

Its first meaning is foolish, strange, wild or intense.

它的第一个意思是愚蠢的、奇怪的、狂野的或激烈的。

The crazy kittens knocked over their water bowl because they were so excited.

疯狂的小猫打翻了喝水的碗，因为它们太兴奋了。

In this example, the kittens were a little wild and foolishly spilled the water.

在这个例句中，小猫有点野，很傻地把水弄翻了。

A second meaning of “crazy” is really enthusiastic, interested in, or in love with something.

crazy的另一种意思是对某事充满热情、感兴趣或热爱某事。

We usually use the preposition “about” with the word.

通常与介词about连用。

The couple is crazy about each other; they are always holding hands.

这对情侣处于热恋中，总是手牵手。

And crazy can also mean mentally sick or unbalanced.

crazy也可以指精神有问题或精神不稳定。

This meaning is falling out of use because now there is more awareness² and sensitivity towards mental health issues.

这一含义正在被淘汰，因为现在人们对心理健康问题有了更多的认识，对此也更敏感。

An example from recent years can be seen in the TV show Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.

近年来的一个例子就是电视剧《疯狂前女友》。

She is the crazy ex-grilfriend. What? No, I'm not. She is the crazy ex-girlfriend. That's a sexist term. She is the crazy ex-girlfriend. Can you guys stop singing for just a second? She is so broken inside.

她是疯狂前女友。什么？我不是。她是疯狂前女友。这是个性别歧视的词。她是疯狂前女友。你们能闭嘴吗？她脑子里乱七八糟。

The song for the show is about the main character, Rebecca Bunch, an ex-girlfriend who is “crazy” and not doing well with her mental health.

这部剧的主角丽贝卡·邦奇是某人的前女友，她很crazy，精神健康状况不佳，这个主题曲就是关于她的。

At the time, people criticized the use of “crazy” in the show’s title.

当时，人们批评该剧片名中使用了crazy一词。

But the creator and star, Rachel Bloom, also helped to increase awareness of mental health issues through the TV show.

但该剧的主创兼主演蕾切尔·布鲁姆也通过这部电视剧提高了人们对心理健康问题的认识。

Let’s move on to “insane.”

接着再说insane。

“Insane” has a stronger, more negative association than crazy.

insane比crazy有更强烈、更负面的语义联想。

As an adjective, it was once used to describe people with severe mental illness.

作为一个形容词，它曾被用来描述患有严重精神疾病的人。

But it is no long used in the field of medicine.

但这个词已不再用于医学领域。

Today, some people, especially younger ones, use it to mean extremely foolish, irrational³, or not able to make good decisions.

现在，一些人，尤其是年轻人，用insane来表示非常愚蠢、不理智或不能做出正确的决定。

Those kinds of meanings are falling out of use.

这些意思已经不再使用了。

Another, more recent use as an adjective can mean shocking, outrageous⁴, or intense.

它的另一种最近的用法是表示令人震惊、骇人听闻的或激烈。

This meaning is similar to “crazy.”

这个意思类似于crazy。

Compare these examples:

比较一下这些例句：

I had an insane day at work.

我今天上班忙疯了。

In this example, “insane” means intense and busy.

在这个例句中，insane的意思是紧张和忙碌。

The pasta sauce smells insane.

这个意大利面的酱闻起来上头。

Here the sauce has an intense and wonderful smell.

这是指酱汁有一种浓烈而美妙的气味。

“Crazy” and “insane,” as adjectives, are used informally to mean foolish, intense, or not believable.

crazy和insane作为形容词，在非正式语体中表示愚蠢的、强烈的或不可信的。

If they are used this way, they can be synonyms.

如果以这种方式使用，它们是同义词。

Insane is stronger and often sounds more negative than crazy.

insane的语气更强烈，通常比crazy听起来更消极。

Crazy is more normal in informal speech when showing enthusiasm or even expressing love.

在表达热情甚至爱意时，crazy在非正式的话语中更常见。

But, both terms have in the past been used to describe people with mental illnesses.

但是，这两个词在过去都曾被用来描述患有精神疾病的人。

While both terms are still used informally, saying them in the wrong situation can be a mistake.

虽然这两个词都可以在非正式语体中使用，但用的情况不对也是一种语病。

I hope these explanations and examples have helped you, Leah!

利亚，希望这些解释和例句对你有所帮助！

And that’s Ask a Teacher. I’m Faith Pirlo.

以上就是本期《名师答疑》，我是费思·皮尔洛。

1 synonyms   

同义词( synonym的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• If you want to grasp English, you must carefully discriminate synonyms. 如果你想掌握好英语，你必须仔细区分同义词。
• Study the idioms and synonyms l wrote down before your test. 学考试前我给你写的习惯用语和同义字。

2 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

3 irrational   

adj.无理性的，失去理性的

参考例句：

• After taking the drug she became completely irrational.她在吸毒后变得完全失去了理性。
• There are also signs of irrational exuberance among some investors.在某些投资者中是存在非理性繁荣的征象的。

4 outrageous   

adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的

参考例句：

• Her outrageous behaviour at the party offended everyone.她在聚会上的无礼行为触怒了每一个人。
• Charges for local telephone calls are particularly outrageous.本地电话资费贵得出奇。