1
in a/the cove
名词用法：cove 指小海湾或山凹，常与介词 in 搭配。
The fishermen sheltered their boat in a small cove.
渔民们把船停在一个小海湾里避风。
小湾
先理解核心含义，再看它在真实句子里的用法。
小湾
a small inlet
The fishermen sheltered their boat in a small cove.
渔民们把船停在一个小海湾里避风。
凹形穹顶或拱道,尤指天花板的拱形部分
A concave vault or archway, especially the arch of a ceiling.
小海湾；小湾
a small inlet
小型海岸入口,尤指有高崖遮蔽船只免受盛行风影响的；小海湾
A small coastal inlet, especially one having high cliffs protecting vessels from prevailing winds; bight.
悬崖或山侧的小洞穴；窄洞
small or narrow cave in the side of a cliff or mountain
We found a quiet cove where we could swim without crowds.
我们找到了一个安静的小湾，可以在那里游泳而不受人群打扰。
The fishermen anchored their boat in a sheltered cove before the storm.
暴风雨来临前，渔民们把船停靠在一个避风的小湾里。
From the cliff, we could see a small cove with white sand and clear water.
从悬崖上，我们可以看到一个有白色沙滩和清澈海水的小湾。
名词用法：cove 指小海湾或山凹，常与介词 in 搭配。
The fishermen sheltered their boat in a small cove.
渔民们把船停在一个小海湾里避风。
动词用法：cove 作及物动词，表示使成内凹或拱形。
The carpenter coved the ceiling to create a soft curve.
木匠把天花板做成凹弧形，以形成柔和的曲线。
Not this
The boat sailed into a hidden cave to escape the storm.
Use this
The boat sailed into a hidden cove to escape the storm.
cove 指海边的小湾（inlet），不是洞穴；表示山洞或岩洞要用 cave。船躲风浪应进入小海湾，因此把 cave 改为 cove。
Not this
We anchored in cove and went swimming.
Use this
We anchored in a cove and went swimming.
cove 是可数名词，单数形式前不能没有限定词。第一次提到某一个海湾时，用 a cove；in cove 缺少冠词，不符合英语名词短语的规则。
Not this
The farm is in a peaceful cove among the mountains.
Use this
The farm is in a peaceful valley among the mountains.
cove 的核心义是“小海湾”（海边凹入处），不是“山谷”；描述山区里的低洼地要用 valley。中文旧译“山凹”不能直接搬用到英语句子。
Focus on the distinctions below. Other candidates are kept compact until a reliable usage note is available.
避风的小湾
The boat anchored in a sheltered cove.
船停泊在一个避风的小湾里。
僻静的小湾
We spent the afternoon in a secluded cove.
我们在一个僻静的小湾里度过了一个下午。
岩石小湾
Crabs hide in the rocky cove.
螃蟹躲在岩石小湾里。
沙质小湾
The sandy cove is a popular swimming spot.
这个沙质小湾是个受欢迎的游泳去处。
Use cove naturally, then get feedback on meaning, tone, grammar, and phrasing.
Revisit a common error or keep this word in your review list.
把 cove 想成海边一个 C 形凹口，像月牙咬进陆地，就是隐蔽的小湾。
语域：mixed 常见场景：geographical descriptions、nautical or travel writing、place names cove 作名词指小海湾或山凹，多用于地理、航海或文学性描述，日常口语不太常见；具体是否正式取决于语境，比较常见于书面表达或地名中。
cove 与 stove、drove、wove 押韵，均读 /oʊv/；但 love、glove、move 拼写相同（ove），发音不同：分别是 /lʌv/、/ɡlʌv/、/muːv/。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.