词汇辨析：lessen, decrease, reduce, diminish, decrease, dwindle的区别

15/09/2019单词辨析评论87,784,445字数 3122阅读10分24秒阅读模式

摘要

在上一篇双语阅读的文章中，我们看到有个英语单词：“decrease”，这个词的中文意思是：“减少，减小；减少量”。那么，你知道它和单词lessen, reduce, diminish, decrease, dwindle之间的区别吗？我相信单词辨析在英语学习的过程中会困扰很多人，尤其是像在经济学人、纽约时报这类型的外刊中，更是很常见。

今天借着这个这篇文章，西贝君来给大家分析下这几个词的区别：文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

👉🏿 文章目录：

相同之处

这些词都有“减少，变少”的意思。文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

不同之处

lessena：普通用词，与decrease近义。指数目、程度、价值、实力等的减少。
decrease：指逐渐地、不断地减少。
diminish：侧重大小数量和重要性的不断减小，强调减小的部分。
reduce：普通用词，含义广。指数量、程度的降低或减少。
dwindle与decrease：同义，指逐渐减小，但强调变得越来越少终至全无。

我们分别通过不同的例子来看看：文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

lessen

文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

来看一个来自国家地理杂志的例子：文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

But for members of groups marginalized because of race or ethnicity, involvement in activities that promote group pride can help lessen or offset the effects of racial discrimination and social prejudice.— Erin Blakemore, National Geographic, "Race and ethnicity: How are they different?," 12 June 2019
但对于因种族或族裔而被边缘化的群体成员来说，参与促进群体自豪感的活动有助于减轻或抵消种族歧视和社会偏见的影响。

decrease

来看一个来自洛杉矶时报的例子：文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

Michelle John, superintendent of Paradise Unified School District, said the student population in her schools has decreased by more than 50% since the fire.— Los Angeles Times, "Gov. Gavin Newsom’s first pet? An otter, he tells 2nd-graders in Paradise, Calif.," 21 Aug. 2019
天堂联合学区（Paradise Unified School District）负责人米歇尔·约翰（Michelle John）说，火灾发生后，学校的学生人数减少了50%以上。

reduce

来看一个来自纽约时报的例子：文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

In a nod to those concerns, administration officials insisted in a briefing on Thursday with reporters that their plans would create more competition in housing finance and would reduce costs for borrowers, not raise them.— New York Times, "Trump Moves to Send Mortgage Giants Back to Private Sector," 5 Sep. 2019
并为了回应这些担忧，美国政府官员周四在一次简报会上向记者坚称，他们的计划在住房金融领域创造更多竞争，此举将降低借款人的成本，而非增加。

diminish

来看一个来自科学美国人的例子：文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

The rule’s already-slim CO2 benefits are further diminished by the Trump administration’s choice to consider only domestic greenhouse gas emissions and not the global benefits of avoiding climate change.— Jean Chemnick, Scientific American, "How the Numbers on the EPA’s New Climate Rule Stack Up," 21 June 2019
特朗普政府选择只考虑国内温室气体排放，而不顾及避免气候变化的全球利益，这一规则也将本来就微乎其微的二氧化碳效益进一步降低。

decrease

来看一个来自今日美国的例子：文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

While violence directed at trans people peaked in 2017 with 29 slain, 2018 showed a decrease with 26 deaths.— Elinor Aspegren, USA TODAY, "Report: LGBTQ-hate violence increased during Pride month, Stonewall's 50th anniversary," 16 Aug. 2019
虽然针对跨种族者的暴力在2017年达到顶峰，共计29人被杀，这一数据2018年减少至26人。

dwindle

来看一个来自华盛顿邮报的例子：文章源自西贝博客-https://qinghe.me/how-to-differ-words-lessen-decrease-reduce-diminish-decrease-dwindle.html

Traditional animal agriculture is looking to the lessons learned by the dairy industry, which saw cow’s milk sales dwindle by $1.1 billion last year, much of that business scooped up by alternative milks such as almond and oat.— Laura Reiley, Washington Post, "Veggie burgers were living an idyllic little existence. Then they got caught in a war over the future of meat.," 25 Aug. 2019
乳品业的牛奶销售额去年减少了11亿美元，传统的畜牧业正在吸取乳品业的教训，其中大部分业务被杏仁和燕麦等替代牛奶所占据。