- [countable]
a plan, thought or suggestion, especially about what to do in a particular situation 想法;构思;主意 It would be a good idea to call before we leave. 我们离开之前打个电话是个好主意。 That's a great idea! 我对去苏格兰度假的想法已不感兴趣了。 I’ve had a brilliant idea! 我有一个绝妙的主意! I knew this was a bad idea. 我知道这不是个好主意。 The latest big idea is to make women more interested in sport. 最近的流行思想是促进妇女对体育的兴趣。 The surprise party was Jane's idea. 那次惊喜聚会是简的主意。 - idea for something
He already had an idea for his next novel. 他已经构思好了下一部小说。 We’re having a meeting to try to come up with ideas for fund-raising. 我们正在开会,试图提出筹资的想法。 - idea of something
The idea of a new museum was first discussed two years ago. 新博物馆的想法是两年前首次讨论的。 - idea of doing something
I like the idea of living on a boat. 我喜欢在船上居住的主意。 We've been toying with the idea of (= thinking about) getting a dog. 我们一直有意无意地想着养条狗。 Her family expected her to go to college, but she had other ideas. 她的家人希望她上大学,但她另有打算。 I don't know what to do, but I'm open to ideas. 我不知道该干什么,不过我想听听大家的建议。 It might be an idea (= it would be sensible) to try again later. 稍后再试或许是明智的。 It seemed like a good idea at the time, and then it all went horribly wrong. 那在当时似乎是个好主意,但后来却铸成大错。 Ben is the ideas man and the others do the day-to-day work. 本是创意人,其他人负责日常工作。 - (North American English usually)
Ben is the idea man. 本是创意人。
Extra ExamplesTopics Suggestions and advicea1Brainstorming is a good way of generating ideas. 集思广益是出主意的好办法。 We're always looking for new ideas. 我们总是在寻找新的想法。 Do you have any ideas for a present for Lara? 你想好要给拉腊什么礼物了吗? Family therapy is used as an alternative idea to medication. 家庭疗法被用作药物治疗的替代方案。 Give careful thought to how to structure your ideas in the essay. 要认真思考在文章中如何谋篇布局。 Group counselling is used as an alternative idea to punishment. 以集体辅导作为惩罚以外的另一种方案。 He joined the company as an office assistant with big ideas. 他进这家公司做办公室助理时胸怀大志。 He kept turning the idea of resigning over in his mind. 他心里反复掂量着辞职的事。 He's obsessed with the idea of getting a motorbike. 他一门心思想买一辆摩托车。 Her ideas are drawn mainly from Chinese art. 她的灵感主要是来源于中国艺术。 His ideas flowed faster than he could express them. 他的点子不断涌现,让他根本来不及表达。 How could we translate the idea into business reality? 我们怎样才能把这个构想转化为实际业务呢? I have an idea about how to tackle the problem. 我有一个解决问题的思路。 I hope he's not still harbouring ideas about asking me out. 我希望他别再想着约我外出。 I met up with a designer to bounce a few ideas around. 我见了一位设计师,聊了几个想法。 I think the whole idea is ridiculous. 我觉得这整个想法荒诞可笑。 I wanted to put the idea out there. 我想把这个想法公布出来。 I wanted to take the week off, but my boss had other ideas. 我想这周休假,可老板另有安排。 I'm toying with the idea of leaving my job. 我正在考虑要不要辞掉工作。 It might be an idea to leave a note on the door for Marcos. 在门上给马科斯留张便条也许是个不错的主意。 It was a struggle to get our ideas across. 费了很大力气才算讲明白了我们的想法。 It's useful to have someone to bounce ideas off. 能有个人谈谈想法很有用。 Most employees welcome the idea of a ban on smoking. 大多数员工赞成禁烟。 She accused the company of stealing her idea. 她指控公司剽窃了她的创意。 She had the idea of advertising on the internet. 她有了在因特网上做广告的念头。 Some people started recycling, and the idea caught on. 一些人开始循环使用物品,接着这一理念就流行开来了。 Some students started wearing denim, and the idea caught on. 几个学生率先穿起了粗棉布,接着就流行起来。 That idea didn't work out so well. 那个方案不太成功。 The book introduces the key ideas of sociology. 该书介绍了社会学的关键概念。 The book puts across complex ideas in a way anyone can understand. 这本书将复杂的观点阐述得清楚明了。 The germ of his idea came from watching a bird make a nest. 他的想法萌发自观察小鸟筑巢。 The idea behind the ceremony is to keep the gods happy to ensure a good crop. 这种仪式的本意是博取众神的欢心,以确保庄稼丰收。 The idea eventually led to the invention of the telephone. 这个想法最终导致了电话的发明。 The idea for the Olympics originated with Pierre de Coubertin. 举办奥运会的想法是由皮埃尔・德・顾拜旦首先提出来的。 The idea for the invention came to him in the bath. 这个发明是他洗澡的时候灵机一动想到的。 The idea had long been mooted but nothing had been done to put it into practice. 这个想法提出很长时间了,但是还没采取任何措施去付诸实践。 The idea has now blossomed into a successful mail-order business. 这个设想现已发展成一项成功的邮购业务。 The movie is based on a simple idea, but a powerful one. 这部电影是根据一个简单但很有创意的想法拍出来的。 They managed to push the idea of expanding through the committee. 他们设法让委员会通过了扩展规划。 We were asked to suggest ideas for improving efficiency. 我们被要求提交提高效率的方案。 What gave you the idea to go freelance? 你怎么会产生做自由职业者的念头? a system of decision-making that stifles original ideas 扼杀创见的决策体制 He's definitely an ideas person. 他绝对是个有想法的人。 I'd like to explore this idea in a bit more detail. 我想更详细地探讨一下这个想法。 I've got a good idea. 我有一个好主意。 It seemed like a good idea at the time. 当时这主意好像不错。 My original idea was to use amateur actors. 我原本打算用业余演员。 She's always full of bright ideas. 她总是满脑子聪明的想法。 That's a brilliant idea! 那是个绝妙的主意! The basic idea is that we all meet up in London. 基本设想是我们都到伦敦会合。 We need to have a meeting in order to bounce a few ideas around. 我们需要开个会,以便交流一些想法。 Who on earth came up with that idea? 到底是谁想出这个主意的? It's a great forum for sharing ideas. 这是一个分享想法的好论坛。 You need to support your ideas with concrete examples. 你需要用具体的例子来支持你的想法。 Let's develop this idea a little further. 让我们进一步发展这个想法。 The conference is an opportunity for an exchange of ideas. 这次会议是一个交流思想的机会。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- bright
- brilliant
- clever
- …
- have
- come up with
- dream up
- …
- come into somebody’s brain
- come into somebody’s head
- come into somebody’s mind
- …
- idea about
- idea for
- idea of
- …
- be open to ideas
- the germ of an idea
- have other ideas
- …
- [uncountable, singular] idea (of something)
a picture or an impression in your mind of what somebody/something is like 印象;概念 The brochure should give you a good idea of the hotel. 这本小册子详细介绍这家旅馆。 I had some idea of what the job would be like. 我对于这份工作有了一些了解。 This film changed the very idea of what an outer space movie could be. 这部电影改变了外太空电影的概念。 She doesn't seem to have any idea of what I'm talking about. 她对我所说的似乎一点也不懂。 An evening at home watching TV is not my idea of a good time. 晚上待在家里看电视,我不认为是什么赏心乐事。 If this is your idea of a joke, then I don’t find it very funny. 如果你觉得这是开玩笑,那我觉得这一点也不好笑。 I don't want anyone getting the wrong idea (= getting the wrong impression about something). 我不希望任何人有所误会。
Extra ExamplesI had an idea of where it might be. 我想到了它可能在哪儿。 He gave me a rough idea of what was wanted. 他大致告诉我需要的是什么。 Swimming in an icy river is not my idea of fun. 在冰冷的河里游泳我可不觉得有什么乐趣。 The idea of going to his rescue amused her. 她一想到要去解救他就觉得好笑。 They seem to have got the idea that we will be giving them a lift. 他们似乎觉得我们会让他们搭顺风车。 I don't relish the idea of sharing an office with Tony. 我可不愿意和托尼共用一间办公室。 People have a romantic idea of the police force. 人们对警察存有幻想。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- clear
- concrete
- precise
- …
- get
- espouse
- have
- …
- amuse somebody
- appeal to somebody
- please somebody
- …
- idea about
- idea behind
- idea of
- …
- [countable]
an opinion or a belief about something 意见;看法;信念 the experiences that shaped her ideas 塑造她思想的经历 - ideas about something
He has some very strange ideas about education. 他对教育有些非常奇怪的看法。 - ideas on something
Her ideas on the family are pretty old-fashioned. 她对家庭的看法相当过时。 - ideas of something
These photographs challenge conventional ideas of beauty. 这些摄影作品挑战了传统的审美观念。 - idea that…
She rejects the idea that product quality has suffered. 她拒绝接受产品质量受到影响的观点。
Extra ExamplesTopics Opinion and argumenta2They had to reconsider their ideas in the light of new evidence. 他们只得根据新证据重新调整思路。 She has some funny ideas about how to motivate staff. 关于如何调动员工的积极性,她有些有趣的想法。 She has very definite ideas about what kind of a job she wants. 她很清楚自己想要什么样的工作。 He holds very different ideas to mine about discipline. 他对纪律的看法和我大相径庭。 She always tries to impose her own ideas on the rest of the team. 她总想把自己的想法强加给团队其他成员。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- clear
- concrete
- precise
- …
- get
- espouse
- have
- …
- amuse somebody
- appeal to somebody
- please somebody
- …
- idea about
- idea behind
- idea of
- …
- [singular]
a feeling that something is possible or is true (认为某事可能发生的)感觉 Where on earth did you get that idea? 你到底是从哪里得到这个想法的? - idea that…
What gave you the idea that he'd be here? 是什么让你想到他会来这里? - idea where, who, etc…
I have a pretty good idea where I left it—I hope I'm right. 我记得很清楚把它落在哪儿了,但愿我是对的。
Extra ExamplesI have a pretty good idea who might have said that. 我心里很明白说那话的人可能是谁。 The idea never crossed my mind. 我从没起过这个念头。 The idea that I was only interested in making money is ludicrous. 认为我只对赚钱感兴趣是荒谬的。 The idea that she was involved in any way is absolutely ridiculous. 她以任何方式卷入其中的想法都是绝对荒谬的。 Whatever gave you that idea? 你怎么会那样想!
- the idea[singular]
the aim or purpose of something 目标;意图 You'll soon get the idea (= understand). 你很快就会明白的。 - idea of something
What's the idea of the game? 这个游戏的目的是什么? - idea of doing something
The whole idea of going was so that we could meet her new boyfriend. 我们去的唯一目的就是要见她的新男朋友。 - with the idea of doing something
They buy other people's tickets with the idea of reselling them. 他们买别人的票是想倒卖。
Synonyms purposepurpose- aim
- intention
- plan
- point
- idea
- purpose what something is supposed to achieve; what somebody is trying to achieve:
Our campaign’s main purpose is to raise money. 我们这次活动的主要目的是募款。
- aim what somebody is trying to achieve; what something is supposed to achieve:
She went to London with the aim of finding a job. 她去伦敦是为了找工作。 Our main aim is to increase sales in Europe. 我们的主要目标是增加在欧洲的销售量。
purpose or aim? Your purpose for doing something is your reason for doing it; your aim is what you want to achieve. Aim can suggest that you are only trying to achieve something; purpose gives a stronger sense of achievement being certain. Aim can be somebody’s aim or the aim of something. Purpose is more usually the purpose of something: you can talk about somebody’s purpose but that is more formal.用 purpose 还是 aim? - intention what you intend to do:
I have no intention of going to the wedding. 我无意去参加婚礼。 She’s full of good intentions but they rarely work out. 她虽然处处出于善意,却很少行的通。
- plan what you intend to do or achieve:
There are no plans to build new offices. 现在没有建新办公楼的计划。
intention or plan? Your intentions are what you want to do, especially in the near future; your plans are what you have decided or arranged to do, often, but not always, in the longer term.用 intention 还是 plan? - point (rather informal
) the purpose or aim of something: 指意图、目的、理由: What’s the point of all this violence? 这些暴行的意图何在? The point of the lesson is to compare the two countries. 本课的目的是比较这两个国家。
- idea (rather informal
) the purpose of something; somebody’s aim: 指目的、意图: The whole idea of going was so that we could meet her new boyfriend. 我们去的唯一目的就是要见她的新男朋友。 What’s the idea behind this? 这背后的意图是什么?
point or idea? Point is a more negative word than idea. If you say What’s the point…? you are suggesting that there is no point; if you say What’s the idea…? you are genuinely asking a question. Point, but not idea, is used to talk about things you feel annoyed or unhappy about: There’s no idea in… • I don’t see the idea of…. Patterns用 point 还是 idea? - with the purpose/aim/intention/idea of doing something
- somebody’s intention/plan to do something
- to have a(n) purpose/aim/intention/plan/point
- to achieve/fulfil a(n) purpose/aim
plan/thought计划;思想
impression印象
opinion意见
feeling感觉
aim目标
Word Originlate Middle English (as a term in Platonic philosophy): via Latin from Greek idea ‘form, pattern’, from the base of idein ‘to see’.
Idioms
buck your ideas up
- (British English, informal)
to start behaving in a more acceptable way, so that work gets done better, etc. 振作起来
give somebody ideas | put ideas into somebody’s head
have no idea | not have the faintest, first, etc. idea
- (informal)
used to emphasize that you do not know something 丝毫不知道 ‘What's she talking about?’ ‘I've no idea.’ “她在讲什么?” “我一点也不了解。” He hasn't the faintest idea how to manage people. 他根本不懂得人事管理。 I had no idea she’d had such a difficult life. 我不知道她的生活如此艰难。 I don’t have any idea where he is. 我不知道他在哪里。 I haven't got the faintest idea what she meant. 我一点儿也不明白她的意思。 He hadn't had the slightest idea about what had been going on. 他对所发生的事情毫不知情。
have the right idea
to have found a very good or successful way of living, doing something, etc. 找到好的(或成功的)方式;找对路 He's certainly got the right idea—retiring at 55. 他真的想通了,打算在 55 岁时退休。 The party had the right idea, but failed to win over the voters. 这个党派的想法对路,但没能赢得选民。
that’s an idea!
that’s the idea!
you have no idea…