Let’s look at this sentence from the Smithsonian Magazine today and see what English knowledge we can glean from it with our systematic grammatical framework:
One species, the common blanket octopus, wields venomous tentacles ripped from the Portuguese man o’ war as weapons.
其中一個物種——普通毯子章魚——會揮舞從僧帽水母身上扯下來的有毒觸手作為武器。
(Sara Hashemi, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 August 2026. Article: “Why Are Some Octopuses So Smart?”)
Once we have a grammatical framework in place, the easiest thing to learn from real-life examples is individual words and their grammatical characteristics when expressing a particular meaning -- because everything you “need” for analysis is already right there in the sentence.
For example, in this example sentence, we see the word “wield.” If you didn’t know this word before, you can take this opportunity to learn it -- not just its meaning in context but also its exact grammatical requirements when expressing this particular meaning.
If we just analyze this sentence very simply, we can see it is made up of one clause, as there is only one finite verb. The finite verb is “wields” (in simple present, active voice). The subject is “one species, the common blanket octopus” (more on these two “alternate” subject noun phrases in the next email, 2️⃣ of 3️⃣).
“Wields” is the finite verb here, so we know it’s a verb. Its meaning, as we can see from the simple translation of the sentence, is “揮舞” or “運用.”
By analyzing the sentence, we can see a noun phrase directly after “wields” here -- “venomous tentacles (ripped from the…).” If there is a noun phrase directly after a verb, it means that, when the verb is expressing this meaning, it takes a direct object.
So, we know that “wield” (揮舞/運用) requires a direct object noun phrase after it. When you use the verb in your own sentences to express this meaning next time, don’t forget the direct object.
What else can we learn about this verb from this sentence?
We can see that the direct object of “wield” is something physically dangerous and intimidating -- “venomous tentacles.” So, we know that the “thing” (direct object) we talk about “wielding” or “brandishing” is often something dangerous, or a “weapon.”
Now, if you see another sentence with this verb next time, you can consolidate as well as add to this new knowledge. For example:
The samurai wielded his sword with remarkable skill.
那名武士以高超的技巧揮舞著他的劍。
If you see this sentence next time, you can remind yourself again that “wield” takes a direct object, and the direct object is often a “weapon,” like “his sword” here.
Or, if you see this sentence next time:
Despite her junior position, she wielded considerable influence within the company.
儘管她職位不高，她在公司內仍具有相當大的影響力。
In this sentence, the direct object of the verb “wield” is “considerable influence” -- which is not a physical “weapon” but rather abstract.
You can then add to your knowledge that the “thing” we “wield” can be a figurative “weapon” or something powerful and intimidating in the figurative sense -- like “power,” “influence, or “authority,” etc.
In the next email, we will talk about something else we can learn from the sentence at the top.
今天我們來看看我在 Smithsonian Magazine 中看到的這個句子，看看在我們有系統的文法框架的基礎上，可以從中學到甚麼英文知識：
One species, the common blanket octopus, wields venomous tentacles ripped from the Portuguese man o’ war as weapons.
其中一個物種——普通毯子章魚——會揮舞從僧帽水母身上扯下來的有毒觸手作為武器。
(Sara Hashemi, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 August 2026. Article: “Why Are Some Octopuses So Smart?”)
當我們有了文法框架之後，從真實例子中最容易學到的，就是個別字詞在表達某個意思時的意思及文法特徵——因為我們要用作分析的所需素材，其實都已經在句子裏面了。
例如，在這個例句中，我們看到 “wield” 這個字。如果你之前不認識這個字，就可以趁這個機會學習——不單是學它在這個語境中的意思，也學清楚它在表達這個意思時確實的文法要求。
我們只很簡單地分析這個句子，便可以看到它由一個子句組成，因為整句只有一個限定動詞。限定動詞是 “wields”（簡單現在式、主動語態的字形）。主語是 “one species, the common blanket octopus”（這兩個是「互換交替」的主語名詞組這一點，會在下一封電郵 2️⃣ of 3️⃣ 再談）。
“Wields” 在這裏是限定動詞，所以我們知道這字是一個動詞。從句子的簡單翻譯也可以看到，它的意思是「揮舞」或「運用」。
透過分析這個句子，我們可以看到 “wields” 後面直接有一個名詞組——“venomous tentacles (ripped from the…)” （從僧帽水母身上扯下來的有毒觸手）。從文法框架我們知道，如果一個動詞後面直接有一個名詞組，就表示這個動詞在表達這個意思時，需要一個直接賓語。
所以，我們知道 “wield”（揮舞／運用）後面需要一個作為直接賓語的名詞組。下次自己造句用這個動詞表達這個意思時，不要忘記這個直接賓語---如果沒有，句子在文法結構上便不對。
我們還可以從這個句子學到這個動詞的甚麼知識呢？
我們可以看到，“wield” 的直接賓語是一樣具有危險性、令人畏懼的東西——“venomous tentacles”（有毒觸手）。所以，我們知道我們所 “wield” 或「揮舞」的「東西」（直接賓語），很多時候是危險的東西，或者一種「武器」。
那麼，下次再看到另一個有這個動詞的句子時，就可以一方面鞏固這個新知識，一方面再加上新的知識。例如：
The samurai wielded his sword with remarkable skill.
那名武士以高超的技巧揮舞著他的劍。
下次看到這個句子時，你就可以再次提醒自己，“wield” 會帶一個直接賓語，而這個直接賓語很多時候是一種「武器」，例如這裏的 “his sword” （他的劍）
又或者，下次看到這個句子：
Despite her junior position, she wielded considerable influence within the company.
儘管她職位不高，她在公司內仍具有相當大的影響力。
在這個句子中，動詞 “wield” 的直接賓語是 “considerable influence”——它並不是實際可「揮舞」的「武器」，而是抽象的「影響力」。
所以，你就可以在原有的知識上再加一點：我們所 “wield” 的「東西」，也可以是比喻上的「武器」，或者在比喻意義上強大、令人畏懼的東西——例如 “power”、“influence” 或 “authority”等。這些都是可以 “wield” 的。
下一封電郵，我們會再看看同一句子，談談我們還可以從中學到的另一樣東西。