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Prepositions can be tricky in any language, including English.
介词在任何语言中可能都很棘手，英语中也是。
And English has a lot of them. But, do not worry! Ask a Teacher is here to make things easier.
英语中有很多介词。但是不要担心，名师答疑可以让你学起来更容易。
Today's question comes from Edgar of Venezuela. Here it is:
今天的问题来自委内瑞拉的Edgar，下面是他的问题：
I would like to know the difference between "among" and "between." Thanks!
我想知道“among”和“between”之间的区别。谢谢!
Hello Edgar, that is an excellent question.
你好Edgar，这个问题问得很好。
This week, I had a choice between this question and many others. But I chose this one.
本周，我在这个问题和许多其他问题之间进行了选择。但我选择了这个。
Did you see how I used "between"?
你看到我怎么用“between”这个词了吗?
I see that you also used the word correctly when you asked about the "difference between" the words. Good job!
我看到你在问两个词的区别的时候也正确地使用了这个单词。非常好!
"Between" and "among" are two prepositions that generally mean "in the middle of two or more things."
“Between”和“among”是两个介词，通常指“在两件或两件以上事物之间”。
But how do we know which to use?
但是我们怎么知道什么情况下该用哪一个呢？
Many English learners are taught that we use "between" for two things and "among" for three or more.
许多英语学习者学习过，我们用“between”表示两者之间，用“among”表示三者或三者以上。
It is true that we usually use "between" to talk about things that are clearly separate, as you and I both did.
确实是，我们通常用“between”来谈论那些明显分开的事物，就像“你”“我”一样。
However, the use of "between" is not limited by the number of things.
不过，使用“between”时并不受事物数量的限制。
We use "among" to talk about things within a group. They are not clearly separate.
我们用“among”来谈论一个群体内的事物。它们不是明显分开的。
"Among" means "in or through a group of people or things."
“among”的意思是“在一群人或事物之间”。
Here are some sentences to compare:
下面有一些句子可以进行比较：
He is choosing between Spanish, French and Italian.
他在西班牙语、法语和意大利语中做出选择。
He is choosing among the languages.
他在这些语言中任选其一。
The word "between" named the languages while "among" spoke about them as part of a group.
这里“between”指的是具体的语言之间，然而 “among”说的是整个语言群体中的一部分。
Now compare these:
现在来比较一下这些句子：
A liger is a hybrid between a lion and a tiger.
狮虎兽是狮子和老虎的杂交种。
Ligers are among the many animal hybrids in the world.
狮虎兽是世界上众多的杂交动物之一。
The word "between" named the animals, while "among" spoke of them as being part of a group.
“between”一词指的是具体的动物之间，而“among”则指的是动物群体中的一部分。
A few things to note:
需要注意的是：
In everyday spoken English, Americans usually do not use the word "among" as it sounds a little formal.
在日常英语口语中，美国人通常不使用“among”这个词，因为它听起来有点正式。
Instead, we might use "between" or a different preposition.
不过，我们可以用between或者不同的介词。
The word "between" is also used to talk about time, space and other measurements,
“between”这个词还可以用来谈论时间、空间和其他测量数据，
such as in "Please arrive between the hours of 10am and 1pm"
比如“Please arrived between the hours of 10am and 1pm”（请在上午10点到下午1点之间到达）
and "There was a meter of space between my bike and the cars."
和“There was a meter of space between my bike and the cars”（我的自行车和汽车之间有一米的距离）。
And that's Ask a Teacher.
以上是本期名师答疑的全部内容。
I'm Alice Bryant.
我是艾莉丝·布莱恩特。
