“介词+which+名词”引导的定语从句

有朋友在本站“答疑中心”留言询问有关“介词+which+名词”引导的定语从句的题。参见：　　

www.yygrammar.com/guestbook/Guest_Reply.asp?TopicID=1853 　　

该问题由本站特约作者及专家顾问陈根花老师回答如下：　　

■如何理解“介词+which+名词”中的which　　

“介词+which+名词”引导定语从句时，其中的 which 含有 this 和 that 的意思。如：　　

We arrived at noon, by which time the demonstration was over.= We arrived at noon, and by that time the demonstration was over. 我们是中午到的，这时游行业已结束。　　

I may have to work late, in which case I’ll telephone. = I may have to work late, and in that case I’ll telephone. 我可能得晚点下班，那样我会打电话的。　　

■“介词+which+名词”中的“名词”可以省略吗　　

“介词+which+名词”结构之所以要在which后加上一个适当的名词，其目的有二：　　

一是为了使句意更明确。如：　　

He lost his temper, at which point I decided to go home. 他发脾气了，这时我就决定回家了。（此句摘自《牛津英语用法指南》；句中之所以在 which 后带上名词 point，是为了使句意明确，如去掉 point 而只说 at which，意思显然会受到影响）　　

The questions were all on opera, about which subject I know nothing. 那些问题都是关于歌剧的，我对歌剧一无所知。（此句摘自《牛津高阶英汉双解词典》；句中之所以在 which 后带上名词 subject，是为了使句意明确，如去掉 subject 而只说 at which，意思显然会有所变化）　　

二是为了强调（即：如果意思明确仍带上“名词”的话，是为了强调所带名词）。如：　　

The picking of the fruit, for which work they receive no money, takes about a week. 采摘水果这项工作没有工资，大约要花1周的时间。（此句摘自《剑桥高级英语词典》；句中 which 后面的名词 work 完全可以删除，而且不影响意思的表达，带上名词 work 是为了强调）　　

It was derived from Posidonius, for which reason much of its information may well have been out-of date. 它源于鲍森杜尼尔斯。由于这个原因，它的大部分信息很可能已经过时。（此处摘自柯林斯英语语法系列《限定词及数量词》；句中 which 后面的名词 reason 完全可以删除，而且不影响意思的表达，带上名词 reason 完全是为了强调）　　

■涉及“介词+which+名词”的试题分析（一）　　

对于你在问题提出的以下试题，分析如下：　　

They stayed with me for three weeks, _____ they drank all the wine I had. 　　

A. which B. which time C. during which D. during which time　　　　

就这道而言，很显然 D 是命题者设定的最佳答案，但 C 也不能算是错误答案。此句在which 后加上名词 time，主要是为了强调，没有它句子完全成立。如以下各句的 during which 后就没有名词 time：　　

August and September are the months of the year, during which most English people take their holidays. 一年中8月和9月是大多数英国人休假的月份。（摘自王文昌主编的《英语搭配词典》）　　

a night during which you do not get much rest （摘自《麦克米伦高阶美语词典》night词条）　　

…for all the hours of a week during which it is usual for people to work, study etc.（摘自摘自《朗文当代英语辞典》）　　

■涉及“介词+which+名词”的试题分析（二）　　

对于你在问题提出的另一试题，分析如下：　　

Suzhou, ______we spent last spring,is one of the most beautiful cities in China. 　　

A. where B.that C. which D. in which 　　　　

此题的选项 A 显然是正确的，但我认为 D 也是对的。如果把 D 改为 in which city，也是对的（但这是比较强调的用法）。　　

顺便说一句，上面这句最好不要改为限制性定语从句，因为专有名词前原则上是不用限制性定语从句修饰的（除非所修饰的专有名词不止一个，你用限制性定语从句修饰它是为了将它与其他的区分开来）。如：　　

I want the Mr Smith who signed this letter. 我要找在这封信上签名的那位史密斯先生。（摘自《牛津实用英语语法》）

比较：I met Mr. Smith, who told me the news. 我遇见了史密斯先生，他告诉了我这个消息。　　