中式英語之鑑:生於威尼斯一個商人的家裏

263. 馬可波羅以一二五四年生於威尼斯一個商人的家裏。

[誤] Marco Polo was born in 1254 at a Venetian merchant family.

[正] Marco Polo was born in 1254 into a Venetian merchant family.

注：說生於什麼人家，即俗稱投生於某家，故英語要用 into，不用 at。他例如 No man is born into this world whose work is not born with him.(James Russel Lowell)。如果是指由什麼人即父母而生，則要用 of，例如 He was born of Chinese parents(of humble parentage, of poor fisherfolk in Holland 等）。但家庭在這種意義之下即可用 of，例如 He was born of a wealthy (noble, good) family. 又 But in every child born of man lurks some of greatness ---waiting for the food.(H. G. Wells) 生於什麼人家，有時又可譯成 to 字，例如 She was born to the purple; diaMonds suited her. 這個 to 是指的對象，如 Two children were born to them.（他們生有兩個孩子。）Mark Twain was born to Samuel Langhorne Clemens, in Florida, Mo. November 30, 1835.（馬克吐溫以1835年11 月30日，於米蘇里洲佛羅利達市，作爲桑米朗洪克來門斯的兒子而出生的。）