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Today's Ask a Teacher is all about the word "all," thanks to a question from our reader Ibrahim O.
今天的《名师答疑》节目全都与英文单词“All”有关，这要感谢读者Ibrahim O的提问。
He asks: What is the proper use of is and are? If I say, "All is empty" or "All are empty," which one is correct?
他问：怎样正确使用动词“is”和“are”？ 如果我说“All is empty”或“All are empty”（一切都是空的）哪个表达是正确的？
Hello, Ibrahim!
Ibrahim你好！
It sounds like you want to know whether "all" goes with the singular or plural form of the verb be. I can help.
听起来你想要知道单词“all”是与动词be的单数形式连用还是复数形式连用, 我可以帮忙。
You are asking about the use of "all" as a pronoun – a word that replaces a noun.
你问的是“all”作为代词的用法，代词是用来替代名词的。
"All" is used in a few different ways.
“all”作代词，有几种不同的使用方法。
The Cambridge Dictionary says the pronoun "all" can mean "every one (of), or the complete amount or number (of), or the whole (of)."
根据剑桥词典，代词“all”可以表示“每一个，总量、总数，或整个。”
It can also mean "the only thing."
它也可指“唯一的东西”。
Let's look at examples of each meaning.
让我们看一下每个含义的例子。
Let's say you are talking about a local football team.
假设你正在谈论一支本地的足球队。
Have you seen the Lions football players this season? All are in top form.
你有没有看过这个赛季的狮子会足球运动员？ 所有人都处于最佳状态。
You're talking about every member of the team in this sentence, so you should use the plural form of be, "are."
在这句话中，你在谈论这个团队中的每个成员，所以你应该使用动词be的复数形式“are”。
Next, imagine your friend calls you and asks about your new job.
接下来，假设你的朋友给你打电话并询问你的新工作。
All is well at work these days.
这些天工作一切都好。
This sentence means that everything at work is going well.
这句话的意思是工作中的每件事都很顺利。
You use the singular form of be, "is."
所以你用动词be的单数形式“is”.
Finally, let's look at how "all" can mean "the only thing," as in these examples:
最后，让我们看一下这些例子是怎样用“all”表示“唯一的东西”：
All I know is that the train is late. I don't know why.
我只知道火车晚了。 我不知道为什么晚。
All I want is to be alone.
我想要的只是单独待着。
Notice that, in these examples, the be verb is in the singular form, "is."
注意在这些例子中动词be用的是其单数形式“is”。
Our reader Ibrahim asked about these two sentences: "All is empty" and "All are empty."
我们的读者Ibrahim问到了这两句话：“All is empty”和“All are empty”。
The simple answer is this: "All are empty" can be correct, depending on the context.
简单的回答就是： "All are empty" 可以是正确的，这取决于上下文。
"All is empty" is not incorrect, but it is not very common.
"All is empty" 也不是错误的，但这并不常见。
You might read it in literature or poetry.
你可能会在文学作品或诗歌中读到。
Let's say I see you with a container of plastic water bottles.
假设我看到你带着装有塑料水瓶的容器。
I might ask, "Can I have a bottle of water?" But the bottles are empty.
我可能会问，“我可以喝一瓶水吗？” 但瓶子都是空的。
You could answer, "All the bottles are empty."
你可以回答，所有的瓶子都是空的。
In this example, you are thinking about every single bottle in the container.
在这个例子中，你考虑到容器中的每个瓶子。
In a story, you might read, "The town is quiet.
在一个故事中，你可能会读到，小镇很安静。
No cars or people are on the street. All is empty."
街上没有汽车或人。一切都是空荡荡的。
In the above sentence, the writer is thinking of the town as a whole.
在上面的句子中，作者把城镇看做一个整体。
Here's a rule to remember:
这里有个规则要记住：
If all refers to everything as one whole, then use "is."
如果“all”指代每个事物为一个整体，那就用谓语动词“is”。
If all refers to every person or thing in a group, then use "are."
如果“all”指代每个人或事物在一个集合里，那就用谓语动词“are”。
I hope this helps you to use "all!"
我希望这可以帮助你使用“all”！
And that's Ask a Teacher!
以上就是本期名师答疑的全部内容。
I'm Jill Robbins.
我是吉尔·罗宾斯。
